With Nina Feldman. 1954, La Habana: Ediciones CR, Germosn-Robineau L: Farmacopea Vegetal Caribea. Natural Healing with Herbs, Prescott Valley, AZ: Hohm Press, 1987. And thats it. In: Hammer K, Esquivel M, Knpffer H, editor. " Some people from the Caribbean believe theres almost nothing cerasee doesnt work for. At the same time, posology is embedded in specific rituals that are performed during the preparation of the remedies, which on the one hand serve to memorize the proper dose, especially when dealing with toxic allelochemicals, and on the other hand contribute to the efficacy of the remedy by invoking supernatural forces and entities related to those rituals and numbers. Among these, there are plants that are important medicinals for Haitians, such as Artemisia absinthium, Phyllanthus procerus, and Priva lappulacea, as well as culturally relevant Haitian food plants that are also used in the realm of traditional medicine, such as Abelmoschus esculentus, Cajanus cajan, Corchorus siliquosus, and Xanthosoma sagittifolium, and some species used for ritual and religious baths such as Allophylus cominia, Alpinia speciosa, and Vitex trifolia. Mints such as catnip are widely used both in Haiti and America. Kloss describes it as "good in all female troubles, will increase menstrual flow much better than quinine for the purposes for which quinine is used" (323). We aim to make significant improvements in the health of the Haitian population while keeping our company strong. We identified about twenty species more or less currently used by the women . Audrey Rowe is Jamaican. I used Kloss's Back to Eden and Santillo's Natural Healing with Herbs for my American source books. In these contexts, the main forces that drive change in the cultural domain of traditional medicinal knowledge are: (1) the adaptation of the original knowledge to the new (host) environment (through substitution of no longer accessible traditional remedies with locally available ones, and the incorporation of remedies from the host culture into migrants' own pharmacopoeia); and (2) the development of strategies to obtain the original remedies (through cultivation, gathering, or marketing of the original remedies, and the development of social networks that link migrants to relatives and friends in the place of origin) [47,48]. Because of the importation of workers for plantation slavery, a vast body of knowledge departed Africa for the New World. Seabrook, William B., The Magic Island, 1929. In contrast, the use of the same species with different medicinal purposes may be the result of migrant's adoption of some species through experimentation with plants found in the new environment (e.g. GUID:FB7A69D3-5F4B-4A23-86B2-F73B140ADACB. [14]. CAS The last group of herbs I would like to comment on are three that could be called "female herbs". Besides Haitians, other ethnic groups in the Province include Jamaicans and Chinese. Among first generation migrants, twenty are originally from the cities of Les Cayes (Creole name Okai) and Port Salut (Creole name Posal), in the South of Haiti, whereas four lived in or near Port-au-Prince. Additional file 1 Medicinal plants used by Haitian immigrants and their descendants in the Province of Camagey, Cuba.Inventory of medicinal plants used by Haitian immigrants and their descendants in the Province of Camagey, Cuba. The Secrets of Haiti's Living Dead | Harvard Magazine It's not just a weed. Why some Caribbean immigrants seek out this wild To some, the wild green plant with five point leaves may be just an annoying weed, but to many in South Floridas Caribbean community Jamaicans, Bahamians,Trinidadians, Haitians -- its the "it" plant for just about every ailment. religious and traditional practices have merged with medicine. The present investigation shows that Haitian migrants and their descendants living in the Province of Camagey (Cuba) have medicinal uses for 123 plant species belonging to 112 genera in 63 families. Chemical Ecology. Its popular name suggested the plant was used in creating zombies. Google Scholar. Edited by: Pieroni A, Price LL. News reports immediately following the disaster documented displaced Haitians sitting . The rapid disappearance of Haitian migrants' traditional culture due to integration and urbanization suggests that unrecorded ethnomedicinal information may be lost forever. The magic . She learned from her mother, who learned from her mother, who learned from her mother and so on. A tummy ache? Information was obtained from semi-structured interviews with Haitian immigrants and their descendants, direct observations, and by reviewing reports of traditional Haitian medicine in the literature. Volpato G, Godnez D, Beyra A: Migration and ethnobotanical practices: The case