Ankli et al-1999Human Ecol

Hum an Ecology, Vol. 27, No. 4 1999

Yucatec Maya Medicinal Plants VersusNonmedicinal Plants: Indigenous Characterization

and Selection

A nita A nkli,1 Otto Sticher,1 and Michael Heinrich 1,2

Medicinal plants are an important part of the environment as it is perceivedby Mexican indigenous groups. The aim of this study, which was conductedover a period of 18 months in three Yucatec Mayan communities, is to betterunderstand the selection criteria for medicinal plants. An important groupof selection criteria are the ¯ avor and aroma of plants. The absence of smellor taste indicates that the taxon has no potential medical value. Medicinalplants are more often considered to be sweet or aromatic (to smell good) orastringent, while a sim ilar percentage of medicinal and nonmedicinal plantsare considered bitter, spicy, acid ic, or bad smelling. The relationship betweenthe ethnobotanical data obtained for the individual plants and the secondaryplant products (natural products) prominent in each species is speci® callyaddressed in this paper. It shows that an understanding of the indigenousconcepts used to distinguish medicinal from nonmedicinal species has consid-erable heuristic value.

KEY WOR DS: indigenous knowledge ; medicinal plants; nonmedicinal plants; traditionalmedicine ; ethnobotany; plant selection criteria; taste; sme ll; hot-cold classi® cation; Yucate c

Maya; Yucatan (Mexico) .

INTRODUCTION

Impressive colle ctions of documented plants used in indige nous medi-

cal systems are available (for the Americas see, for example , Aguilar et al.,

1Department of Pharmacy, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich, Winterthur-erstr. 190, CH-8057 ZuÈ rich, Switzerland.

2On leave from Institute fuÈ r Pharmazeu tische Biologie, A lbert-Ludwigs-UniversitaÈ t, SchaÈ nzl-

estr. 1, D-79104 Fre iburg, Germany, Fax.: 1 49-761-203-2803.

557

0300-7839/99/1200-0557$1 6.00/0 Ó 1999 Plenum Publishing Corporation

558 A nkli, Sticher, and He inrich

1994; Argue ta, 1994; Heinrich, 1996; Moerman 1996; Morton, 1981) , but

the ethnobotanica l study of medicinal plants has large ly remained descrip-

tive , and the process and rationale for the use of plants as medicine has

not been explore d in detail (Brett & Heinrich, 1998) . Researchers in the

® e ld have generally been more inte rested in the practical application of

ethnobotanica l information in Western biomedicine or its uses in primary

health care 3 (Balick & Cox, 1996; Robine au & Soejarto, 1996) . Among the

most noteworthy exception are the work of Etkin (e.g., 1994) , Moerman

(1996) , and Johns (1990) .

On the other hand, theoretically informed ethnobotanica l studie s have

made major contributions to related ® e lds such as ethnoe cology (Alcorn,

1984; BaleÂ e, 1994; Ellen & Fukui, 1996) , cognitive anthropology , ethnosci-

ence (Berlin, 1992) , and the study of humoral classi® cation of such disparate

phenomena as food, types of illnesses, and plants (Foster, 1994) . Foster’ s

study is particularly relevant in the context of this pape r. Some authors

have systematically explore d the hot-cold concept and its role in indige nous

medicine and die t (Foster, 1994) , but little information is available on

botanically identi® ed species and the ir classi® cation in this system (cf. Mes-

ser, 1991) . Also, we have recently criticized the hot-cold system as too

narrow to explain plant use (Brett & Heinrich, 1998) . The selection of

plants as medicine based on their taste and smell seems to be important,

but hitherto little explore d, in many culture s (Brett & Heinrich, 1998 and

references therein; Crellin & Philpott, 1997) . That taste and smell are

particularly important criteria for characte rizing medicinal plants has been

shown in ethnobotanica l studies with the Tzeltal and Mixe (Brett, 1998;

Heinrich, 1998) . Those two studies did not, however, look at the diffe rences

in the people ’ s taste and smell perceptions of medicinal and of nonmedicinal

plants, the speci® c focus of this pape r. The cultural reasons for selecting a

plant as a medicinal one , the cultural processes that allow the selection of

new medicinal plants, the forms of transmission of this knowle dge , and the

management of culturally important plants in the environment (e.g., by

growing them in the house or yard or sparing a plant during the clearing

of an area; Heinrich, 1997) , are pertinent topics for ethnobotanic al research

on medicinal plants.

The Maya of the Yucatan peninsula (Mexico) are a particularly

relevant example , since plants are an integral and important part of

the ir indige nous culture and since they have strongly resisted outside

in¯ uences. Traditional treatments for illne ss among the Maya of the

3Such approaches are exempli ® ed by many of the articles published in journals such as theJournal of Ethnopharmacology, Fitoterapia, Economic Botany and Pharmaceu tical Biology

(formerly International Journal of Pharmacology) .

Yucatec Maya Med icinal Plan ts Versus Nonm ed icinal Plan ts 559

Yucatan peninsula, who still use locally available plants, are of conside r-

able importance . Detailed studie s of the ir medical system and knowle dge

(Red® e ld & Villa Rojas, 1990) and of many aspects of their ethnobotany,

including ethnoecology (Herrera C., 1994; TeraÂ n & Rasmussen, 1994)

and plant nomenclature (Barrera et al., 1976; Sosa et al., 1985) are

available . Only a few reports addre ss currently used medicinal plants

(cf. references cited in Ankli et al., 1999) . In this pape r we analyze

the Yucatec Mayan4 criteria for distinguishin g between medicinal and

nonmedicinal plants. The wealth of ethnobotanica l information of the

Yucatec Mayan healers as well as the intra- and intercultural variations

in medicinal plant knowle dge has been described and analyze d before

(Ankli et al., 1999; Heinrich et al., 1998) . In this pape r, the hot-cold

classi® cation and the classi® cation system based on taste and smell among

the Yucatec Maya are examined to discover how the Maya distinguish

between medicinal and nonmedicinal plants.

THE STUDY A REA A ND THE PEOPLE

Yucatan and the Maya

The land of the lowland Maya stretches over most of the Yucatan

peninsula, which contains the easternmost part of Mexico and the northe rn

parts of Guatemala and Belize . The peninsula is an enormous limestone

plate au; its highe st altitude barely reaches 400 ms above sea level

(HernaÂ ndez, 1985) . No surface rive rs run through the northe rn part of

the peninsula; the most important water source s are cenotes (natural

sinkhole s formed by the collapse of the limestone surface over the

ground) . The annual rainfall is greatest in the southeast (1,300 -1,400

mm) and diminishe s toward the north and northwe st to 400 mm. The

southeast portion is tropical rainfore st, and the extreme northeast low

tropical deciduous forest. The latitude and the adjoining warm sea make

the climate warm and humid.

