Short Communication: Ethnomedicinal plants used as antiglycemic by tribes around Achanakmar Amarkantak Biosphere Reserve, Madhya Pradesh, India

Abstract

Abstract. Baghel BS, Verma M, Chaudhry S. 2024. Short Communication: Ethnomedicinal plants used as antiglycemic by tribes around Achanakmar Amarkantak Biosphere Reserve, Madhya Pradesh, India. Asian J Ethnobiol 7: 122-129. The diabetes issue has become severe in Indian society, where most people consume carbohydrate-rich foods. The real problem in addressing the issue of diabetes is the duration of the course of treatment using allopathic medications, which creates problems of side effects and are not affordable for rural people. Hence, people of such regions resort to traditional ethnomedicinal practices as most healers are known to them. The study aims to document the indigenous plants used for treating diabetes around Achanakmar Amarkantak Biosphere Reserve (AABR), Madhya Pradesh, India. The data were collected with a semi-structured questionnaire by interview method with all the selected healers by identifying plants used for diabetes treatment. We interviewed 200 traditional healers across 48 villages in Madhya Pradesh. Forty plant species belonging to 35 genera, and 30 plant families were used as antidiabetics. Most of the plants were Apocynaceae (4), and Malvaceae (3), remaining had less contribution; mostly herbs were used 42.5%, trees 32.5% and shrubs 25%. The most frequent part used was leaf 28%, and the common method of preparation was infusion 33%. The Fidelity Level (FL) was highest at 98% for Terminalia arjuna and Pterocarpus marsupium, followed by Bauhinia vahlii at 92% and Tinospora cordifolia and Moringa oleifera at 88%. The greatest ICF was ranked at 0.602 for T. arjuna and P. marsupium, followed by B. vahlii at 0.589 and M. oleifera at 0.581. Studying indigenous plant ingredients for medicinal benefits and how they work could lead to safe, effective natural drugs through refinement and processing.