Tribal Medicine of India: Natural Remedies for Good Health

This chapter elucidates the use of some medicinal plants by tribes. They have a wealth of knowledge regarding using numerous plants or plant components as medicine. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), as much as 80% of the world's population now relies on traditional medicine for their primary healthcare requirements. The tribal people found the therapeutic properties and medical efficacy of wild herbs and treated various ailments, discomforts, and diseases. Herbal medicine has been declining in popularity recently, which could mean that valuable information on medicinal plants is being lost. This chapter encompasses some important plants used as a medicine in tribal areas of India viz., Dioscorea bulbifera (Aerial Yam), Saraca asoca (Ashoka), Achyranthes aspera (Chaff-flower), Cissus quadrangularis (Devil's backbone), Butea monosperma (Flame of the Forest), Tinospora cordifolia (Giloy or Guduchi or Amrita), Abrus precatorius (Indian liquorice), Centella asiatica (Indian pennywort), Solanum Indicum (Indian Solanum), Hemidesmus indicus (Indian Sarsaparilla), Andrographis paniculata (Kalmegh), Boerhavia diffusa (Punarnava) and Mucuna pruriens (Velvet bean) and their bioactive compounds and therapeutic value.