The Yucatec Maya language be longs to the Mayance (or Mayoide )

subfamily of Macrope nutian. Maya vowe ls and consonants are generally

pronounce d as in Spanish. A glottal stop [ 9 ] is used, and glottalize d conso-

nants are frequent. Currently 600,000 persons, or 36% of the total population

of the peninsula, are mono- or bilingual speakers of Maya (Pfe iler,

4Unless stated otherwise the term ``Yucatec Maya’ ’ is used throughout this paper to refer tothe inhabitants of three communities south of Valladolid (see Background) , since no commondenominator exists for these three communities. If we make reference to the Yucatec Maya

in general, we use the term Maya of the Yucatan peninsula.


Fig. 1. Place of ® eld study.

1995) . In this article , Maya words are transcribe d after Barrera et al.

(1991) .

This study was conducted in the communitie s of Chikindzonot and

neighboring Ekpe tz and Xcocmil, south of the city of Valladolid in the

southeastern part of the state of Yucatan (Fig. 1) . Average annual tempera-

ture in the area is 25.7 8 C and the average annual precipitation 1,220 mm.

It is a hot, sub-humid climate that has rain from May to October (980 mm)

and little temperature variation throughout the year (Duch, 1988) . The

vegetation is characterized as a median semideciduous forest with an aver-

age he ight of 10-20 m. Some 50% to 75% of the species remain deciduous

during the dry season (Salvador & Espe je l, 1994) . The communitie s of

Chikindzonot and Ekpe tz have 1,500 and 800 inhabitants respective ly

(INEGI, 1993) , and the whole municip io of Chikindzono t has 2,750 inhabit-

ants. Fifty-six percent of the people over 15 years of age are lite rate and

a third of those over ® ve years are monolingual speakers of Maya, the rest

be ing bilingual. The economy is based on subsistence agriculture (maize,

beans, and squash) and on the raising of honey, citrus fruits, watermelons,

and cattle .

The most important group of heale rs are h-men, who are not only

heale rs but also specialists in religious rites who perform ceremonie s asking

the rain god for protection for the milpa (corn ® e lds) or the community.

He or she is the owner of a sastun, a stone used for divining. Midwive s

(ah-k’ax tuch ahal: person who cuts the nave l string) and herbalists (ts’ a

ts’ak xiw: person who gives medicinal plants) form another group who are

generally pro® cient in treating broken bones. Massages are given by anothe r

group of heale rs Ð the masseurs (yet’ ) and midwives.5 While all three groups

5The Maya terms for the various groups of empirical heale rs generally are descriptive.


of healers make extensive use of medicinal plants, some use them large ly

as part of phytothe rapeutic preparations and others, in particular, the h-

men, also use them for ritual purpose s.

No detailed anthropologi cal monograph on the Maya of this area is

available , but the community of Chan Kom, which was ® rst studied in the

1930s by Red® e ld and Villa Rojas (1990) is only 27 km to the north.

METHODS

Ethnomedical and ethnobotanical data were colle cted from February

1994 until May 1995 and in September/October 1996, mainly in the

village s of Chikindzonot and Ekpetz. The information was gathered from

structured and unstructured inte rviews with 40 traditional healers and

midwive s. Twelve heale rs aged 40-71 years were inte rviewed frequently

and contribute d much of the information presented here. Ten of these

were between 40 and 50 years of age, and all active ly practice the ir

healing art. A ll twelve conside r themselve s herbalists, and most of them

also work as h-men (2) , masseurs (5) , midwives (4), or bone setters (3).

Generally, the midwive s also work as masseurs. Six heale rs are men

and six women.

Toge ther with informants, we colle cted voucher specimens and addi-

tional material on medicinal taxa. During meetings of groups of indige nous

heale rs, we conducte d unstructured interviews on the medicinal plants

and methods of treatment. We thus obtaine d information on the use(s),

preparation( s), plant parts used, application( s) and prope rties of the plants

as well as descriptions of illne sses and treatments, which were compile d

into ethnobotanica l data sheets.

Reports of ethnobotanical uses were documented for each plant. The

heale rs were asked to indicate which taxa they were currently using or which

ones they had used. For each species, information on the plant part(s) used,

the ir preparation and application, and the Maya uses, plus data on the indige -

nous classi® cation of the species, were recorded. To analyze the data, the use

reports for a species were arrange d into nine groups based on symptoms or

application technique s mentioned by the heale rs (Ankli et al., 1999; Heinrich

etal., 1998) .For each group, the data were quanti® ed,adding up the individual

reports on the uses of each plant. They were then ranked according to the

number of reports of use (see Ankli et al., 1999) .

To distinguish between medicinal and nonmedicinal plants we looke d

at plants conside red by a single informant (generally a heale r) to be

medicinal and compared them to those plants the same person conside red


not useful as medicine . After having comple ted the documentation of

medicinal plants of the communitie s, individual heale rs were asked to

select a maximum of 10 ethnobotanica l taxa that in the ir opinion had

no medical value . The healers were next asked about the taste and

smell and the humoral, and other prope rties of the taxa. The informants

generally were unfamiliar with the taste and smell of taxa they did not

use . Therefore , they were tasted by the informant, the translator, and

the key investigator. The healer then gave his opinion on the taste and

smell prope rties of each taxon. Voucher specimens were collected and

are deposited at the National Herbarium of Mexico (MEXU), the

Herbarium of the Centro de InvestigacioÂ n Cientõ Â ® ca de YucataÂ n (CICY)

in MeÂ rida, the Instituto Nacional Indige nista (INI) in Valladolid, Yucatan,

the ETH Zurich (ZT), and the Institut fuÈ r Pharmaze utische Biologie in

Freiburg, Germany (collection numbers A. Ankli 1-540) . They were

identi® ed by comparison with authe ntic specimens and in some cases

with the assistance of specialists at CICY and MEXU.

THE SELECTION OF MEDICINA L PLA NTS

The informants gave various reasons why a plant was conside red to be

a medicine . For many informants, the traditional knowledge passed on from

one generation to the next was key to deciding why they used a certain plant.

Most of them were taught by an experienced healer (h-men) or by elderly

relative s. In the initial interviews on medicinal plants, a traditional heale r

reported that good-smelling plants were useful against stomach ache, bitte r-

tasting ones against skin proble ms, and sweet plants for strengthening the

body and the blood. The reasoning of other heale rs was not always that a

plant was a medicine because it had a certain taste or smell prope rty but often

that the plant was used for an illne ss and that it was bitte r, astringe nt, or

aromatic, etc. The informants did not recall whether the information on the

plants’ characte ristics was also transmitted to them, but it seems like ly that

they learned both what plants to use and, implicitly, the reasons for their use.

Other information was obtaine d through dreaming about useful plants and

subsequently testing the effect of these plants in treatment.

Some plants were selected because they showed similaritie s to a certain

illness or the diseased body or organ. The ¯ ower of Matelea yucatanensis

(Standl.) Woodson (Asclepiadace ae) resembles the nave l. Therefore , a

single ¯ ower is used against pain of the nave l of the babie s and for trembling

of babie s. Because of its spine s, which `̀ hold back the fetus,’ ’ the aerial


part of the cactus pitaya6 [Hylocereus undatus Britton & Rose , Cactaceae ]

are used to prevent abortion. The fruit of G odmania aesculifo lia (Kunth)

Standl. (Bignoniace ae) resembles the umbilical cord and is therefore used

to speed labor and to expel the placenta.

