Comparative Medical Ethnobotany of the Senegalese Community Living in Turin (Northwestern Italy) and in Adeane (Southern Senegal)

Table 1

Medicinal plant remedies used by Senegalese migrants in Turin.

Botanical taxon, family, and voucher specimen code	Local name(s)	Part(s) used	Preparation and administration	Folk medical use (used against/to regulate)	Qs
Adansonia digitata L. (Bombacaceae)	Baobob	Seed	Eaten	Diarrhoea	+
		Seed	Grind the seeds and put the powder on the lips	Burning lips
			Grind the seeds and put the powder on the painful tooth	Toothache
Acacia nilotica (L.); Willd. ex Delile (Fabaceae) UNISGSEN15	Mbano (m); Nep nep (w)	Root	Make a decoction and drink just a little bit	Indigestion	+++
			Externally applied	Wounds
		Bark	Drink the beverage together with Tamarindus indica fruit pulp and Hibiscus sabdariffa flowers	Fatigue
			Grind it, add salt, and put it on the haematoma	Haematoma	+++
Acacia tortilis (Forssk.); Hayne (Fabaceae) UNISGSEN05	Senjen (w)	Root	Drink the decoction	Eye inflammations; Bellyache
			Drink the decoction while eating some sugar, repeating the procedure three times a day	Worms
			Macerated in water for two days; the macerate drunk	Sexual impotence; Stomachache; Kidney troubles
Adansonia digitata L. (Malvaceae) UNISGSEN20	Buy (w); Baobab (f)	Fruit	Drink the beverage made using the pulp around the seeds	Diarrhoea	+++
			Same as above, adding Hibiscus sabdariffa flower	Diarrhoea
Allium cepa L. (Amaryllidaceae)	Cibolle	Bulb	Eaten	Sexual impotence; Cold	+
Allium sativum L. (Amaryllidaceae)	Ail (f); Ladji (w)	Bulb	Put a piece of garlic on the right wrist if the sore tooth is in the upper jaw and vice versa for the lower jaw (chanting Koran’s verses helps the pain to disappear)	Toothache; Sexual impotence	+++
			Eaten	Intestinal worms; Lowering the blood pressure; Cold and cold prevention
Anacardium occidentale L. (Anacardiaceae)	Anacardo	Seed	Drunk	Antibiotic	+
Annona senegalensis Pers. (Annonaceae)	Suncun	Leaf	Put (powdered) on the fire	Magic remedy (supposed to counteract bad spirits)	+
Arachis hypogaea L. (Fabaceae) UNISGSEN16	Arachide (f); Gerte (w)	Seed	Eat the seeds	Stomachache	+
Balanites aegyptiaca; (L.) Delile (Zygophyllaceae)	Dattier du désert (f); Soumpu; Gurp; Petit cola	Leaf	Grind the leaves and drink the infusion prepared with the powdered leaves	Sore throat	+++
		Fruit	Chew the fruit without ingesting it	Stomachache; Digestive; Fatigue; Nausea
Calotropis procera (Aiton); W.T. Aiton (Apocynaceae) UNISGSEN55	Kipampaan (p); Poftan (m); Pomme de Sodome (f)	Root	Cut the roots into small pieces, put it into; a cotton handkerchief, squeeze, it and inhale the aroma	Sinusitis	+
		Stems; juice	Externally applied	Wounds
		Leaf	Drink the infusion prepared with ground leaves	Constipation	+++
Cassia italica (Mill); Sprengel (Fabaceae)	Layduur (w)		Drink the infusion prepared with ground leaves	Intoxication
		Root	Leave the root soaking all night and drink the water in the morning, before breakfast	Intestinal worms
Cassia occidentalis L. (Fabaceae) UNISGSEN11	Adiana (w); Bantaare (p); Bentamarè (s); Kassala (m); Mbanta xobi (w)	Leaf	Put leaves around the head	Headache	+
