Plants Used in Mexican Folk Remedies

Like much of Mexican tradition and culture, the use of plants in medicinal folk remedies has both indigenous and Spanish influences. In addition, the geographic diversity of the country has helped create distinct herbal remedies in each region. Today, that tradition lives on through the vendors offering medicinal plants at Mexico's myriad marketplaces and the traditional healers---known as curanderos---who apply them.

Origins

• In her book "Homegrown Healing: Traditional Home Remedies from Mexico," author Annette Sandoval describes how the Aztec king Moctezuma I kept a garden of thousands of medicinal plants during the 15th century, and how priests conducted pharmacological research on such plants. The Spanish conquistadors arrived with their own medical traditions, and tried to obliterate indigenous science in the name of enlightenment. Later, Spanish missionaries collected and documented indigenous medicinal plants while preaching their own medical beliefs and practices.

Diversity

• Mexico is a large and geographically diverse nation. As a result, the plant life found in southern regions can be quite different from that of the north. In addition, different indigenous groups populated different regions---the Aztecs in the central-south, the Maya in the southeast, the Zapotecs and Mixtecs mostly in the southern state of Oaxaca. This bio- and cultural diversity has affected traditional medicines used from north to south.

South

• An infusion of chabacal flowers and leaves is a common treatment for respiratory problems, as are the flowers of the chigüisa plant. For stomach ailments, a tea made from the stem of the fern-like calaguala plant is a popular remedy, as are the leaves of the tulipán de monte.

  In more specialized treatments, the cooked root of the ahuayote is used to treat gonorrhea, while the boiled stem of the xcubemba plant is applied to the feet to combat odor and infection.

  The abundant tropical fruits found in this part of the country also have medicinal uses. The peel of the papaya fruit is applied to the skin for relief from insect bites, while papaya leaves are boiled and applied on a chest wrap to treat asthma. A tea made from banana peels is believed to help with vesicular problems, while a tea made from mango rinds is used to treat stomachaches.

Central

• In the central part of Mexico, where mountains and high plateaus dominate the topography, boiled branches of bretónica are said to be good for dysentery, as is boiled chalahuite rind. For cuts, boiled arnica is applied to the injured area. Cooked capitaneja is used to treat vaginal infections. The stem of the culantrillo plant, when soaked in aguardiente liquor, is commonly used to treat shock.

North

• In this part of the country, desert plants have found their way into local medicinal tradition. For example, chunks of the stem of the chaparro amargo scrub brush are boiled into a tea used to treat amoebas. Teas made from sunflower are used against a variety of maladies, including headaches, colds and tonsillitis.