4. Conclusion
This ethnobotanical and medical study carried out in the Navarre Pyrenees region provides examples of several interesting medicinal plant uses worthy of pharmacological research, as is the case of Sambucus nigra, Fragaria vesca and Scrophularia nodosa.
At the same time, as well as the need for an exact floral catalogue of the zone to provide more accurate results in the Ethnobotany index, the study reflects a decline in ethnopharmacological knowledge, given the results of the quantitative analyses in the above-mentioned index, Shannon-Wiener, FIC, and the high number of species mentioned by less than three informants, in comparison to other published studies of Pyrenean regions.
Apart from quantitative data, there are differences about the consume of edible plants, owing to the fast that Navarre Pyrenees is more similar to other Temperate climate areas in this aspect than to the rest of Pyrenees regions (with Mediterranean climate). In addition, it is well distinguished edible plants and medicinal plants. Spirits, despite its social use, are drinked with digestive purposes and therefore the may be consider as medicinals. Folk costumes and beliefs are also manteined in Navarra nowadays as for instance the use of plants in order to protect people from diseases and evil spirits.
A wide-ranging official review of all non-published drugs by the institutions responsible for drug safety and efficacy, such as WHO, ESCOP and the E Commission of the German Department of Health is necessary, because, apart from fostering the use of more medicinal plants, this may foment the development of sustainable development plans in rural areas, such as the Navarre Pyrenees, where the loss of ethnobotanical and medical culture is already in evidence.
Authors' contributions
SA conceived of the study, carried out the field work, the quantitative ethnobotanical analysis and the revision on monographs; and drafted the manuscript. RYC conceived of the study and participated in its design and coordination and participated in the field work and writing the manuscript. MIC conceived of the study and participated in its design and coordination and participated in the field work and in the revision on monographs.
Acknowledgements
We would like to express our sincerest gratitude to all the people who shared with us not only their knowledge about popular medicine, but also their time, dedication and affection. We would also like to thank the Government of Navarra for the grant which made the completion of this Ph.D. dissertation possible, and the Fundacion Universitaria de Navarra for their financial support. We would like to thank the anonymous reviewers of this article for their suggestions, which have helped us to improve it in many ways. We would also like to express our sincerest gratitude to Víctor López for his help.
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