Use of medicinal plants in the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 by the population of Carolina, Maranhão, Brazil

Abstract

The objective of this research was to carry out the ethnobotanical study of the medicinal plants used by the population of Carolina, MA in the prevention and treatment therapies of COVID-19, their justifications and influencing sources. The study consisted of a qualitative-quantitative, exploratory research carried out along the lines of a case study, carried out in the city of Carolina, MA, where two questionnaires were applied to 120 residents of the city. The results showed 56.63% of the research participants stated that they used medicinal plants only for prevention, 12.05% used them only in treatment and 31.32% of the participants used it both in the prevention and treatment of COVID-19. The species with the highest percentages of citations, used in the prevention, treatment and in both cases of COVID-19, were Peumus boldus (boldo), Citrus limon (lemon), Allium sativum (garlic), Curcuma longa (turmeric). These results show that the population made use of several medicinal species with emphasis on Lippia alba and Peumus boldus, for different diseases, with emphasis on preventing and treating the symptoms of COVID-19. It is important to note that so far there are no studies that prove the therapeutic action of these plants against COVID-19, but the literature reports several properties regarding the symptoms caused by it.

DOI:https://doi.org/10.56238/sevened2024.025-021