of tifey among Haitian immigrants in Cuba. The incorporation of local remedies into their own pharmacopoeia occurred as a consequence of factors such as cultural contacts and exchanges between Haitians and Cubans and of personal experimentation or imitation of local practices by migrants. They relied heavily on homegardens, wild plants, and on traditional ethnobotanical knowledge and practices in order to survive. The research project has been funded by a grant to Gabriele Volpato from the CERES Programme for Innovative PhD Research at Wageningen University (CEPIP-W). Otherwise, they live in hospices either in Camagey or in smaller cities and villages. A fresh pot of cerasee or asosi tea, a traditional plant used across the Caribbean for all ailments. Although they are also reported in Beyra et al. Pieroni A, Mnz H, Akbulut M, Baser KHC, Durmuskahya C. Traditional phytotherapy and transcultural pharmacy among Turkish immigrants living in Cologne, Germany. CD ROM Atlas Etnogrficos de Cuba. Information was obtained . To locate the respondents, we first focused on the areas in the province where historical and oral records indicate the presence of Haitian communities (e.g. Miel de gira is considered as a panacea, and its use is apparently widespread among Cuban and Cuban-Haitian populations as a preventive and a remedy, when it is taken in small spoons in doses of from one to five spoons per day [16]. Additional file 1 lists the plant species cited by informants in alphabetical order according to their scientific name, along with their botanical families, vernacular Cuban and Haitian names (as reported by informants during the fieldwork), voucher specimen numbers, parts used, preparation of the remedies, medicinal use, and frequency of mention. In these contexts, the main forces that drive change in the cultural domain of traditional medicinal knowledge are: (1) the adaptation of the original knowledge to the new (host) environment (through substitution of no longer accessible traditional remedies with locally available ones, and the incorporation of remedies from the host culture into migrants' own pharmacopoeia); and (2) the development of strategies to obtain the original remedies (through cultivation, gathering, or marketing of the original remedies, and the development of social networks that link migrants to relatives and friends in the place of origin) [47, 48]. "The Bible say so. 105 e/ngel y Pobre, Camagey, Cuba. Among first generation migrants, twenty are originally from the cities of Les Cayes (Creole name Okai) and Port Salut (Creole name Posal), in the South of Haiti, whereas four lived in or near Port-au-Prince. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine While I was able to match several Haitian herbs with American counterparts, I was a little disappointed that I could find no mention of the "biggies" of American herbal pharmacoepeia in Caribbean plant botany. Since Haitians have very limited access to the attentions of doctors and modern medicine when ill, their reliance on leaf-doctoring is essential to remedying their sicknesses and maintaining a state of good health. Once they found themselves in Cuba, the main strategies that Haitian migrants used to maintain their ethnomedicinal practices depended principally on the floristic similarity between Haiti and Cuba (i.e. 1998, 63: 1-179. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the The Coolness of Cleansing | ReVista If they or their leaf doctor sense that any of these factors are out of balance in their body, they dose themselves with an decoction (tea) of sarsaparilla root. This story originally ran on September 22, 2015. GV and DG conceived and designed the research. But, says Davis, "there were a lot of problems with the Datura hypothesis. Primero Simposio de Botnica; La Habana. "y tienen faxones y fabas muy diversos de los nuestros" Origin, Evolution and Diversity of Cuban Plant Genetic Resources. The decoction of fresh herbal components is by far the preferred means to prepare medicinal remedies, accounting for almost 60% of all preparations, which is similar to what has been found in traditional Cuban medicine [15, 17, 19]. Journal of Ethnopharmacology. In its basic preparation, the inner mass is cooked, triturated, and then stirred, sometimes being left one night outside of the house before stirring. Guanche J, Moreno D: Caidije. (Colon, 154).. Generally, decoction is used for hard and ligneous parts, including coriaceous leaves, while infusion is used only for soft leaves and shoots, especially from aromatic plants (e.g. Some 22 herbal mixtures are reported, including formulas for a preparation obtained using the fruit of Crescentia cujete. Generally, decoction is used for hard and ligneous parts, including