Abstract
The use of medicinal plants is as old as humanity itself, in Brazil it is part of daily life, being very influenced by cultural, social and economic factors. Medicinal plants possess chemical compounds with antioxidant activity, among them phenolic compounds, polyphenols, flavonoids, tannins and organic acids are substances present in plants with potential to protect against free radicals, capable of retarding or preventing damages due to oxidation, being present In small concentrations when compared to the oxidizing agent, being important for longevity of both the plant and animal organisms. The medicinal plants have a multitude of therapeutic actions thanks to their bioactive compounds, even though they are distinct from each other, they have similarities with each other, so this work aimed to verify the similarity between 18 types of medicinal plants used as "teas" by the population through Of PCA analysis, comparing the contents of polyphenols obtained by means of the Folin-Ciocalteau reaction, the antioxidant activity determined by DPPH, together with the total solids content, where a positive correlation was found between polyphenol levels and antioxidant activity, Thanks to the statistical and applied chemometric methodology.