title: Local health practices and the knowledge of medicinal plants in a Brazilian semi-arid region: environmental benefits to human health.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The concept of eco-cultural health considers the dynamic interaction between humans and ecosystems, emphasizing the implications of the health of the ecosystem for the health and well-being of human populations. Ethnobotanical studies focusing on folk medicine and medicinal plants can contribute to the field of eco-cultural health if they incorporate the perspective and local knowledge of communities. We investigated the local health practices in three rural communities living within the vicinity of a protected area of sustainable use in a semi-arid region of Brazil. We analyzed the opinions of local health experts on the elements that influence human health and on how the environment contributes to this influence. We also analyzed and compared the local knowledge of medicinal plants, as knowledge of this type is an important factor when considering the interaction between environmental and human health.
  
  
  METHODS
  We performed structured interviews and free-listings with 66 local health experts. We used content analysis to systematize the elements of the influences on human health. We compared the richness of the plants cited among communities and analyzed the differences among the three communities regarding the ways in which the plants were obtained and the environments in which plants were collected.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The local experts identified several influences of the environment on human health. These influences can be associated with ecosystem services, such as climatic conditions, water and air quality, recreation and medicinal and food resources. We identified 192 medicinal plant species, most of which were gathered from wild ecosystems. The most important environments for the three communities were the plateau mountain and backyards.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The informants had a broad and integrated view of health, perceiving the importance of conserving the environment within the National Forest of Araripe for the health and well-being of the local populations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology and Zoology, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Campus Universitário Reitor João David Ferreira Lima, Florianópolis, CEP: 88040-900, Santa Catarina, Brazil. sofiazank@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Sofia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zank
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology and Zoology, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Campus Universitário Reitor João David Ferreira Lima, Florianópolis, CEP: 88040-900, Santa Catarina, Brazil. peronin@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Nivaldo
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Peroni
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Federal Rural University of Pernambuco, Street Dom Manoel de Medeiros, Recife CEP: 52171-900, Pernambuco, Brazil. elcida@db.ufrpe.br.
authors.forename: Elcida Lima
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: de Araújo
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology and Zoology, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Campus Universitário Reitor João David Ferreira Lima, Florianópolis, CEP: 88040-900, Santa Catarina, Brazil. hanazaki@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Natalia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hanazaki
mesh_terms: D001938:Brazil; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D003469:Culture; D004777:Environment; D006262:Health; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D010946:Plants, Medicinal; D012424:Rural Population