coriaceous leaves, while infusion is used only for soft leaves and shoots, especially from aromatic plants (e.g. Senna is the main ingredient in many modern day American laxatives. Often, a decoction of leaves and aerial parts is prepared, sometimes in combinations of different species, and left to cool, or otherwise these vegetal parts are smashed and directly added to the bath water. While most women in America go to licensed medical doctors to find relief for gynecological problems, the vast majority of Haitian women cannot avail themselves of expert medical care. Haitian migrants played an important role shaping Cuban culture and traditional ethnobotanical knowledge. Different plant species are added to the basic preparation according to the specific medicinal purpose for which it is prepared: for example, Cissus spp. Scientific name, botanical family, vernacular Cuban and Haitian name(s), voucher specimen number, part(s) used, preparation, use(s), and frequency of mention are reported for 123 plant species used for medicinal purposes. Most Haitians were illiterate, crowded into barracks (barracones), paid a miserable salary, and compelled to hand over their savings to reimburse the cost of their passage [7, 9]. 1991, 22: 55-76. Gabriele Volpato. Ozark people are surely not as impoverished as Haitians and they have better access to doctors and hospitals, but the majority of improvements to this area of Missouri have come within the past fifty years, and before that time, an old-fashioned way of curing one's ills was the tradition. Nowadays Haitians are mostly integrated into mainstream Cuban society, although many of them maintain a small-scale farming and livestock production as a base for their livelihoods. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. De Smet PAGM. Echinacea can be taken numerous times a day, as recommended by an herbalist. I surmise that Quassia the Surinam had seen a plant similar to bitterwood in Africa. Momordica charantia, Solanum americanum and Stachytarpheta jamaicensis are among those species most cited by Haitians in this study. Therefore, a medical syncretism of sorts must have occurred. ", She points to a green shrub with slightly oval leaves, This isJackna Bush.. Journal of Ethnopharmacology. Among these, there are plants that are important medicinals for Haitians, such as Artemisia absinthium, Phyllanthus procerus, and Priva lappulacea, as well as culturally relevant Haitian food plants that are also used in the realm of traditional medicine, such as Abelmoschus esculentus, Cajanus cajan, Corchorus siliquosus, and Xanthosoma sagittifolium, and some species used for ritual and religious baths such as Allophylus cominia, Alpinia speciosa, and Vitex trifolia. Nevertheless, some culturally relevant products such as dried or fresh specimens of Artemisia absinthium and fruits and seeds of Abelmoschus esculentus were brought to Cuba upon migration (Figure 2). Vervain is a popular remedy due to its multiple plant-beneficial compounds. All of the mints have the effect of soothing indigestion and quieting nausea. Inventory of medicinal plants used by Haitian immigrants and their descendants in the Province of Camagey, Cuba. Special thanks are due to all of the Haitian respondents and their families for their kindness and for agreeing to share their knowledge with us, with oral consent being provided for figure figure2;2; to the members of the Asociacin de Haitianos de Camagey; to Patricia Howard for her commentaries and suggestions. 1. 2001, Guantnamo, Cuba: Editorial el mar y la montaa, Nevet M, De la Rosa AS: Kote ou bouke m pote. The continuous ingestion of low doses of the allelochemicals in these species may be an effective means to prevent massive parasite infestations, especially in children [43]. Baths are the second more important category of means of application at almost 16% of the total. Creole Language and Culture: Part of Cuba's Cultural Patrimony, Volpato G, Godnez D, Beyra A. Migration and ethnobotanical practices: The case of, Beyra A, Len M, Iglesias E, Ferrndiz D, Herrera R, Volpato G, Godinez D, Guimarais M, Alvarez R. Estudios etnobotnicos sobre plantas medicinales en la provincia de Camagey (Cuba). Su estudio en la ciudad de Santiago de Cuba. Journal of Black Studies. Creole is the second most spoken language in the Province of Camagey, after Spanish. 2005, 102: 69-88. The Ethnobiology and Ethnopharmacy of Migrations. 1998, 32: 57-62. Very, very, very bitter. 