Based on the work by Red® e ld and Villa Rojas (1990) , we had antici-

pated that humoral concepts would be important in the selection of medici-

nal plants. Our informants never mentione d the hot or cold prope rties of

a plant as a reason for its medicinal use . When asked about these prope rties

they ® rst made reference to the disease and its humoral characte ristics,

which this remedy would be used to treat, and then volunte ered data on

a plant’ s prope rty. Additionally, in explaining the cause s of an illness,

thermal concepts7 were frequently mentione d by the heale rs.8

Plants are not chosen at random for treating a certain illness. Sweet

plants are clearly preferred for treating respiratory illne sses: 65% of all use

reports in the group ``respiratory illne sses’ ’ concerning taste prope rties are

about plants commonly considered to be sweet (Table I). Anothe r impor-

tant characte ristic of the plants in this group is that they typically have a

strong odor (65% of all taxa with ascribed smell prope rties). Plants for the

treatment of bite s of venomous animals, especially snakes, are frequently

mentioned (n 5 14 answers) and generally are classi® ed as bitte r (n 5 10;

71%). Smell is not an important criterion in this group (n 5 1). Women’ s

medicine is conside red to have no smell (40%) or no taste (57%) or to be

aromatic (55%). For skin conditions, bitte r (64%), astringent (33%), and

aromatic (47%) taxa are preferred. The various gastrointe stinal illne sses

were divide d into three subgroups: dysentery, diarrhea, and vomiting. For

vomiting, aromatic plants (61%) or bitter (58%) ones are preferred. Diar-

rhea generally is treated with astringent (50%), aromatic (65%), or bitte r

(33%) plants, whereas the most popular types of plants for dysentery are

those that have only minimal smell, if any, (67%) or a bitte r taste (35%).

Pain and fever are treated mostly with aromatic (52%) or bad-sme lling

plants (43%).

Response s were sought on the classi® cation of the plants in the various

6To facilitate the reading of the text, common English terms for species (following Morton,1981) have been added in the main body of the paper if possible (but not in the tables) alongwith their botanical names. Indigenous names were recorded and can be found, for example ,

on the vouche r specimens.7There is a methodological problem in distinguishing between the thermal and humoral

properties of a specie s or an illness. Frequently the informant refers to a ``hot’ ’ or ``cold’ ’item without it becoming clear immediately which of the two types they were referring to.The data in the following discussion are therefore based on systematic inquiries into the

meaning of the terms to the informant.8Water of the ceno tes is considered to be cold. Cool water should not be drunk or used forwashing or bathing. Caution must also be observed with cold winds coming from the North

(Maya: cascac ik.9 ). On the other hand, the hot sun is feared as a cause of illness.

Tab

leI.

Cla

ssi®

cati

on

of

Med

icin

al

Pla

nts

by

Sen

sory

Ch

ara

cteri

stic

san

dM

ed

icin

al

Ap

pli

cati

on

sa

Tast

e(%

)S

mell

(%)

Str

on

g-

Bad

-B

itte

rA

stri

ngen

tS

weet

Tast

ele

ssS

pic

yA

cid

Aro

mati

cO

do

rless

smell

ing

smell

ing

Ap

pli

cati

on

b(%

)(%

)(%

)(%

)(%

)(%

)n

tot

(%)

(%)

(%)

(%)

nto

t

Gast

roin

test

ion

al

42

29

715

43

73

56

26

11

788

dis

ord

ers

Dyss

en

tery

35

17

926

49

23

17

67

Ð6

15

Dia

rrh

ea

33

50

13

4Ð

Ð24

65

24

66

17

Vo

mit

ing

58

19

Ð15

8Ð

26

61

16

16

756

Derm

ato

logic

al

64

33

3Ð

ÐÐ

33

47

720

27

15

con

dit

ion

sW

om

en

’s29

ÐÐ

57

14

Ð14

55

40

Ð5

20

med

icin

e

Pain

an

dfe

ver

25

Ð25

25

25

Ð4

52

Ð5

43

21

Resp

irato

ry9

17

65

ÐÐ

923

24

665

617

illn

ess

es

Bit

es

by

ven

om

ou

s71

21

7Ð

ÐÐ

14

ÐÐ

Ð(1

)1

an

imals

aF

igu

res

init

ali

cs$

30%

,.

3re

spo

nse

s.bU

rolo

gic

al

pro

ble

ms

nto

t5

10;

oth

er

use

sn

tot5

2;

con

dit

ion

so

fth

eeyes

nto

t5

2.


Table II. Hot-Cold Classi® cation of Medicinal Plants in the Groups

of Usesa

Hot ColdGroup of use (%) (%) n tot

Gastrointestional disorders 65 45 101Dyse ntery 4 96 27Diarrhea 67 33 18

Vomiting 77 23 56Dermatological conditions 29 71 35

Infection 4 96 24

Pimples 82 18 11Women’ s medicine 88 12 25

Pain and fever 26 74 23Respiratory illnesses 53 47 19Bites of venomous animals Ð 100 13

aFigures in italics: $ 70% of the total number of individual use reports;

two responses: urological problems, Illnesses of the eye s, Other uses.

groups of indige nous uses according to the humoral system (Table II).

Disorde rs speci® c to women are treated with remedie s considered to be

hot (88% of all responses). Pain and fever, on the other hand, call for cold

ones (74%). A particularly inte resting group is gastrointe stinal disorders.

Roughly half of all reports in this group classify the taxa as hot or cold,

respective ly. But if one looks, for example , at dysentery, it is clear that it

requires remedie s that are cold (96%). On the other hand diarrhea and

vomiting call for hot remedies. Dysentery is considered to be a hot illne ss

because of the blood in the feces. Diarrhea and vomiting are caused by

cold winds, cloudy skies, or by rain during the rainy season. Consequently,

these two illnesses are cold and require hot remedie s. In¯ ammatory skin

diseases and bite s of venomous animals produce localize d reddening of the

skin and temperature elevation and thus require remedie s that are cold.

The main groups of skin conditions distinguishe d are in¯ ammation

and pimple s. In¯ ammation is conside red a hot illne ss; pimple s a cold one.

For respiratory illne sses, the classi® cation of the plants is not clear-cut:

53% of the plants are said to be hot and 47% cold.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MEDICINA L A ND

NONMEDICINA L PLA NTS

Individual heale rs were asked about differences between medicinal

and non-medicinal plants. Practically all medicinal plants are named folk

taxa. For 28% of the nonmedicinal plants, the informants did not know the

names of plants that they did not personally use.


Fig. 2. Smell of medicinal and nonmedicinal plants of the Yucate c Maya.

Fig. 3. Taste of medicinal and nonmedicinal plants of the Yucate c Maya.


