Department of Dravyaguna VigyanDR. SARVEPALLI RADHAKRISHNAN RAJSTHAN AYURVED UNIVERSITY ,

JODHPUR

Presented by:

Dr.Gulab Chand Meena

PG Scholar

Guided by: Dr. chandan singh

(HOD)

Dr.Manoj adlakha

(Asst.prof.)

FRESH AVAILABLE MEDICINAL HERBS AROUND BARAN DISTRICT

Introduction: Herbal medicines are in great demand in both developed and developing countries as a source of primary health care owing to their attributes having wide biological and medicinal activities, high safety margins and lesser costs. More and more people are rediscovering the simple way of life and are turning to natural foods and fresh herbs in order to stay healthy. I have chosen some fresh herbs available around baran district, that people can use daily working life and for promoting healthy life.These are:

Bhumyamalaki:Latin name Phyllanthus urinariaFamily EuphorbiaceaeDESCRIPTION:This is an annual herbs with the main stem erect, unbranched or sparsely branched. The side branches with their two rows of alternate leaves resemble a compound leaf. The leaves themselves are finely hairy, nearly sessile (stalkless), blunt at the ape. The unisexual flowers are whitish, tiny and inconspicuous, and they are borne singly or in small clusters in the axils of the leaves. These capsules are about 1/8 inch in diameter when ripe, and are held beneath the leaves.

Therapeutic use of bhumyamalaki:•Haemorrhage: seeds of Bhumyamalaki taken with rice water alleviate, in two or three days, meno-metrorrhagia, hamaturia and diarrhoea with blood.•Jaundice: paste of Bhumyamalaki made with butter milk removes jaundice.•Pain in eye: paste of bhumyamalki mixed rocksalt and sour gruel is rubbed in a copper vessel. When solidified, it is applied as paste on eyelids.•Pradara: root of Bhumyamalaki taken with rice water for 2-3 days checks bleeding.•Prameha: Bhumyamalaki 20 gm. And marica twenty in number are pounded together and taken. It alleviates all types of prameha. 

Nahi,Chota chirayata:Latin name Enicostemma littoraleFamily GentianaceaeDESCRIPTION:E. littorale is an erect, perennial herb, 5–30 cm tall, simple or branched at the base. Stem cylindric, glabrous with a decurrent ridge below each leaf. Leaves are sessile sometimes narrowed into a petiole-like base, longer than the internodes. Flowers are white with green lines, drying yellowish, sessile or subsessile.

Therapeutic use of nahi:•The hot aqueous extract of E. littorale has also been used by the traditional healers for the treatment of dyspepsia and malaria.•E. littorale is traditionally used in India as a stomachic, bitter tonic, carminative to reduce fever and as a tonic for appetite loss.•Nampalliwar and Godatwar observed that E. littorale enhances glucose-dependent insulin release.•In Indian ayurvedic medicine, E. littorale is taken in combination with other herbs, especially for diabetes.

Chirpoti, Parpoti:Latin name Physalis minimaFamily SolanaceaeDESCRIPTION:A small, delicate, erect, annual, pubescent herb, 1.5 metres tall; internodal length, 8.2 cm; more or less the whole plant is pubescent. dorsal surface of the leaves, dark green. Cream to yellowish flowers are followed by edible yellowish fruit encapsulated in papery cover which turns straw brown and drops to the ground when the fruit is fully ripe. fully mature fruits primrose yellow. Seeds, globose, Dresden yellow.

Therapeutic use of parpoti/chirpoti:•Earache, ulcer, urinary problems, cough, fever and pain.•Especially leaves are used as medicine. According to Ayurveda, Physalis minima used as antibacterial, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, diuretic. •Root extract used for fever.•Poultice of leaves, smeared with oiled and heated, applied to ulcers.• Fruit used as alterative, diuretic and aperient; used in dropsy, urinary diseases, and gout.•Used for colds and fever, swelling pain of the throat, bronchitis.•Poultice of fruits used for headaches and intestinal pains.•Pounded fresh material may be used as poultice or decoction of the same may be used as wash for eczema infection.

Apamarg, Chirchita:Latin name Achyranthes asperaFamily AmaranthaceaeDESCRIPTION:Achyranthes aspera (Latjeera) is an erect or procumbent, annual or perennial herb, often with a woody base. Stems angular, ribbed, simple or branched from the base, often with tinged purple colour , branches absolutely quadrangular, striate, pubescent , leaves thick, flowers greenish white, numerous in axillary or terminal spikes up to 75 cm long, seeds subcylindric, truncate at the apex, rounded at the base, reddish brown.

