Study on supply and consumption of medicinal plants in perfumeries of Eastern Golestan province

Plants are part of the natural resources of any country. This section has been one of the most important sources of human food and medicine for generations. Golestan province is very rich in vegetation due to its suitable geographical location. The people of this region with different ethnicities have had a close relationship with their surroundings, especially plants, from the distant past. Since in Iran, perfumeries are the most important centers in the supply of medicinal plants, in this study, by referring to perfumeries in four cities of eastern Golestan province, including Gonbad Kavous, Galikesh, Minoodasht, and Kalaleh, information about people working in perfumeries, clients, and reasons for referring to perfumeries were recorded. It was found that 56% of perfumeries in these cities are between 10 and 30 years old. The average age of people working in perfumeries was estimated to be 20 to 50 years old, 86% of whom were male and 41% of whom were employed without any relevant education and only through family experience or taking courses related to medicinal plants. The most common reason for people to refer to perfumeries was related to liver and gastrointestinal diseases; this may be due to the wrong lifestyle or diet of the people of the region. Despite the rich flora and suitable geography of Golestan province, as well as the tendency of the people of the region to use herbal medicines, the results showed that only 21% of the plants were prepared from within the province and the rest are imported from neighboring provinces. Therefore, it seems that with proper information science and education of local people, this capacity of the province could be optimized to provide the used plants and also create employment.