The Ruc people's traditional medicine warehouse

QTO - Having lived for generations in caves and in the middle of the Truong Son mountain range, their lives have always depended on the forest, so the Ruc people (Chut ethnic group) in the two communes of Kim Phu and Kim Dien have preserved hundreds of medicinal herbs to cure diseases. For the Ruc people, the Truong Son forest is an endless storehouse of traditional medicine, helping them fight diseases and survive through many generations...

The Ruc people "good at medicine"

Before being discovered and encouraged to settle by the Border Guard, the Ruc people's lives depended entirely on the forest. Born in a cave and raised in the forest, the Ruc people had to adapt to the harsh natural environment.

Not only finding food to survive, when they are sick, ill or fall in the forest, or are bitten by poisonous snakes, they have to treat themselves. During the process of survival, the Ruc people gradually discovered the medicinal uses of hundreds of herbs in the forest. Thanks to that, traditional medicinal plants gradually entered the lives of the Ruc people and were passed down from generation to generation, creating a source of indigenous knowledge in the community.

In the Ruc community, Ms. Cao Thi Hau (70 years old) in Luong Nang-Hoa Son village (Kim Dien commune) is considered a famous herbalist and medicine practitioner throughout the region. In addition to medicinal plants that treat common diseases such as mugwort, perilla, licorice..., Ms. Hau also understands the properties and medicinal uses of hundreds of other herbs. In addition, she also knows how to combine herbs together to create medicines used to treat asthma, sinusitis, hemorrhoids, cirrhosis...

Ms. Cao Thi Hau (70 years old), a Ruc ethnic in Kim Dien commune, brings medicinal herbs from the forest to plant in her home garden - Photo: PP

According to Mrs. Hau, not only she but also her sister and brother were passed down the traditional medicine profession by their ancestors. Mrs. Hau's grandfather and father are considered to be Ruc people who have a lot of knowledge about traditional medicine since their time in the cave. Currently, in addition to Mrs. Hau, this family also has Mrs. Cao Thi Hieu, in Yen Hop village (Kim Phu commune), Mr. Cao Dung U, in Luong Nang village (Kim Dien commune), who are all good healers who know how to treat diseases with traditional medicine.

Major Dinh Lam Vien, an officer of Ca Xeng Border Guard Station ( Quang Tri Provincial Border Guard Command), who has been associated with the Ruc people for many years, said: After more than 60 years of leaving the caves, with the special attention of the Party and the State, the lives of the Ruc people have changed significantly. Now, when sick or ill, the Ruc people know how to go to clinics and hospitals for examination and treatment, especially for serious illnesses. However, in daily life, the Ruc people, especially those who are knowledgeable about medicinal plants, still use traditional medicine to treat some diseases. In many cases, the Ruc people also combine Western medicine and traditional medicine to achieve the best treatment results.

Preserve for future generations

According to the assessment of the Center for Research on Management of Highland Resources (CEGORN) - under the Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations, the Ruc community has a very rich indigenous knowledge of using traditional medicinal plants. Research has recorded hundreds of herbs that have been used by them to treat dozens of groups of diseases, including incurable diseases such as cirrhosis, bone and joint diseases, etc. Remedies for blood tonic, liver cooling, postpartum health care for women, and physical improvement are also commonly used by the people.

However, due to the habit of living in isolation and the lack of a mechanism to preserve knowledge, many valuable medicinal recipes of the Ruc people are at risk of being lost. The uncontrolled exploitation of medicinal plants in the wild has also put some valuable herbs such as Codonopsis pilosula, Cau Sam, Big-leafed Millenium, Blood Grass, etc. at risk of extinction. This is also something that the local authorities and the elders in the Ruc community are concerned about and worried about.

Dr. Ngo Van Hong, Director of CEGORN, said that with the responsibility of conserving forest resources and valuable indigenous knowledge, over the years, the unit has coordinated with local authorities and the Ruc and Sach ethnic groups in Kim Dien and Kim Phu communes to establish traditional medicine associations; survey and compile statistics on traditional medicine plants in the forest, thereby helping people protect and develop them further. This work not only preserves the valuable assets of the forest but also helps ethnic minorities increase their income from these precious medicinal plants.

In addition, CEGORN also regularly organizes for the Ruc people to learn and exchange with other neighboring communities such as the Bru-Van Kieu, May, Sach, and A Rem people to supplement their knowledge of medicinal plants, making their treasure of medicinal plants increasingly richer.

Phan Phuong

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/xa-hoi/202510/kho-thuoc-nam-cua-nguoi-ruc-bbb25d7/