Abstract

Ethnopharmacological relevance: Information on the use of medicinal plants in the daily life by Paraguayan people is scarce in mainstream scientific literature. The study on the Paraguayan diaspora in the Provincia de Misiones, Argentina, gives an insight into Guarani traditions, colonial legacy and current search for new medicinal plants to address new health challenges. Aim of the study: To document the use of medicinal plants by Paraguayan mestizo migrants who moved into a new country, yet within the same ecological region. The present and past uses of medicinal plants were compared to understand the continuity and change in the Paraguayan herbal pharmacopoeia. Materials and methods: Fieldwork based on ethnographic and ethnobotanical techniques was carried out in the Provincia de Misiones, Argentina, in 2014, 2015, and 2019. Eighty-five Paraguayan migrants and their descendants from eastern Paraguay took part in the study. The list of recorded plants was compared with the information in historical sources from Paraguay, to examine the continuity and changes in Paraguayan herbal medicine, and with the present-day ethnobotanical studies from Paraguay. Ethnopharmacological and phytochemical studies on the medicinal plants with the highest consensus of uses were reviewed. Results: Altogether, 204 medicinal plant species were recorded. The most frequently mentioned species represented a combination of plants native to the New and Old World. Nearly 40% of the present-day Paraguayan pharmacopoeia shows continuity from colonial and post-colonial periods. Plants were used for 19 medical categories, of which digestive, circulatory and those belonging to humoral medicine were the most prevalent. The ongoing search of plants to treat new health problems is illustrated by reports of 40 species used for hypertension, 26 for diabetes and 18 to lower cholesterol. There is still little evidence for the effectiveness of these plants in the pharmacological literature. Paraguayan migrants were able to continue their traditional plant medicine in Misiones, Argentina, in a substantial way. Conclusion: This study was carried out in a geographic area with a long-standing tradition of Guarani medicine. Paraguayan migrants in Misiones integrate pre-Hispanic Guarani names and uses of plants and old humoral concepts with current adaptation of plants to meet new health challenges. Several of the uses described in early colonial times are still practiced, giving a solid background for in-depth studies of the local pharmacopoeia.