Survey of Ethnomedicinal Plants Used for the Treatment of Gastrointestinal Disorders in Seksaoua Region (Western High Moroccan Atlas)

Abstract

This paper represents an ethnobotanical study in Seksaoua region, which aims to identify medicinal plants used by the population of this region, and to document the different therapeutic recipes used in local traditional medicine as a cure against digestive disorders. The study was conducted in 2014 and 2015 at 30 stations using 746 survey sheets and stratified random method for sampling. Plant samples harvested from the field were identified in the laboratory and a species inventory was developed. The results obtained reported a total of 92 plant species used against digestive disorders by the population of Seksaoua. These species belong to 44 families with a dominance of Lamiaceae and include 20 species that are endemic to Morocco, such as; Pulicaria mauritanica, Thymelaea linifolia, Salvia taraxacifolia and Ononis natrix. The present study have shown a great diversity of medicinal species used by the local population in the Occidental High Atlas. However, the applications of these medicinal plants were found to be anarchic and uncontrolled.