The Ethnomedicinal Survey of Plants Used for the Treatment/Management of Diabetes in Buruku Local Government of Benue State, Nigeria

Abstract

Diabetes mellitus is becoming an increasing concern all over the world. Many people especially in poor communities have been using medicinal plants to treat diabetes and its complications. In Nigeria, the number of people suffering from diabetes is believed to be rising steadily.This study aimed at documenting the plants that have been tried for the treatment of diabetes mellitus in Buruku Local Government of Benue State, Nigeria. The ethnomedicnal information was collected through a structured questionnaires, sample collection and identification of the plant specimens. Twenty eight plants were mentioned as being used for treatment of Diabetes mellitus in Buruku Local Government of Benue State by the herbalists. Out of these, a total of twenty two (22) plant species, distributed across 17 families were identified.  The most commonly species were Moringa oleifera and Vernonia amygdalina. The families Asteraceae and Rubiaceae was represented by the highest number of species (three species each), followed by Euphorbiaceae (two species). The rest were represented by one species each (14 families). In all cases, the treatment involved drinking the extracts for a long period of time. There was a general belief on the efficacy of the prepared extracts.