1982, 6: 67-84. A few other remedies of non-vegetal origin were also reported. Haiti looking to Madagascar's COVID-19 'miracle cure' | Miami Herald GV, DG, AB, and AB carried out interviews and collected data in the field. Shes 81. Rituality based on 'sacred' numbers represents, in these cases, a simple way of memorizing the proper dose to be used, as well as a contribution to the efficacy of the remedy by calling upon supernatural forces and entities related to those numbers. Echinacea can be taken several times a day, as advised by an herbalist. The authors declare that they have no competing interests. a Part(s) used: ap, aerial part; ba, bark; bu: bulb; ep, fruit epicarp; fl, flowers; fr, fruits; ft, flowering tops; la, latex; le, leaves; ls, leaf stalks; re, resin; rh, rhizome; ro, root/tuber; se, seeds; sg, stigma; sh, shoots; st, stems; uf, unripe fruits; wh, young whorls; wo, wood; wp, whole plant. 10.1016/0378-8741(82)90072-1. Haitian's knowledge about plants seems to comprehend and deal with toxic allelochemicals through specific posological practices. So, Lippia alba and Cymbopogon citratus often appear in the corpus of ethnobotanical knowledge of African origin in Cuba [14, 51], and Erythroxylum havanense and Chiococca alba are among the main ingredients of multi-herbal preparations used as a medicinal remedy in Eastern Cuba as well as a spiritual remedy in Afro-Cuban religions [19, 34]. leaves applied to the forehead to treat headache). Map of Cuba with the Province of Camagey. [http://www.aaanet.org/committees/ethics/ethcode.htm], Len H: Flora de Cuba. Baths are the second more important category of means of application at almost 16% of the total. Trusted Source. Cerasse vine intertwined with other plants growing in Cacheta Francis' North Miami Beach backyard. Volpato, G., Godnez, D., Beyra, A. et al. Cash-strapped Haitians find Voodoo a cheaper alternative to traditional most plants used in Haiti were also available in Cuba), and to the cultivation of medicinal plants in the new environment. Two main stores are situated in North Montreal and offer a choice of several dozen Haitian medicinal plants, dried and packaged in small plastic bags (Fig. They are persistent. Fuentes V: Las plantas medicinales en Cuba. Some plant uses have a common origin in the ethnobotanical practices of Caribbean people of African cultural heritage, the so-called Afro-Caribbean pharmacopoeia: examples include the use of the aerial parts of Lippia alba and Cymbopogon citratus, as well as the use of roots and ligneous parts of Allophylus cominia, Caesalpinia bahamensis, Erythroxylum havanense, and Chiococca alba. Medicinal plants used by Haitian immigrants and their descendants in the Province of Camagey, Cuba. Scull R, Miranda M, Infante RS. Topical application as a pomade or plaster is used in 10% of the remedies, while frictioning, preferred with preparations for rheumatisms and arthritis, accounts for two per cent. Boil and simmer until the water turns a murky greenish brown. To gain further insights, we qualitatively compared our results with those reported in other Cuban ethnobotanical studies [18, 19, 42, 49] and especially with the work of Beyra et al. In Michel Laguerre's book he tells of a Haitian woman who makes herself ill by eating the head of a turkey. She is a believer of remed fey, or bush medicine. Rituality based on 'sacred' numbers represents, in these cases, a simple way of memorizing the proper dose to be used, as well as a contribution to the efficacy of the remedy by calling upon supernatural forces and entities related to those numbers. More emphasis is given, though to its calming and sedative effects than its purifying. My own interest in herbal healing dates back twenty years when I moved to a rural area in the Ozarks and had occasion to meet local people who gathered herbs and used them to treat various ailments. Divergence and Convergence in Traditional Plant-Based Medicinal 2007, Oxford: Berghahn. Background: Haitian migrants played an important role shaping Cuban culture and traditional ethnobotanical knowledge. More than 50% of the mixtures are used to treat afflictions of the respiratory system. Other medicinal uses reported in this study and also commonly found in the Cuban pharmacopoeia include the use of the aerial parts of Cissus verticillata for respiratory problems, of the young fruit of Cocos nucifera and the leaves of Portulaca oleracea for intestinal parasites, of the bark and the leaves of Mangifera indica for gastrointestinal and respiratory problems respectively. Colon, Sandra Hernandez. Due to its mostly flat territory, the Province of Camagey historically had an economy primarily based on cattle and sugarcane, as well as small-scale farming. 2008, 117: 41-50. Traditional pharmacology and medicine in Africa. In contrast, the use of the same species with different medicinal purposes may be the result of migrant's adoption of some species through experimentation with plants found in the new environment (e.g.
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