Therapeutic use of apamarg:•Ear pain, Infection in ear: Take fresh leaves of Apamarg and wash to remove dirt. Grind and extract its juice. Put few drops in ear to cure infection of ear.•Eye problem, redness in eye: Take fresh root of Apamarg and clean it carefully to remove dirt and soil. Grind it with rose water and apply in eyes to cure eye infection.•Mouth ulcer: Chew few clean, fresh leaves of Apamarg.•Back ache: Take leaves of Apamarga and rub on affected areas on back.•Wound: Extract leaves juice and use this to wash wounds to heal quickly.•Paralysis: Prepare root powder of herb. Take this with glass of milk.•Bleeding piles: Take fresh leaves of Apamarg and wash to remove dirt. Grind with water and make paste. Mix til oil in this paste and apply this on affected areas.

Shankhapushpi:Latin name Convolvulus pluricaulisFamily ConvolvulaceaeDESCRIPTION:Shankhapushpi is a prostrate, spreading, perennial, wild herb commonly found on sandy or rocky ground. The species is marked by great morphological variability especially in size of the flower. Stems are ascending or prostrate, 10-40 cm long, densely velvety with appressed to spreading hairs. Leaves are nearly stalk less, linear to oblong, lanceshaped or inverted-lanceshaped, wedge-shaped at the base, pointed to blunt at the tip. Flowers are white or pale pink, midpetaline areas velvety. Seeds are 2-4, about 2-2.5 mm long, dark brown.

Therapeutic use of shankhpushpi:•The shankhpushpi plant extract is well known for treating insanity and hematemesis.• Leaves of shankhpushpi plant are used to treat bronchitis and asthma.•The plant root is herbal remedy to treat childhood fever.• shankhpushpi plant extract avoids fluid retention in the body and supports digestion.•In Ayurveda shankhpushpi plant is also used for treatment of epilepsy.Improving memory with Convolvulus pluricaulis:•Take 3 to 6 grams of shankhpushpi powder with milk early in the morning to enhance the memory power. Fatigue would vanish if youare studying for long hours.•Give 2 to 4 grams of shankhpushpi powder with 1 gram of Sweet Flag (bach) powder to raise intelligence in children and to make them sharp.•Take its powder 2-4 grams, adding it to honey or sugar for 6 months. Wrinkles would disappear from your face in the old age. Memory power and astuteness would be increased.•For Sharp memory take 3 to 6 grams shankhpushpi powder and honey with milk.

Datura:Latin name Datura metelFamily SolanaceaeDESCRIPTION:Datura metel is a shrub to 1.4 m tall and somewhat variable in appearance. Its stems are slightly furry, with dark violet young shoots. D. metel has almost hairless leaves, oval to broad oval, smooth and are often dark violet in colour. Also, leaves are less sharply toothed or more or less entire. Flower colour ranges from white to cream, yellow, red, and violet. They are pleasantly scented particularly in the night. The fruits are knobby, not spiny with blunt protuberances, or with longer prickles.

Therapeutic use of datura:•The paste of its roots mashed in cow`s urine or the juice of the leaves is applied externally to alleviate oedema, and pain in sciatica.•The mustard oil medicated with the pulp of Datura seeds is used with great benefit for dressing the cracked feet.•Internally: it dries up the mucous secretions in the respiratory tract and is a broncho-dialator as well, hence, it is beneficial in bronchial asthma and cough.•It is used in abdominal pain, associated with hyperacidity.

Kantakari:Latin name Solanum surattenseFamily SolanaceaeDESCRIPTION: Solanum surattense, is a very spiny diffused herb, with a height of up to 1.2 meters. The young branches are densely covered with minute star-shaped hair, while the mature branches are zigzag, covered with yellow, sharp shining prickles and spread close to the ground. The midribs and other nerves of the leaves have sharp yellow prickles and grow up to 10 cm in length. The purple flowers, can be seen in small bunches, sometimes opposite to the leaves. Kantkari plant bears glabrous, globular drooping berries as fruits, yellow or pale in color, with green veins. 

.

Therapeutic use of kantkari: Cough: Take whole kantkari plant or panchang (3-4 gm) and boil in

water (200 ml) till water reduces to 50 ml, filter and drink twice a day. This is very good remedy for chronic cough. Or take fresh kantkari plant juice (1-2 ml) mixed with honey.

Epilepsy: Put fresh kantkari leaves juice (2 drops) in each nostril empty stomach in morning. Do it regularly.

Liver Swelling and infection: Kantkari is very good liver tonic. Its decoction is very beneficial in liver swelling and infection.

Vomiting and nausea during pregnancy: Take Kantkaripanchang (5 gm) and munakka (5-6) and make decoction by boiling in water. This helps to cure nausea, vomiting and low appetite.

