The harmful use of tobacco is a public health problem of global concern and, in many countries, the main risk factor for non-communicable diseases. However, in the Peruvian Amazon, the geographical region believed to be the historic cradle of tobacco, this plant is associated with a strikingly different use and reputation: tobacco (especially Nicotiana rustica L.) in this area is described as a potent medicinal plant, used topically or by ingestion to treat a variety of health conditions. The objective of this transdisciplinary field study was to investigate the clinical applications of the tobacco plant according to Amazonian medicine exemplified in the practice of a renowned Tobacco Master, a traditional Amazonian healer whose medical specialization focuses on tobacco-based treatments.
Berlowitz I, Torres EG, Walt H, Wolf U, Maake C and Martin-Soelch C (2020)”Tobacco Is the Chief Medicinal Plant in My Work”: Therapeutic Uses of Tobacco in Peruvian Amazonian Medicine Exemplified by the Work of a Master Tobacco Maker. Front. Pharmacol. 11:594591. doi:10.3389/fphar.2020.594591
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