			Baths	Fatigue
Cassia tora L. (Fabaceae) UNISGSEN76	Cassepuante (f); Ndur (w)	Leaf	Use it as a mouthwash	Mouth infections	+
Ceratotheca sesamoides; Endl. (Pedaliaceae)	Jorokh lane (w)	Leaf	Put the leaf into water at room temperature and after it releases oil, apply the oil to the body	High fever	+
			Dried leaf is soaked in water; the water is drunk	Bellyache
Citrus limon (L.); Osbeck. (Rutaceae)	Citron (f); Limon (w)	Fruit	Drink the juice	To lose weight; Digestive; Strengthening; Malaria (drunk in the coffee)	++
Combretum aculeatum; Vent. (Combretaceae)	Sawat (w)	Leaf	Put ground leaves and sugar into water and instil the solution in the eyes	White spot in the eye on the pupil	+
Combretum glutinosum; Perr. ex DC. (Combretaceae)	Chigommier (f); Rat (w)	Leaf	Drink the decoction	Bronchitis/cough; Sexual impotence	+
		Leaf	Drink the decoction (sometimes adding cloves)	Cold; Flue; Lung infections; Sore throat; Antihypertensive	+++
Combretum micranthum; G. Don (Combretaceae) UNISGSEN10	Quinkeliba (f); Sekhaw (w)	Flower	Drink the decoction with milk every morning	Enhancing the “well-being”
			Make a decoction with Xylopia aethiopica seeds and cloves (Eugenia caryophillata flower buds)	Vision problems
Dioscorea spp. (Dioscoreaceae) UNISGSEN83	Igname (f); Yam (w)	Root	Eat the root	To gain weight	+
Elaeis guineensis Jacq. (Arecaceae)	Palmier à huile (f); Tiir (w)	Fruit→ Oil	Add oil and coffee to Vitellaria paradoxa butter and dab on the body	To get rid of the “dead” blood when feeling weak	+
			Dab on the body	Boils
Eucalyptus globulus Labill. (Myrtaceae) UNISGSEN88	Eucaliptus (f); Khotta bu tel (w)	Leaf	Put it around the head while listening to the reading of the Koran	Headache	+
Eugenia caryophyllata Thunb (Myrtaceae) UNISGSEN38	Girofle (f); Xorompole (w)	Flower bud	Use the infusion prepared with Xylopia; aethiopica seeds and Combretum micranthum flower	Vision problems	+
Euphorbia balsamifera; Ait. (Euphorbiaceae)	Salan; Salan mbechi	Branch	Cut the branch and put the latex on the wound	Wounds	++
		Root	Drink the decoction	Bellyache
Ficus iteophylla Miq. (Moraceae)	Xassum loro (w)	Leaf	Drink the decoction	Digestive asthma	+++
		Leaf	Dab on the affected part	Backache skin allergies
Grewia bicolor Juss. (Malvaceae)	Kel (w)	Leaf	Drink the decoction	Fatigue; Bronchitis/cough; Digestive	++
Guiera senegalensis; J.F. Gmel. (Combretaceae) UNISGSEN18	Ngueer (w) Mamakumkoyo (m) Mamankuiò (s)	Root	Drink the decoction	Cold	+++
		Leaf	Drink the decoction	Bronchitis/cough kidney troubles; Fatigue stomachache
			Put the infusion into the eyes	Itchy eyes	+++
		Flower (red)	Drink the decoction	Bellyaches Menstrual pains Preventing ageing Fatigue Fever Improving the blood circulation
Hibiscus sabdariffa L. (Malvaceae) UNISGSEN12	Bissap (w); Karkadè (f)		Put the infusion into the eyes	Eye problems
			Drink the beverage together with Tamarindus indica fruit pulp and Acacia nilotica bark	Fatigue
		Flower (white)	As a food medicine—as a main ingredient of a dish prepared with boiled meat of fish, cooked with tamarind and chilies (lakk bissap)	Fatigue
