Many plants have been documented in traditional medical systems to be useful in the treatment of various respiratory disorders, including asthma. The use of medicinal plants and natural products has increased dramatically over the last two decades all over the world. The current synthetic drugs used in asthma pharmacotherapy are unable to act at all stages and targets of asthma. However, some herbal alternatives used in asthma have been shown to provide symptomatic relief as well as aid in the prevention of disease progression. In the treatment of asthma, the herbs have shown promising results in bronchodilation, mast cell stabilization, anti-anaphylactic, anti-inflammatory, anti-spasmodic, anti-allergic, immunomodulatory, and inhibition of mediators such as leukotrienes, lipoxygenase, cyclooxygenase, platelet activating, phosphodiesterase, and cytokine. This paper attempts to categories these pharmacological and clinical findings based on their reported mechanism of action. Many asthmatics use herbal medications to alleviate symptoms and improve asthma control. The goal of this study was to update the systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials of herbal medicine in adults with asthma. Nigeria has a long history of plant-based healthcare knowledge. Various tribes and folklore traditions in Nigeria use a wide range of plants/plant extracts, juices, or pastes to treat asthma. Thus, the current review attempts to analyses the ethno-botanical/ethno-pharmacological knowledge-base for managing asthma in the country from literature, which includes the use of plants, methods used, and prevalent folklore practices.

Asthma, inflammation, medicinal plants, herbal medicines, ethno-pharma