Herbs of Southern Ecuador: A Field Guide to the Medicinal Plants of Vilcabamba (English and Spanish Edition)

Secrets of Youth in Southern Ecuador? Vilcabamba, (in the Quechua language “holly valley”) located in Southern Ecuador, is known to gerontologists as one of three places in the world with the largest population of elderly people. This valley is known as an "island of immunity and a pool of longevity." The favorable climate, water quality, proper nutrition and use of herbs allow inhabitants to survive to a high age in a remarkable state of fitness. Until now the " herbal wisdom of the age" has not been documented. An international team of scientists (including medical anthropology, ethnobotany and ethnopharmacology) contacted the only elderly curandero living in San Pedro de Vilcabamba, Don Cruz Roa. After establishing a solid relationship with him, the team meticulously organized local herbal wisdom in a coherent and succinct manner for transmission to future generations. For the first time the secrets of herbal wisdom of Vilcabamba are available to the public. Herbs of Southern Ecuador provides exciting information about the expedition to Ecuador, the field methodology, and complete ethnobotanical information on more than 140 herbs. It includes vernacular and scientific names, families and synonyms, illustrations, botanical descriptions, origins, geographic coordinates, as well as ecology, traditional classification, uses, preparation, parts used, and administration. The information is in Spanish and English, for easy cross-reference, containing excellent indices by scientific and vernacular names and a comprehensive bibliography.