Migraine: For chronic migraine put fresh kantkari juice (4 drops) in each nostril.

Hair fall: Take fresh kantkari leaves juice and massage on scalp to cure hair fall and dandruff.

Tooth ache: Take fresh leaves of kantkari and grind to extract juice. Now soak cotton in this juice and apply on tooth.

Makoi:Latin name Solanum nigrumFamily SolanaceaeDESCRIPTION:Solanum nigrum also known as Makoi / Kakamachi short-lived perennial shrub. It reaches a height of 30 to 120 cm, leaves; ovate to heart-shaped, with wavy or large-toothed edges; both surfaces hairy or hairless. The flowers have petals greenish to whitish, recurved when aged and surround prominent bright yellow anthers. The berry is mostly 6 to 8 mm in diam., dull black or purple-black.

Therapeutic use of makoi:•Arthritis, joint pain: poultice of leaves is prepared and applied externally on the painful joints.•Insomnia or sleeplessness: the root are boiled in water and a decoction is prepared which is filtered and taken 10-20ml.•Skin diseases: a paste of leave is prepared and applied externally.•Stomatitis: for this ailment, chewing 5-6 leaves of plant is helpful.•Solanum nigrum is helpful for the treatment of chronic fever.•It protects liver and fights against jaundice.•It has been proved useful against burns because of it anti-inflammatory nature.

Duddhi, Dugdhika:Latinname Euphorbia thymifolia Family EuphorbiaceaeDESCRIPTION:A prostrate, annual herb; stems many, spreading on the ground. Leaves opposite, obliquely oblong, small, unequal sided at base, glabrous and green or reddish above. Fruits ovoid-globose, 1-1.5 mm in diameter. Seeds obtusely quadrangular, up to 1 mm long, pale brown, transversely rugose.

Therapeutic use of duddhi:•According to Charak the soup of Dugdhika is beneficial in diarrhea and painful bleeding of piles. He has prescribed its latex for ring worm and for eruptive boils. extract of this plant is applied for the cure of ringworms.•Bhaavaprakash states that Dugdhika is expectorant as it can cure aggravated cough. Besides this a paste of the plant cures skin diseases and parasitic infections. If used internally, its extract promotes conception.•Bleeding piles: ghee cooked with kantakari and dugdhika alleviates bleeding piles with pain. •Ring worm: after rubbing with dried cow dung, the spot should be pasted with latex of dugdhika. •Eruptive boils: dugdhika mixed with eranda seeds destroys boils. •Dysentery: dugdhika steamed with cooked rice and taken with the same after adding oil checks dysentery with blood.

Gorakshaganjaa:Latin name Aerva lanataFamily AmaranthaceaeDESCRIPTION:Aerva lanata is a prostrate dioecious herb having a tap root which is cylindrical, branched, 7-12 cm long, 2-8 mm thick, straight or slightly twisted with many slender, fibrous lateral roots, pale yellowish brown externally, whitish internally, it has many branches, branched from the root base. Leaves are simple, alternate, entire margin, hairy above. Flowers are very small, sessile, usually bisexual, greenish/ hoary white. Fruits are greenish, round, compressed membranous utricle capsule. Seed are Reniform.

Therapeutic use of gorashaganjaa :•Kidney stone: take 2tsp leaf juice of aerva lanata . have it twice a day.•UTI: make a decoction of aerva lanata . drink 50ml of it twice a day.•Roots of aerva are used for treating headache. It can also comfort injuries and inflammation on the skin as it has good antimicrobial activities. • Form people infected with jaundice are given the ground roots of aerva mixed with yogurt.•The leaf extract is also used for treating fever. Decoction made from the leaves of this plant is beneficial for sore throat and cough.•The flowers of aerva are also having medicinal properties and are widely used for lowering the lower back pain. The ashes of flowers are used to rub on the back.•The decoction of the aerva lanata is used as a diuretic which is a substance that tends to increase the flow of urine and in turn causes the body to get rid of excess water. Further inhaling the smoke produced by burning this dried plant can give relief from asthma.

Conclusion:On this paper I have discussed about only a few medicinal herbs, but there are more medicinal plant grow in our country. But all plants have not medicinal effect. Some plants have toxicity. like datura is known as poisonous. So we should be careful when using medicinal plant. These medicinal herbs can be a good alternative for many diseases and conditions in all age of patients. They are low cost, and tend to have fewer side effects. So people use them in various easy methods. The herbal drugs act selectively and gently without disturbing other system. Whereas, modern medicine affects several metabolic activity in the human system and has side effects which makes body more susceptible to other diseases.

THANKSTHANKS