Vhavenda Herbal Remedies as Sources of Antihypertensive Drugs: Ethnobotanical and Ethnopharmacological Studies

Abstract

Hypertension is a dominant risk factor for the development of cardiovascular, kidney, and eye diseases. In Africa, it increasingly leads to hospitalisation and a strain on the public health system. However, rather than modern medicine, African traditional healers are the first choice for most South Africans. Therefore, this study is aimed at gathering information on herbal remedies traditionally used for the treatment of high blood pressure in Vhavenda, South Africa, and comparing this information with reports in the literature regarding plants used to manage high blood pressure. An ethnobotanical survey was carried out in Vhembe district and its environs with 53 herbalists and indigenous people aged between 36 and 66 years from January to October 2019 using a semistructured questionnaire. The plants were collected with each respondent; they were authenticated and kept in herbarium. A total of 51 different plants were mentioned as being most commonly used for hypertension treatment. Of these, 44 plants were identified, with those from the Fabaceae family followed by plants from the Celastraceae family being commonly mentioned. Of these, the Elaeodendron transvaalense, Tabernaemontana elegans, Elephantorrhiza elephantina, and Aloe vossii were commonly cited species. According to the literature data, most of the identified plants are yet to be scientifically investigated for the treatment of hypertension, whereas only preliminary investigations have been carried out on other plants, suggesting that these preliminary investigations may have highlight promising antihypertensive activities in vitro that are indicative of their potential as antihypertensive drugs. Therefore, there is a need to scientifically investigate the antihypertensive potentials of these plants as a potential source of antihypertensive treatment and compounds.