Traditional Herbal Knowledge of Medicinal Plants in Gunung Sindur, Indonesia: An Ethnobotanical Survey with Quantitative Indices

Abstract

The use of medicinal plants in traditional medicine practices is still the leading choice in the community. This study aims to identify the species of medicinal plants used by the Gunung Sindur community and evaluate the most common plant parts, processing methods, and routes of administration, along with the Species Use Value (SUV) and Fidelity Level (FL) values. Data were collected through structured interviews with 165 informants using a quantitative ethnobotanical approach. The results showed that leaves were the most widely used part (53 %), with the decoction method as the primary technique (56.18 %) and the oral administration route the most dominant (78 %). Plants were most widely used to treat hypertension (38.33 %) and diabetes (35 %). Physalis angulata and Zingiber officinale were recorded the highest SUV values ​​(1.12 and 1.03, respectively), while Cinnamomum spp. recorded the highest FL value ​​for treating diabetes (78.33 %), and P. angulata for hypertension (72.67 %). These findings indicate local consistency in the specific use of plants for non-communicable diseases, reflecting an adaptive, holistic, and ecologically based traditional medicine system. This study proves the importance of ethnomedical knowledge as a basis for developing sustainable local wisdom-based phytopharmaceuticals.