PROSPECTING FOR TRADITIONAL DRUGS USED IN FERTILITY REGULATION FROM RAJASTHAN

Ethnobotanical investigations by various workers including the senior author during the present decade have revealed fifteen antifertility drugs employed by different tribes of Rajasthan. Ten have been reported from the southern region alone. The lower plants are represented by a single fern Actiniopteres radiate. Most drugs comprise single species and are orally administered. While some drugs offer permanent contraception, other are effective for a definite period only. Likewise, drugs are effectively used in early, advanced or late pregnancy. Some of the drugs used in Rajasthan are similarly used in adjoining States also. The antifertility activity of some has been pharmacologically established.