Ethno-medico studies on the uses of plant in the Chakma community of Khagrachari district, Bangladesh

Abstract

Traditional folklore studies have obtained a substantial momentum in the recent past, throughout the case of the world including Bangladesh. A survey work was done in Khagrachari district in the Chakma community and studied medicinal plants that are used by the Chakma community. All the plants were listed along with their scientific name, chakma name, local name, habit, family, used parts and the ethnomedicinal uses. A total of 50 plant species in 47 genera under 37 families have been identified which are used to treat 29 different ailments by the traditional healers. Apocynaceae is the most frequently used family in context to the number of species used by the Chakma Community. The other important families used for medicinal plants are Caesalpiniaceae, Amaranthaceae, Rutaceae, Araceae, Zingiberaceae, Asteraceae, Liliaceae and Combretaceae respectively. Mostly leaves are used for the formulation of folk medicine. An attempted has been made to document the ethnophy to therapeutics and the folk claims of the plant parts used along with their medicinal uses.