Abstract

Amrita Dey and Abhijit Dey*

Plants have been used by the human beings since time immemorial. Purulia a district located at the western part of the state West Bengal, India is known for its aboriginal elements with diverse socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds. In surveys conducted among the tribal villagers, it was found that, a strong ethnobotanical system prevails in the area for the treatment of various ailments of humans and livestock. Diabetes mellitus is not a very common threat to the people residing here but the increasing tendency to westernization and ever changing food habit may contribute to the disease in the near future. The present survey enlists a number of 32 medicinal plants belonging to 18 plant families with potentials to be used as antidiabetics. These plants are used in the treatment of other ailments and the knowledge regarding the antidiabetic principles of certain herbal preparations may be incorporated in the age old tribal practices.