Most of the nonmedicinal taxa are trees and herbs, and they usually

are rathe r inconspicuo us plants, without showy ¯ owers and good-tasting

fruit, for example . When selecting a plant to be discussed as a nonmedicinal,

the informants in most cases described and tasted the leave s. Since the

Maya clearly distinguish between bok (smell) and kii (taste ; Barrera et al.,

1991) , the answers were recorded in those two groups (see Figs. 2 and 3).

There is a signi® cant diffe rence between the two groups with respect to

taste and smell prope rties x 2 5 56, 99.9% CI; of x 2 is 20 with 5 degrees

of freedom).

Smell was generally described as being good, bad, or absent. In ex-

plaining the smell prope rties, the informants additionally compared the

odor with common ones, such as the smell of a person, of a lemon, or honey,

or the strong, aromatic smell of adrue (Cyperus articu latus L., Cyperaceae).

According to the Maya, a strong smell can be pleasant or unpleasant, but

it is distinguishe d from other groups of smell by be ing unusually strong.

The ways in which the Maya characterize taste and smell of a plant were

used in the analysis (i.e ., we accepted the criteria as they were stated by

the Maya [Table III], including somewhat ambiguous categorie s such as

``strong’ ’ for bad smell) .

We have documented a total of 335 response s about taste and smell

prope rties and 222 about the humoral classi® cation for 329 medicinal

taxa. For the 69 non-medicinal ones, 200 response s concerning sensory

perception and just two response s for humorally hot were recorded

(Figs. 2 and 3).

Nonmedicinal plants were more often reported to have no smell

(see Fig. 2) or no taste (see Fig. 3). Medicinal plants, on the other

hand, are more often aromatic (good smell) , and there is practically no

diffe rence in the frequencies of response s about bad or strong smell

(see Fig. 2) . A good odor was mentione d in 50% of cases as a characte ristic

of a medicinal plant and thus is a sign for medicinal use, whereas the

absence of smell indicate s that the taxon has no potential medicinal value .

With respect to taste , a large r percentage of medicinal plants were

reported to be astringe nt or sweet, but there are diffe rences in the

qualitie s bitter, spicy, and acid (see Fig. 3). It is noteworthy that the

informants conside red 44% and 42% of the nonmedicinal plants and

medicinal plants, respective ly, to be bitte r. This characte ristic is therefore

attribute d to a rathe r large segment of the surrounding ¯ ora but seems

to be of no direct relevance to the selection of medicinal plants. It is

worth repeating that, for the Maya, it is not the case that medicinal

plants are characte rized as unusually bitte r. There is no diffe rence in the

percentage s of medicinal and of nonmedicinal plants that are conside red to

be bitter. This contradicts reports in other ethnobotanica l studie s that


Tab

leII

I.Q

uali

ties

of

Med

icin

al

an

dN

on

med

icin

al

Pla

nts

of

the

Lo

wla

nd

Maya

Maya

Sp

an

ish

En

gli

shE

xam

ple

Tast

e

k’a

Am

arg

oB

itte

rC

ross

op

etalu

mgau

meri

(Lo

es.

)S

tan

dl.

suts

’A

stri

ngen

teA

stri

ngen

tP

sid

ium

gu

aja

vaL

.ch

’uh

uk

Du

lce

Sw

eet

Pach

yrh

izu

sero

sus

Urb

.var.

Palm

ap

ap

Pic

an

teS

pic

yP

iper

am

ala

go

L.

pah

Agri

oA

cid

Cit

rus

au

ran

tiif

oli

aS

win

gle

Sm

ell

ki’

ub

ok

Bu

eno

lor

Aro

mati

c,go

od

smell

Psi

diu

mgu

aja

vaL

.

ch

ee

ol

Olo

rfu

ert

e,

ap

est

oso

Str

on

gsm

ell

Ch

en

op

od

ium

am

bro

sio

die

sL

.tu

’u

bo

kM

al

olo

rB

ad

smell

Zan

tho

xylu

mca

rib

aeu

mL

am

.H

ot-

cold

ch

ok

oÂC

ali

en

teH

ot

Do

rste

nia

co

ntr

aje

r va

L.

sis

Fri

oC

old

Cit

rus

au

ran

tiif

oli

aS

win

gle


bitte rness is a particular characteristic of many medicinal plants (e.g.,

Heinrich et al., 1992) .

The humoral prope rties of the plants were also elucidate d in the inte r-

views. The informants sometimes did not clearly distinguish between ther-

mal and humoral characteristics. Questions about the humoral prope rties

of a plant made no sense to some of the informants, who proceeded to

describe the process of preparing the remedy (i.e ., hot or cold extraction) .

Frequently, the humoral connotations of hot and cold describe the illne ss.

The medicinal plant to be used must have the opposite prope rty (i.e ., cold

for a hot illne ss). This does not refer to the selection criteria for a plant,

but to its classi® cation. It therefore comes as no surprise that nonmedicinal

plants are generally not classi® ed humorally (Table IV). In only two cases

was a non-medicinal one conside red to be humorally hot: one (Senna sp.)

because of the Mayan name chak sal (red, little pimple s), since red is

conside red humorally hot, and the other (Sabal sp.) , because the heale r

was told to use this species as a women’ s medicine , nearly all of which

are hot.

PERCEPTION A ND CHEMICA L CONSTITUENTS

OF THE PLA NTS

The documented sensory perceptions of the medicinal and nonmedici-

nal plants were furthe r analyze d using publishe d information on the known

chemical constitue nts of the species. With this analysis, we intend to reach

a better understanding of the relationship between the indige nous percep-

tion of a plant’ s taste or odor and the chemical constitue nts. Table s V and

VI show all the plants with three or more reports on taste or smell properties

and the known (groups of) constitue nts. (To facilitate the reading of the

text, the plant familie s and the authors are listed in the table s.)

Taste. It comes as no surprise that species conside red to be astringe nt

contain polyphe nols (hydrolyzable tannins and/or proanthocyanidins) . The

Table IV. Hot-Cold Classi® cation of Medicinal and Nonmedicinal

Plants of the Lowland Maya

Responses on Responses onmedicinal taxa nonmedicinal

Classi ® cation n tot (%) taxa n tot

Hot 104 (46.8) 2Cold 101 (45.5) Ð

Cool 12 (5.4) ÐLukewarm 5 (2.2) Ð


Tab

leV

.M

ed

icin

al

an

dN

on

med

icin

al

Pla

nts

Cla

ssi®

ed

by

Tast

ean

dS

mell

Pro

pert

ies

Acc

ord

ing

toY

uca

tec

Mayan

Heale

rsan

dth

eC

on

stit

uen

tso

fT

hese

Taxa

a

Pla

nt

(fam

ily)b

TA

EO

(%)

SL

DT

AK

CM

Oth

er

nR

ef.

c

Ast

rin

gen

tp

lan

t

Psi

diu

mgu

aja

va(L

.)M

RT

1lv

,fr

1lv

,fr

12

14,

9

Man

ikara

zap

ota

(L.)

van

Ro

yen

,S

PT

1P

oly

iso

pre

nes

89

Cro

sso

pet

alu

mgau

mer

i(L

oes.

