Journal of Ethnopharmacology 134 (2011) 259–267 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Ethnopharmacology journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jethpharm ‘Every mother is a mini-doctor’: Ethnomedicinal uses of fish, shellfish and some other aquatic animals in Bangladesh Apurba Krishna Deb ∗ , C. Emdad Haque Natural Resources Institute, Clayton H. Riddell Faculty of Environment, Earth and Resources, University of Manitoba, 319 Sinott Building, 70 Dysart Rd, Winnipeg, MB, Canada R3T 2N2 article info Article history: Received 19 November 2009 Received in revised form 27 November 2010 Accepted 5 December 2010 Available online 23 December 2010 Keywords: Bangladesh Fishers Fish Shellfish Ethnomedicine Zootherapy Biodiversity abstract Aim of the study: This research article examines the zootherapeutic uses of fish, shellfish and some other aquatic animals in two fishing villages in Bangladesh-one floodplain and one coastal. Materials and methods: The floodplain fishing village Volarkandi is located within the Hakaluki wetland ecosystem in the northern Bangladesh and is inhabited mostly by Muslim fishers, whereas the coastal fish- ing village Thakurtala is located on Moheskhali island and most of the inhabitants are caste-based Hindu fishers. Participatory techniques were used to collect and validate information from the key informants. Results: The research revealed that, historically, fishers have used fish and other aquatic animals not only as food items for nutrition, but also to solve a host of physical problems and diseases. Fish and shellfish are widely used for their galactogogue and aphrodisiac properties, for quick recovery from long-time sickness, to enhance the ‘intelligence level’ of children, and to prevent and treat a host of diseases like night blindness, chicken pox, dysentery, piles, muscular inflammation, fistula, malaria, skin diseases and ‘big belly’ syndrome in children. Depending on the objective of the use, different parts of the animal body, its derivatives, or the whole animal are used. The research also clarified different forms of the recipes used. The socio-cultural construction of the ethnomedicinal uses and the distinct gender roles of the fisherwomen were analyzed. Conclusion: The research revealed that the aetiologies and the preventive measures against folk illness are socio-culturally embedded and such indigenous medical systems grow and are sustained as a situated body of knowledge within the boundaries of a typical world view framed by local culture and biodiversity. © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction In any agro-ecological and socio-cultural setting, the foods consumed and the traditional forms of therapy employed are intri- cately linked to the local bio-cultural systems. The significance of fish in the day-to-day lives of Bengalese can be realized from the proverb: ‘rice and fish make a Bengali’. The role of fish is vital to the national economy as it provides both employment and an important supply of protein. The biodiversity of Bangladesh is exceedingly rich, with around 260 species of freshwater fish, 20 species of freshwater prawns, 475 species of marine fish and 50 species of shrimps (Rahaman, 1986; Ali, 1990). Such a huge biodi- versity has enticed the Bengalese to devise multiple uses of the aquatic organisms beyond their basic use as food. The cultural history of Bengal adduces certain evidence in support of the fish- consuming habits of the Bengalese and historically, fish has been an ∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 204 484 9455; fax: +1 204 261 0038. E-mail address: apurba deb@hotmail.com (A.K. Deb). integral part of numerous socio-religious ceremonies (encompass- ing birth to marriage to death), belief systems, prehistoric artefacts, epigraphic materials, and different religious scripts of the Indus civ- ilization (Bagchi, 1955; Allchin and Raymond, 1982; Sarker, 1984; Reeves, 2003). Scholars studying zootherapy – the art and science of using ani- mals (live or dead) and animal-derived products for addressing illness – have focused on both the socio-cultural aspects of the users (Gelfand, 1980; Adeola, 1992; Begossi and Braga, 1992; El- Kamali, 2000) and the perceived medicinal efficiency of the items used (Conconi and Pino, 1988; Namba et al., 1988; Zhang et al., 1992; Rodrígues and West, 1995; Unnikrishnan, 1998; Costa-Neto, 2004). The fact that zootheraphy has moved beyond the tradition- ally rural boundaries of such practices and sources of knowledge to cosmopolitan areas, where health care facilities are usually well-established, provides evidence of its wider acceptance and medicinal efficiencies (Balick et al., 2003; Alves and Rosa, 2007). Notably, most of the pertinent literature is linked with the tra- ditions in developing countries (Unnikrishnan, 1998; El-Kamali, 2000; Seixas and Begossi, 2001; Costa-Neto, 2002; Kakati and 0378-8741/$ – see front matter © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.jep.2010.12.001