Medicinal Plants for Treatment of Neonatal Jaundice by Community of Attars (Traditional Healers) of Several Urban Areas in Mazandaran Province, Northern of Iran.

Aims: This study aimed to determine the use of specific medicinal plants based on traditional medicine from community of Attars (Traditional healers) in the province of Mazandaran (North Iran). Place and Duration of Study: The province of Mazandaran in north Iran, between March until July 2015. Methodology: Eighty-eight Traditional healers consisting of 62 men (70.5%) and 26 women (29.5%) from among the community of Attars (i.e. The Owners of shops, selling medicinal plants, providing traditional medications and some time act as traditional healer) of the province of Mazandaran in north Iran were randomly selected using questionnaires from March until July 2015. Results: In this study, 50 plant species belonging to 29 plant families were recommended for treating neonatal jaundice. Asteraceae, Fabaceae and Rosaceae were the most commonly used plant families. The five main plants with the highest reported use included: Contoneaster discolor, Descurainia sophia, Cichorium intybus, Alhagi camelorum, and Fumaria parviflora. The most important reason for prescribing medicinal herbs was to help detoxify the body, and the most important reason that people visit Attaries (i.e., shops selling medicinal plants, providing traditional medications) to receive remedies was stated as the lower side effects of these traditional remedies. Conclusion: This study shows that numerous medicinal plants are recommended for treating neonatal jaundice in Mazandaran province by Attars (Traditional healers). To the best of our knowledge, the wide range of herbs used for the treatment of neonatal jaundice has not been previously reported in any other study as extensively as shown here. Naturally, it is necessary to perform comprehensive studies on the above-mentioned medicinal plants to make use of these herbal remedies.

Giardiacidal activity of lemon juice, vinifer and vinegar on Giardia intestinalis cysts.

The giardiacidal efficacy of simple disinfecting materials, ie lemon juice, vinifer, and vinegar, for uncooked foods with Giardia cysts was investigated to help travelers in Giardia-endemic areas. The cysts were obtained from stools of individuals with Giardia intestinalis infection by modified sucrose gradient procedure. A pooled batch of 3 x 10(4)/ml Giardia cysts was made from all specimens. The cysts were kept at 4 degrees C until use. Before each experiment, the number of cysts was determined by hemocytometer. Two sets of Eppendorf tubes were used for the experiments, one set at 4 degrees C and one at 24 degrees C. One thousand microliters each of lemon juice, vinifer, or vinegar was poured into each tube, and 1,000 microl of Giardia cysts were added. Variables were disinfectant materials, temperature, and time of exposure. Cyst viability 140 was determined by eosin inclusion procedure. Viability of at least 250 cysts in each tube at 0, 0.5, 1, 2 and 3 hours after the beginning of the experiments was determined. The mean giardiacidal activity at 4 degrees C after 3 hours for lemon juice, vinifer, and vinegar was 18.9, 12.8, and 28.4%, and at 24 degrees C, 28.3, 16.2, and 40.6%, respectively. In conclusion, the giardiacidal activity of vinegar was more than the other materials, and as exposure time and temperature increased, giardiacidal activity also increased; the highest giardiacidal activity of vinegar was at 3-hours exposure at 24 degrees C.