)1

Tri

terp

en

es,

sugar

alc

oh

ols

39

Sta

nd

l.,

CE

L

Pu

nic

agra

natu

m(L

.),

PU

N1

Lv:

trit

erp

en

es,

stero

ids;

fr:

39,

8

lv,

frsu

gars

,p

hen

oli

caci

ds

Bit

ter

pla

nt

Cro

sso

pet

alu

mgau

mer

i(L

oes.

)1

Tri

terp

en

es,

sugar

alc

oh

ols

79

Sta

nd

l.,

CE

L

Man

ilk

ara

zap

ota

(L.)

van

Ro

yen

,S

PT

1P

oly

iso

pre

ne;

fr:

sugar

79,

3

Do

rste

nia

con

traje

rva

L.,

MO

R1

FU

Card

en

oli

des

69,

23

Alv

ara

do

aam

orp

ho

ides

Lie

bm

.,S

MR

An

thra

qu

ino

nes,

trit

erp

en

es

39,

5

(qu

ass

ino

ids)

20

Cale

au

rtic

ifo

lia

Mil

lsp

.var.

11

Ph

loro

glu

cin

s3

9,

2

yu

cata

nen

sis,

CM

P

Call

icarp

aacu

min

ata

Ro

xb

.,V

RB

1T

rite

rpen

oid

s,¯

avo

no

ids

35

Case

ari

aco

rym

bo

saJa

cq.,

FL

C1

11

1S

ap

on

ins

39

Salv

iam

icra

nth

aD

esf

.,L

AB

11

Terp

en

oid

s,¯

avo

no

ids

317,

21

Sap

ind

us

sap

on

ari

a(L

.)S

AP

1S

ap

on

ins,

¯avo

no

ids,

lip

ids

39,

11,

12,

25

Ure

chit

esan

dri

euxii

Mu

ell

.A

rg.,

AP

O1

Card

en

oli

des

39

Sw

eet

pla

nt

Pach

yrh

izu

ser

osu

sU

rb.

var.

palm

a,

Rt:

gly

cop

rote

ins,

¯avo

no

ids

36

LE

G(p

ach

yrh

izin

)

Sp

icy

pla

nt

Pip

eram

ala

go

L.,

PIP

1rt

Pip

er

am

ides,

sesq

uit

erp

en

es

49,

1

Aci

dp

lan

t

Cit

rus

au

ran

tiif

oli

aS

win

gle

,R

UT

1fr

1lv

Terp

en

es

(lim

on

oid

s),

org

an

ic2

9

aci

ds

Jatr

op

ha

gau

mer

iG

reen

man

,E

UP

1S

ap

on

ins,

cyan

ogen

icco

mp

ou

nd

s2

9

Man

ikara

zap

ota

(L.)

van

Ro

yen

,S

PT

1P

oly

iso

pre

ne

29

Psi

diu

mgu

aja

vaL

.,M

RT

1lv

,fr

1lv

,fr

214,

9


Aro

mati

cp

lan

t

Psi

diu

mgu

aja

vaL

.,M

RT

1p

1L

v,

fr12

14,

9,

10

Ch

eno

po

diu

mam

bro

sio

ides

(L.)

1(2

2)

Sap

on

ins,

trit

erp

en

es,

org

an

ic9

9

(Tel

oxys

am

bro

sio

ides

),C

HN

aci

ds,

¯avo

no

ids

Do

rste

nia

con

traje

rva

(L.)

,M

OR

1F

UC

ard

en

oli

des

89,

23

Art

emis

ialu

dovi

cian

ass

p.

mex

ican

a1

11

Tri

terp

en

es,

xan

tho

ph

yll

s,5

9,

18

(Wil

ld.)

Keck

,C

MP

¯avo

no

ids

Cit

rus

au

ran

tiif

oli

aS

win

gle

,R

UT

1(f

r:0.4

)1

lvT

erp

en

es

(lim

on

oid

s),

org

an

ic5

7,9

Lip

pia

sto

ech

ad

ifo

lia

Ku

nth

,V

RB

1(.

1)

aci

ds

59

Lip

pia

alb

aN

.E

.B

r.ex

Bri

tto

n1

(.l)

&W

ilso

n,

VR

B

Men

tha

spp

.,L

AB

1(2

4)

Ph

en

oli

cs(r

osm

ari

nic

aci

d),

421,

8

¯avo

no

ids

Satu

reja

bro

wn

ei(M

icro

mer

iab

row

nei

1P

hen

oli

cs,

irid

oid

gly

cosi

des,

424,

9

[Sw

.]B

en

th),

LA

B¯

avo

no

ids

Oci

mu

mm

icra

nth

um

Wil

ld.,

LA

B1

(24)

Ph

en

oli

cs,

¯avo

no

ids

37

Str

on

g-s

mell

ing

pla

nt

Ch

eno

po

diu

mam

bro

sio

ides

L.

1(2

2)

1IA

Sap

on

ins,

trit

erp

en

es,

org

an

ic4

9

(Tel

oxys

am

bro

sio

ides

),C

HN

aci

ds,

¯avo

no

ids

Cit

rus

au

ran

tiif

oli

aS

win

gle

,R

UT

1(f

r:0.4

)1

lvT

erp

en

es,

org

an

icaci

ds

39,7

Pip

eram

ala

go

,L

.,P

IP1

Pip

er

am

ides

39

Alv

ara

do

aam

orp

ho

ides

Lie

bm

.,S

MR

An

thra

qu

ino

nes,

trit

erp

en

es

39,

5,

(qu

ass

ino

ids)

20

Bad

-sm

ell

ing

pla

nt

Zan

tho

xylu

mca

rib

aeu

mL

am

.,R

UT

11

BI

1L

ign

ins,

un

usu

al

am

ids

59,

4

Co

lub

rin

agre

ggi

var.

yu

cata

nen

sis,

11

Sap

on

ins,

¯avo

no

ids

39

RH

M

Sen

na

un

i¯o

ra(P

.M

ille

r)H

.Ir

win

&A

nth

raq

uin

on

es,

pro

tein

s,aro

mati

c3

9

Barn

eb

y,

LE

Gco

mp

ou

nd

s,¯

avo

no

ids

Bit

ter

pla

nt

wit

ho

ut

smell

Aca

lyp

ha

un

ibra

ctea

taM

uell

.A

rg.,

EU

PP

hen

oli

cs,

cyan

ogen

icco

mp

ou

nd

s,3

9

sugars

Pla

nts

wit

ho

ut

speci

®c

tast

ean

dsm

ell

Aca

lyp

ha

alo

pec

uro

ides

Jacq

.,E

UP

Ph

en

oli

cs,

cyan

ogen

icco

mp

ou

nd

s,5/5

9

sugars


Tab

leV

.(C

on

tin

ued

)

Ast

rin

gen

tp

lan

tT

AE

OS

LD

TA

KC

MO

ther

nR

ef.

c

Ab

uti

lon

per

mo

lle

Sw

eet,

ML

VM

uci

lage,

trit

erp

en

es,

fatt

yo

il,

4/4

9

ph

en

oli

caci

ds

Tri

um

fett

ase

mit

rilo

ba

Jacq

.,T

ILM

uci

lage,

cyan

ogen

icco

mp

ou

nd

s,4/4

9

¯avo

no

ids

Hylo

cere

us

un

datu

s(L

.)B

ritt

on

&R

ose

,F

lavo

no

ids,

beta

lain

3/4

9

CA

C

Sap

ind

us

sap

on

ari

a(L

.),

SA

P1

Sap

on

ins,

¯avo

no

ids

3/4

9

Mic

rogra

mm

an

itid

a(J

.S

m.)