Maerua crassifolia Forssk (Capparaceae)	Sothiou (w); Sothiou suukar	Branch	Chew the branch	Halitosis	+
Mangifera indica L. (Anacardiaceae) UNISGSEN37	Manguier (f); Màngo joolaa (w)	Leaf	Drink the decoction	Tetanus	++
Manihot esculenta; Crantz (Euphorbiaceae) UNISGSEN07	Gnambi (w); Manioc (f); Mañok (m)	Root	Eat the root	To gain weight	+
Moringa oleifera Lam. (Moringaceae)	Nebedai	Leaf	Eaten in sauces, generally accompanied; with meat and couscous	Diabetes	+
Musa paradisiaca L. (Musaceae)	Bananier (f)	Leaf	Topical application of the leaf infusion	Burns	+
Panicum miliaceum L. (Poaceae)	Mil (f)	Fruit	Eat millet (couscous)	To gain weight; Fatigue	+
Parinari macrophylla Sabine (Chrysobalanaceae)	New (w); Tamba	Leaf	Drink the infusion made from 7 leaves	High blood pressure	+
		Leaf	Drink the infusion	Stomachache
Piper nigrum; L. (Piperaceae)	Mex pobare (w); Poivre noir (f)	Fruit	Eat the dried berry	Runny nose	+
Tamarindus indica; L. (Fabaceae)	Tamarin (f); Daqaar (w)	Fruit; pulp	Eaten, or drunk, in a beverage made adding the bark of Acacia nilotica and the flower of Hibiscus sabdariffa	Fatigue	+
Terminalia catappa; L. (Combretaceae)	Badamier (f); Toubab (w); Xopp kerte	Not specified	Not specified	Antibiotic, antifungal	+
			Add salt to the butter and dab on the back	Backache	+++
Vitellaria paradoxa; C.F. Gaertn. (Sapotaceae)	Karitè (f)	Seed→butter	Add coffee, Elaeis guineensis’ oil and dab on the body	To get rid of the “dead” blood when feeling weak
			Dab the butter on the body	Massage on the child’s body, to make the child stronger.; Bone strengthening
			Dab the butter on hair	Hair loss
			Drink the decoction, also a spice in the coffee	Sexual impotence	++
Xylopia aethiopica; A. Rich. (Annonaceae); UNISGSEN70	Diar (w); Jar	Seed	Instill the infusion of seeds into the eyes	Eye problems,; conjunctivitis
			Instill the infusion of seeds into the ear	Otitis
			Pour the infusion made from the seeds, Eugenia caryophyllata flower buds and Combretum micranthum flower	Vision problems
Zingiber officinale Roscoe (Zingiberaceae) UNISGSEN09	Djindjer (w); Djinjeroo (m); Gingembre (f)	Fresh rhizome	Eaten, or juice drunk, or decoction	Sexual impotence; Blood circulation	+++
		Leaf	Drink the decoction	Worms
Not identified	Berbef (w)		Use the rough leaf like a sponge under the shower	Pruritus	+
		Fruit	Make a pasta and dab on the skin	Itchiness
Not identified	Bonye			Antibiotic	+
Not identified	Khambata (w)	Leaf	Drink the infusion	Headache	+
Not identified	Ndiadame	Fruit	Cook it slowly and eat it; it is really bitter	Intestinal worms	+
Not identified	Sangol (w)	Root	Put it in water for up to two minutes and drink it (very bitter)	Intestinal worms	+
		Leaf	Soak in water and externally apply on the skin	Itchiness
Not identified	Watenobout (w)	Branch	Put the latex that comes out of the broken branch on the wound	Wounds	+

(f): French; (m): Mandingo; (p): Pulaar; (w): Wolof; Qs: quotations: + quoted by 1 or 2 informants only; ++ quoted by 3, 4, or 5 informants; +++ quoted by 5 informants or more.