Humans have used plants as medicine since prehistory. Scientists have now found that chimpanzees use plants to heal themselves. Researchers conducted a study of chimpanzee behaviour in a forest in Uganda. The researchers observed a male chimp with an injured hand looking for a fern. The fern may have reduced the swelling in its hand. Another chimp with an infection ate the bark of a tree. This may have helped to cure the animal.

The researchers say there is a correlation between the chimpanzees' ills and the healing properties in plants. The researchers tested the plants the chimpanzees ate. They found that 88 per cent of them had anti-bacterial properties. A researcher said: "Results suggest that Budongo chimpanzees consume several [plants] with potent medicinal properties." She said the research may lead to a greater use of medicinal plants in our lives.