A.

Reed

,1

1T

rite

rpen

es,

cyan

ogen

ic3/3

9

PL

Gco

mp

ou

nd

s,su

gars

,re

sin

aT

A,

tan

nin

s;E

O,

ess

en

tial

oil

s;S

L,

sesq

uit

erp

en

ela

cto

nes;

DT

,d

iterp

en

es;

AK

,alk

alo

ids;

CM

,co

um

ari

ns;

BI,

ben

zyli

soq

uin

oli

nes

alk

alo

ids;

IA,

ind

ole

alk

alo

ids;

FU

,fu

ran

ocu

mari

ns;

lv,

leaves;

fr,

fru

its;

rt,

roo

ts.

bA

bb

revati

on

so

fp

lan

tfa

mil

ies

foll

ow

the

cod

eo

fW

eb

er,

W.

A.

(1982).

c Refe

ren

ces:

1A

chen

bach

et

al.

(1984);

2B

org

es

del

Cast

illo

et

al.

(1981);

3C

hu

ng

etal.

(1997).

4D

ell

aC

asa

&S

ojo

(1967).

5G

lasb

y(1

991).

6G

om

es

etal.

(1997).

7G

uen

ther

(1949).

8H

aÈn

sel

et

al.

(1993).

9H

egn

au

er

(1962-1

996).

10Ji

et

al.

(1991).

11L

em

os

etal.

(1992).

12L

em

os

et

al.

(1994).

13M

oll

en

beck

et

al.

(1997).

14O

ku

da

et

al.

(1987).

15P

ati

tucc

iet

al.

(1995).

16R

od

rõÂgu

ez-

Hah

net

al.

(1995).

17R

uiz

-Can

cin

oet

al.

(1993).

18S

cho

lzet

al.

(1994).

19S

chra

tz(1

966).

20S

tein

egger

&H

aÈn

sel

(1992).

21T

an

ab

eet

al.

(1992).

22T

err

eau

xet

al.

(1995).

23T

om

as

et

al.

(1988).

24W

ah

ab

&S

eli

m(1

985).


astringe nt and disinfe cting prope rties of the polyphe nols makes plausible

the ir use for infections like diarrhe a and skin diseases.

Bitter-tasting plants are quite common, and bitte rness may be attribut-

able to various groups of compounds such as cardenolide s (Dorstenia con-

trajerva, Urechites andrieuxii). Other bitte r-tasting compounds are terpenes,

like the neocle rodane -type dite rpenes of Salvia spp. or quassin, a quassinoid

found in many taxa of the Simaroubace ae (Alvaradoa amorphoides), and

the sesquite rpene lactone s found in many Compositae , such as Calea urtici-

folia. The genus Callicarp a is one of the few in the Verbenaceae (s.l.) in

which no bitte r iridoids have been found. Instead, bitte r diterpenoids and

triterpenoids and ¯ avonoids are known from this genus. Crossopetalum

gaumeri has a bitter taste due to carclenolide s (Anki et al., submitted) .

Naseberry (Manilkara zapota) has latex rich in polyisopre nes but no infor-

mation is available on those compounds, which may produce the bitte r

taste . A lkaloids are responsible for the bitte r taste (Casearia corymbosa).

For soap tree (Sapindus saponaria) saponins or ¯ avonoids are the rele-

vant compounds.

The yam bean tuber (Pachyrhizus erosus) has a sweet taste probably

attributable to glycoprote ins or the ¯ avonoid pachyrhizin . The acid amide s

of Jamaika black pepper (Piper amalago ) are responsible for its typical

spicy taste , like that of black pepper (Piper nigrum ) . A typical acid-tasting

plant is acid lime (in leave s and fruit of Citrus aurantiifo lia), which contains

acidic derivative s of limonoids and acidic phenols in the fruit. Jatropha

gaumeri contains caustic latex, which consist of di- and triterpenes. Espe-

cially the unripe fruit of the guava (Psidium guajava) contain little sugar

and are rich in fruit acids. No data are available on naseberry, (M. zapata)

which is also said to be sour.

Smell. All species mentione d as aromatic plants contain relative ly large

amounts of essential oils, which are volatile , odorife rous mixture s of com-

pounds that are large ly insoluble in water. The Labiatae (e.g., Mentha,

Satureja, Ocimum spp.) and Myrtaceae (Psidium ) are typical representa-

tive s of the essential oil -containing plant familie s. Two species of the genus

Lipp ia (Verbenaceae) were mentioned several times by the Maya as be ing

aromatic. This genus is one of the few in the Verbenaceae whose species

are rich in essential oil. American wormseed (Teloxys ambrosioides), Citrus

spp., and esta® ate (Artemisia ludoviciana ssp. mexicana) are mentione d

several times as having a good smell, and all are rich in essential oil (Table

V). Dorstenia contrajerva is reported to contain coumarins, but no data on

its essential oil content are available .

The strong-sme lling medicinal plants are a puzzling group. American

wormseed (Teloxys ambrosioides) and acid lime (Citrus aurantiifolia) have

a strong smell because they contain much essential oil. Piper amalago and


Tab

leV

I.T

yp

ical

Hu

mo

rall

yC

old

an

dH

ot

Pla

nts

Acc

ord

ing

toY

uca

tec

Mayan

Heale

rsan

dth

eC

on

stit

uen

tso

fT

hese

Taxa

a,b

Pla

nt

(fam

ily)b

TA

EO

SL

DT

AK

CM

Oth

er

nR

ef.

c

Co

ldp

lan

t

Cit

rus

au

ran

tiif

oli

aS

win

gle

,R

UT

1fr

1lv

Te

rpe

nes

(lim

on

oid

s),

org

an

ica

cid

s10

9

Hylo

cere

us

un

da

tus

(L.)

Bri

tto

n&

Fla

vo

no

ids,

be

tala

ines

89

Ro

se,

CA

C

Tri

um

fett

ase

mit

rilo

ba

Jacq

.,T

ILM

uci

lage,

cyan

oge

nic

com

po

un

ds,

¯av

on

oid

s7

9

Malv

avi

scu

sarb

ore

us

Ca

v.

va

r.M

uci

lage,

¯av

on

oid

s,p

hen

oli

ca

cid

s5

9

arb

ore

us,

ML

V

Cro

sso

pet

alu

mg

au

mer

i(L

oes.

)1

Tri

terp

en

es,

suga

ralc

oh

ols

49

Sta

nd

l.,

CE

L

Man

ikara

za

po

ta(L

.)van

roy

en

,S

PT

1P

oly

iso

pre

nes

49

Psi

diu

mg

ua

java

(L.)

MR

T1

lv,

fr1

lv,

fr4

14

,9

Art

emis

ialu

do

vici

an

ass

p.

mex

ican

a1

11

Tri

terp

en

es,

xan

tho

ph

yll

s,¯

avo

no

ids

49

(Wil

ld.)

Keck

,C

MP

Mic

rog

ram

ma

nit

ida

(J.

Sm

.)A

.R

eed

,P

LG

11

Tri

terp

en

es,

cyan

oge

nic

com

po

un

ds,

suga

rs,

resi

n3

9

Sa

ture

ga

bro

wn

ei(M

icro

me

ria

bro

wn

ei

1P

hen

oli

cs(r

osm

ari

nic

aci

d),

irid

oid

324

,9

(Sw

.)B

en

th),

LA

Bgly

cosi

des,

¯a

vo

no

ids

Ho

tp

lan

t

Do

rste

nia

con

tra

jerv

aL

.,M

OR

1F

UC

ard

en

oli

des

12

9,

23

Ch

eno

po

diu

ma

mb

rosi

oid

es(L

.)1

Sap

on

ins,

trit

erp

en

es,

org

an

ic7

9

(Te

loxy

sam

bro

sio

ide

s),

CH

Naci

ds,

¯a

vo

no

ids

Tri

um

fett

ase

mit

rilo

ba

Jacq

.,T

ILM

uci

lage,

cyan

oge

nic

com

po

un

ds,

¯av

on

oid

s7

9

Plu

chea

sym

ph

yti

foli

a(M

ill.

)G

ills

,1

Caff

eo

ylq

uin

ica

cid

,¯

av

on

oid

s,6

19

,9

CM

Psi

mp

lep

he

no

ls,

ph

en

oli

caci

ds

Psi

diu

mg

ua

java

(L.)

MR

T1

lv,

fr1

lv,

fr5

14

,9

Art

emis

ialu

do

vici

an

ass

p.

mex

ican

a1

11

Tri

terp

en

es,

xan

tho

ph

yll

s,4

9

(Wil

ld.)

Keck

,C

MP

¯av

on

oid

s

Ari

sto

loch

iasp

p.,

AR

S1

Bl

Ari

sto

loch

ica

cid

,ari

sto

lola

cta

me,

lig

nan

oid

s3

9

Cit

rus

au

ran

tiif

oli

aS

win

gle

,R

UT

1fr

1lv

Te

rpe

nes

(lim

on

oid

s),

org

an

ica

cid

s3

9

Mic

rog

ram

ma

nit

ida

(J.

Sm

.)A

.R

eed

,1

1T

iterp

en

es,

cya

no

gen

icco

mp

ou

nd

s,su

gars

,3

9,

15

PL

Gre

sin

Pri

men

tad

ioic

a(L

.)M

err

.,M

RT

13

16

Ure

raca

racasa

na

Gri

seb

.,U

RT

1M

uci

lage

39

Zin

gib

ero

f®ci

na

leR

osc

oe,

ZIN

11

Rt:

ga

lan

ola

cto

ne

s,p

hen

oli

ca

cid

s,re

sin

313

,2

2

aT

A,

tan

nin

s;E

O,

ess

en

tial

oil

s;S

L,

sesq

uit

erp

en

ela

cto

nes;

DT

,d

iterp

en

es;

AK

,alk

alo

ids;

CM

,co

um

ari

ns;

BI,

ben

zyli

soq

uin

oli

nes

alk

alo

ids;

IA,

ind

ole

alk

alo

ids;

FU

,fu

ran

ocu

mari

ns;

lv,

leaves;

fr,

fru

its;

rt,

roo

ts.

bA

bb

revati

on

so

fp

lan

tfa

mil

ies

foll

ow

the

cod

eo

fW

eb

er,

W.

A.

(1982).

c Refe

ren

ces:

1A

chen

bach

etal.

(1984);

2B

org

es

del

Cast

illo

et

al.

(1981);

3C

hu

ng

etal.

(1997).

4D

ell

aC

asa

&S

ojo

(1967).

5G

lasb

y(1

991).

6G

om

es

et

al.

(1997).

7G

uen

ther

(1949).

8H

aÈn

sel

et

al.

(1993).

9H

egn

au

er

(1962-1

996).

10Ji

et

al.

(1991).

11L

em

os

etal.

(1992).

12L

em

os

etal.

(1994).

13M

oll

en

beck

et

al.

(1997).

14O

ku

da

et

al.

(1987).

15P

ati

tucc

iet

al.

(1995).

16R

od

rõÂg

uez-

Hah

net

al.

(1995).

17R

uiz

-Can

cin

oet

al.

(1993).

18S

cho

lzet

al.

(1994).

19S

chra

tz(1

966).

20S

tein

egger

&H

aÈn

sel(

1992).

21T

an

ab

eeta

l.(1

992).

22T

err

eau

xetal.

(1995).

23T

om

as

etal.

(1988).

24W

ah

ab

&S

eli

m(1

985).


Alvaradoa amorphoides, on the other hand, are not remarkably fragrant,

but the ir strong and very characte ristic taste seems to be culturally inte rpre-

ted as a strong smell. In this group a judgment as to the sensory perception

seems to be made by the informants when tasting or smelling the plant.

Accordingly, no speci® c group of natural products is responsible for a

``strong odor.’ ’

Among bad-smelling plants, no special group of constitue nts are re-

sponsible for the unpleasant smell. Scorpion tree (Zanthoxylum caribaeum )

is said to smell like pork, a feature that can probably be attributed to the

essential oil or the unusual amides present in this genus. Senna uni¯ ora is

particularly promine nt for be ing rich in anthraquino nes, but an aromatic

smell is not a prominent characte ristic according to the perception of the

principal inve stigator. No essential oil has yet been reported from Colubrina

greggi. Since these three species are not necessarily very rich in essential

oils, the `̀ bad property seems to be an unple asant feeling when tasting the

plant. Nearly all plants said to have no smell are also said to be taste less.

The only exception is Acalypha unibracteata, which has no smell but report-

edly tastes bitte r. Practically all plants in this group are known to contain

¯ avonoids, and some contain cyanoge nic compounds and/or tannins.

Based on these data, several clear-cut corre lations become appare nt

between indige nous perceptions and groups of natural products (e.g., aro-

matic and astringent compounds ). In other cases, no such corre lation is

noticed. Plants conside red to be aromatic generally contain essential oil,

while , for example , plants described as astringe nt contain hydrolyzable

tannins and/or proanthocyanidins.

Hot-cold classi® cation. We were unable to identify any speci® c group( s)

of compounds associate d with the alle ged hot or cold prope rties of a plant.

Interestingly, ® ve of 17 species were described by some informants as hot

and by others, cold. Thus, agreement among the informants is much lower

for the hot-cold classi® cation.

CONCLUSIONS

The aim of this study is to better understand the selection criteria of

medicinal plants used by the lowland Maya. As far as we know, no study

comparing medicinal and nonmedicinal plants nor any that deals speci® cally

with nonmedicinal plants exists. Our study shows that an understanding of

the concepts indigenous people used to distinguish medicinal from nonme-

dicinal species has conside rable heuristic value . Sampling the secondary

plant products by tasting and smelling them yie lds culturally de ® ned clues

about a species’ potential value and helps them to distinguish between used


and non-use d plants. The approach employe d in this paper thus sheds new

light on the selection criteria of the Maya of the Yucatan peninsula. Plants

are not selected at random, nor are they selected pure ly by abstract criteria,

like hot and cold.

The taste and odor of medicinal plants and the labe ls applie d to them

(e.g., astringe nt, bitte r, aromatic) include , or encode, conside rable informa-

tion about the groups of illnesses a particular phytomedicine is best used

to treat. Example s among Yucatec Maya and other culture s are plant

remedies classi® ed as astringe nt or aromatic. It is, on the other hand,

noteworthy that in this study, there was no diffe rence in the percentage s

of species classi® ed as bitter in the medicinal and the nonmedicinal plant

groups. The contradicts the assumption, common in our culture , that medi-

cine has to be bitter. Therefore , no particular sensory prope rty de ® nitive ly

characte rizes a medicinal plant. Taste and smell are very important selection

criteria, but they are not the central unifying principle of indige nous Maya

medicinal plant classi® cation. Indeed, such a unifying concept does not

exist (cf. Worsle y, 1997) .

In the Yucatec Maya unde rstanding of medicinal plants, speci® c sen-

sory prope rties like smell, taste , color, form, and texture are the ® rst criteria

for selecting a medicinal plant. These characte ristics presumably also serve

as mnemonic aids for identifying medicinal plants that are in regular use .

If a plant is to continue be ing used as a medicine , it must show a ``positive

health effect,’ ’ as that is interpreted culturally. Therefore , not all plants

that share a certain prope rty serve the same purpose .

Because smell and taste can characte rize typical groups of natural

products anothe r key inte rest here is the relationship between the ethnobo-

tanical data obtained for individual taxa and the secondary plant products

(natural products) promine nt in each species. This is not only essential for

the recognition and selection of medicine s but can also help to explain the

pharmacological effects of a species (Ankli et al., 1999) . Example s are

astringe nt plants, which are widely used, also among Yucatec Maya, against

gastrointe stinal disorde rs and dermatological proble ms. The pharmacologi-

cal effects of these plants, which contain polyphe nols, can partly be ex-

plaine d by the natural products characte ristic of the species. Such a clear-

cut connection exists for a few classe s of compounds (especially astringe nt

compounds) . Bitter-tasting compounds, on the other hand, are distribute d

among a large varie ty of groups of natural products, so no speci® c pharma-

cological conclusions can be drawn from the fact that a given plant tastes

bitte r. Neverthe less, such information is an additional criterion for selecting

plants for phytochemical and pharmacological analysis. Example s are the

two species of Acalyp ha. The informants consider one of these to be bitte r

(A. unibracteata) , whereas anothe r (A. alopecuroides) is said to have ne ithe r


taste nor smell. A detailed phytoche mical comparison of the two would

thus be of interest. Since the data in the scienti® c lite rature do not allow

quanti® cation of the relevant groups of natural products, no de ® nite conclu-

sions on the physiological effects of the species used medicinally can be

drawn. In future phytoche mical studie s, it may be of inte rest, not to search

for the active principle (s) with an assay for a certain pharmacological (e.g.,

in¯ ammatory) activity as a lead but to identify what compounds are respon-

sible for the taste or smell properties reported by the Maya.

Shifting the focus from the valuable to the ``nonvaluable ’ ’ plants gives

new information on the hot-cold dichotomy. In Yucatec Mayan culture ,

this parame ter is not very important. For our informants, it is a mnemonic

aid and an explanation of plant use and selection for certain illne sses, when

the therapy is already known. Generally, what a species is used for is

primary, and, once this is known, the humoral characte ristics are assigne d.

People who have had regular and more intensive contact with Mestizo

culture also seem to rely more heavily on this system than informants who

have had less contact.

The analysis presented here also raise s a large number of methodologi-

cal and conceptual questions. Comparative data on the classi® cation by

taste and smell of useful plants from other culture s, especially from South

America, are urgently needed. Thus it is essential that future ® e ld work in

South America and Mesoamerica not focus on the hot-cold system or pure ly

on botanical documentation of indigenous medicinal plants. It will be also

inte resting to look at the deve lopment of classi® cation systems over time

to detect change s in the systems. Changing the perspective from medicinal

to the nonmedicinal plants raise s serious questions about our de ® nitions

of medicinal plants. Is a medicinal plant one that is wide ly used in a culture

and that has been shown to have the pharmacological effects desired by

the informants? What about plants used by very few people and ones that

have no known pharmacological effects? Are these species also medicinal?

What distinguishe s a medicinal plant from a nonmedicinal one? A better

unde rstanding of the multiple ways medicinal plants are classi® ed and thus

distinguishe d from nonmedicinal plants will shed light on the differences

between the two groups.

A CKNOWLEDGMENTS

We are very grateful to the heale rs, midwive s, and the inhabitants of

Chikindzonot, Ekpedz, and Xcocmil, Yucatan, for the ir collaboration and

for their friendship and hospitality. This manuscript has pro® ted much from

electronic and personal discussions and other input from Prof. Dr. D.


Moerman (Dearborn, MI). The botanical identi® cation at CICY and

MEXU was performed in collaboration with the numerous specialists of

these institutions. Particularly , we would like to thank Dra. I. O lmsted, J.

Granados, P. SimaÂ , J.C. Trejo, Dr. R. DuraÂ n of CICY as well as O. Tellez,

Dr. R. Lira, Dr. J. VillasenÄ or, and Dr. M. Sousa of MEXU. This research

owes a lot to the help of Dr. B. Frei (ZuÈ rich) , Prof. H. Rimple r (Freiburg) ,

Dra. B. Pfeile r (UADY, MeÂ rida) , Dr. Tuz (INI, Valladolid) , Dr. C. V iesca

(UNAM) and Dr. Baltisbe rger (ZuÈ rich) . We are very grate ful to S. Ritt

for the English revision of the manuscript and to R. Fisullo and Y. Fang

for their he lp in statistical analysis. Financial support by SDC (Swiss Agency

for Deve lopment and Coope ration, Berne) and the SANW (Swiss Academy

of Natural Sciences) is grate fully acknowledged.

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