title: An inventory of the ethnobotanicals used as anti-diabetic by a rural community of Dhemaji district of Assam, Northeast India.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Traditional remedies used for treating diabetic ailments are very important in the primary health care of the people living in rural Dhemaji district of Assam, north-east India. Novel information gathered from the current survey is important in preserving folk indigenous knowledge.
  
  
  METHODS
  Interviews were conducted amongst 80 households comprising of 240 individuals using semi-structured questionnaires. The focus was on plants used in treating diabetes mellitus.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The current survey documented 21 plant species (20 families) which are reportedly used to treat diabetes mellitus by the rural people in the study area. To the best of our knowledge, Amomum linguiforme, Cinnamomum impressinervium, Colocasia esculenta, Dillenia indica, Euphorbia ligularia, Garcinia pedunculata, Solanum indicum, Sterculia villosa and Tabernaemontana divaricata are recorded for the first time based on globally published literature as medicinal plants used for treating diabetes mellitus and related symptoms.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The wide variety of plants that are used to treat diabetes mellitus in this area supports the traditional value that medicinal plants have in the primary health care system of the rural people of Dhemaji district of Assam. The finding of new plant uses in the current study reveals the importance of the documentation of such ethnobotanical knowledge.
authors.affiliation: G. B. Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development, Vivek Vihar 791113, Arunachal Pradesh, India.
authors.forename: Doi
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Tarak
authors.forename: Nima D
authors.initials: ND
authors.lastname: Namsa
authors.forename: Sumpam
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tangjang
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Arya
authors.forename: Bhaskar
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rajbonshi
authors.forename: P K
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Samal
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mandal
mesh_terms: D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007194:India; D010946:Plants, Medicinal; D012424:Rural Population
chemical_list: D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents