Read Ebook: The Medicinal Plants of the Philippines by Pardo De Tavera T H Trinidad Hermenegildo Thomas Jerome Beers Translator

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GERANIACEAE.

Geranium Family.

Uses.--The part of the plant used in medicine is the leaf which is acid by virtue of the potassium oxalate which it contains. The decoction is used internally as an antipyretic in fevers and in dysentery. Mistaking the properties of the plant it is given for vesical calculus which, if composed of oxalates, would be increased instead of diminished by the treatment. In fact the salt of sorrel in the leaves contains a large quantity of oxalic acid mixed with potassium oxalate. In China, India and the Philippines the entire plant is used as an antiscorbutic.

Botanical Description.--A plant 1? high, with a creeping, glabrous stem, leaves horizontal, ternate with common long petiole. Leaflets sessile, obcordate, with downy borders. Flowers axillary or terminal, from 1 to 3 in number on a common long peduncle. The pedicel is also long. Calyx common to the family. Corolla, 5 petals ending in small claws. Stamens 10, monadelphous, the 5 shorter ones bearing each a small gland on the outer surface of the base. Ovary large, fluted. Styles 5, short. Stigmas hemispherical. Seed vessel pyramidal, containing many seeds enveloped in an elastic aril by which they are ejected when the fruit opens.

Habitat.--Abundant in Luzon, Panay and Ceb?.

Uses.--A decoction of the leaves is used internally as an expectorant. The bruised leaves are used as an application to wounds and contusions. In Java the decoction is used internally in asthma, phthisis and snake bites.

The peculiar property which this plant possesses of closing its leaves when touched, has caused the natives of India to attribute to it mysterious virtues. Symbolism has determined its therapeutic application and the Hindoos pretend that it endows with delicacy and modesty women who lack these virtues and that it restores virginity.

Botanical Description.--A plant about 7' high. Stem straight, nodose and without branches. Leaves abruptly pinnate, the place of the odd leaflet taken by a stylet. The leaflets nearly linear with a small point at the apex, 11-13 pairs, 2 stipules to each pair. Common petioles long, cleft at the base and disposed in whorls around and on the end of the stem. Flowers sessile, verticillate, on the ends of several very long peduncles which rise from the midst of the petioles. Calyx, 5 sepals. Corolla, 5 petals, clawed, rounded at the end and slightly notched, forming a tube. Stamens 10, free. A small gland on the outer surface of the base of each short stamen. Styles 5. Seed vessels ovate, 5-angled, containing many seeds.

Habitat.--Common in all parts of the islands.

Uses.--The small fruit of the camia springing from the branches and trunks of the trees is widely known in the Philippines, where they eat it green, pickled, and in salad; and when ripe fresh and preserved. Its qualities and therapeutic applications are the same as those of the following species.

Botanical Description.--A tree 4-5 meters high with odd-pinnate leaves. Leaflets 12 pairs, ovate, linear, acute, soft and downy. Flowers small, pinkish or purplish, on trunk and branches. Stamens 10, five alternately longer. Pistils divergent. Fruit oblong, obtuse at the end, with five broad ribs.

Habitat.--Very common throughout the islands.

Uses.--The common name of this tree, whose fruit is so common, causes it to be confused with the name which Linnaeus gives to the former species. Balimbin is a fruit of an acid taste, agreeable when ripe, serving the same uses for food as the camia. Its acidity is due to the presence of oxalic acid, which makes the green fruit useful for removing ink and rust stains from clothes. The juice of the fruit is refreshing and is given internally mixed with water and sugar as a refreshing drink in fevers and as an antiscorbutic. For the latter the ripe fruit is eaten uncooked.

In Mauritius the juice is used to treat dysentery and hepatitis. Padre Blanco says that the natives use a decoction of camias and unthreshed rice in diarrhoea and bilious colic. In connection with the subject of camias and balimbins we should mention the fruit treatment of the bilious diarrhoea of the tropics, spoken of by the French physicians of Cochin China. Dr. Van der Burg of the Dutch Indies also strongly recommends the treatment of diarrhoea by fruits; in temperate regions using fruits like peaches, pears, etc., and in the tropics, lychies, mangosteens, etc. In regard to the mangosteens we must not forget that, while the bark is given because of the amount of tannin it contains, the composition of the pulp is very different. The fruit acids seem to exercise great influence in the cure of this obstinate disease and I do not hesitate to recommend for this purpose the camia and the ripe balimbin.

Botanical Description.--A tree much like the former. Leaves odd-pinnate. Leaflets, 3-4 pairs, obliquely ovate, acute, the terminal leaflet nearly lanceolate. Flowers on the trunk, branches and in the axils of the leaves. Fruit oblong, with 5 very prominent acute-angled ribs.

Habitat.--It grows, like the former plant, in all parts of the islands.

RUTACEAE.

Rue Family.

Uses.--The rue of the European, American and Indian pharmacopoeias is emmenagogue, antispasmodic, anthelmintic, excitant, diaphoretic, antiseptic and abortive. It contains an essential oil, and rutinic acid , starch, gum, etc. The essential oil is greenish-yellow, thick, acrid and bitter; specific gravity 0.911. It boils at 228?, is slightly soluble in water, and soluble in absolute alcohol. It is promptly oxidized by nitric acid, and is converted into pelargonic acid and other fatty acids.

Rutin , according to Weiss, is a glucoside which exists in the form of fine needles, bright yellow in color. It is slightly soluble in cold water and more so in boiling water. It melts at 190?, and solidifies at freezing point, forming a resinous mass. Its physiological properties are as yet unknown. The part of the plant employed is the leaves, which owe their property, apparently, to the essential oil they contain, from which they also derive their strong and disagreeable odor and their bitter, acrid and nauseous taste.

It is used principally as a uterine stimulant or emmenagogue, for which purpose it is given in doses of 0.10-0.15 centigrams of the freshly powdered leaf and 0.05-0.10 centigrams of the fresh leaves infused in a liter of water. The dry powder of the leaf should not be used because the essential oil volatilizes and a large proportion of it is lost, which is the most active principle of the drug. It is an agent which should be prescribed with the greatest prudence for large doses are poisonous even to the point of causing death. The symptoms following such doses are colic, vomiting, bloody diarrhoea and tenesmus.

It is also used as an antihemorrhagic after childbirth, but its action is slow, not being felt for several hours after the administration of the drug; for this reason it cannot take the place of ergot, though it seems to be superior to the latter in passive hemorrhages. The essential oil is given internally in doses of 2-6 drops on a piece of sugar. It is sometimes used as an antispasmodic in hysteria, epilepsy and chorea.

The Chinese make extensive use of this drug and it is one of their principal abortives. In Hindostan the dried leaves are burnt and the smoke inhaled as a cure for catarrh in children. They are careful not to administer it to pregnant women.

Botanical Description.--A plant, 1 meter high, with leaves alternate, compound, the inferior ones 2-3-cleft; leaflets narrow, oblong, slightly fleshy. Flowers greenish-yellow, hermaphrodite, arranged in corymbose terminal cymes. Corolla, 4-5 free, concave petals. Calyx deeply divided, persistent. Stamens 8-10, free, in two whorls, inserted beneath a thick disc. Ovaries 5, unilocular, many-ovuled. Styles 5, first free, then united, forming a column terminating in a small stigma. Follicles 5, united at the base, 1 centimeter long, free superiorly, hard, rounded, rugose, opening on top. Seeds ovoid, angular, blackish, albuminous.

Habitat.--Common everywhere in the Philippines.

Uses.--The trunk bark is stimulant and is used as a sudorific in the treatment of fevers. The fresh bark is quite irritating, for which reason it is best to use bark taken from the more mature parts of the trunk, powdered and desiccated. The dose is 1/2-2 grams 2-3 times a day. Its stimulating properties render it useful in colic and in India it is used as a stomachic and digestive. Is seems also to possess diuretic properties.

Botanical Description.--A tree 30-35? high, with trunk thickly set with large spines. Leaves odd-pinnate. Leaflets ovate, acute, obtusely serrate, small transparent vesicles on the surface, spines on the midrib and common petiole. Calyx very small, monophyllous. Corolla twice as large as the calyx, 4 petals. Stamens 4, inserted on the receptacle, the same length as the petals. Ovary superior, 4-angled. No style. Stigmas 2.

Habitat.--Batangas, Morong, Manila.

The foregoing description of this species applies equally well to the following species.

Botanical Description.--A small tree 12? high with leaves alternate, odd-pinnate. Leaflets lanceolate, almost entire, rigid with small dots on each surface. Flowers in axillary, very short, compound racemes. Calyx very small, monophyllous, 5 lanceolate lobules. Corolla much longer than the calyx, 5 lanceolate petals. Stamens 10, joined, but not entirely united at the base; 5 alternate stamens longer than the others. Anthers sessile, regular. Ovary superior, compressed and borne on a disc. Style 1, same length as the stamens. Stigma thick, depressed, apparently 4-angled. Fruit fleshy, ovoid, acute and somewhat curved at the end enclosing a seed with coriaceous, downy testa.

Nom. Vulg.--

Botanical Description.--Leaves alternate, odd-pinnate. Leaflets obliquely ovate, acute, entire and glabrous. The testa of the seed bears no down, and may be divided into two parts. The decoction of the leaves of this species as well as the former is used to allay toothache.

Uses.--The essence and juice of the fruit are the parts of the plant used in therapeutics. The essence extracted from the rind is yellow, fragrant, slightly bitter; density, 0.856; boiling point 165?. The juice which is turbid and pale yellow in color contains 9% citric acid, 3-5% gum and sugar and 2-8/10% inorganic salts. The essence is used to flavor certain pharmaceutical preparations, and is a diffusible stimulant which may be given internally in doses of 3-6 drops on a little sugar. The bitter rind is occasionally used in infusion as a stomachic and stimulant. The juice is most commonly used in lemonade, a cooling drink which, used intemperately in the Philippines, is apt to cause gastro-intestinal trouble, so commonly attributed to "irritation," but really the result of a general atony of the digestive organs. Lemon juice is also used with very good results as a local cleansing application for sore throat, as well as externally on fetid ulcers. In some forms of malarial fever it seems to have given satisfactory results, administered internally.

In many navies lemon juice forms a part of the sea ration as a preventive of scurvy, upon which it exercises a real and noteworthy action. The Danish navy adopted it for this purpose in 1770, the English navy followed, then the French and possibly others. The English call it lime-juice, and its preventive dose is 30-40 grams a day. Its curative dose is 100-150 grams a day. To preserve the lime-juice it was bottled with a layer of oil, which, floating on the surface kept it from contact with the air; but this process gave it a bad taste as did also the addition of sulphate of calcium, and at present the English add, to each liter of juice, 60 grams of alcohol, which preserves it perfectly. Fonssagrives says that the antiscorbutic action of lemon juice is due rather to the vegetable juice itself than to the citric acid which it contains.

Botanical Description.--A most familiar tree 11? or more high, trunk with solitary thorns. Leaves ovate, obtuse, acute-toothed, the petiole bearing serrate wings. Calyx 4-6-toothed. Corolla, 4 thick petals. Filaments 10-25 on the receptacle, some joined and bearing 2-3 anthers. Fruit thin-skinned, globular, about 1' in diameter; the rind adheres closely to the pulp.

Habitat.--Common to all parts of the islands.

Botanical Description.--A tree 15-20? high, trunk bearing solitary spines. Leaves medium lanceolate, serrate, the apex notched, petioles winged. Flowers usually solitary. Calyx 4-5-toothed. Corolla 4-5 petals. Filaments joined or separate. Anthers about 20. The fruit, a small orange 2' or more in diameter, the peel closely adherent.

Martin, an English physician, was the first to call attention to the properties of Bael, and according to Dr. Green one dose of the pulp of the ripe fruit, prepared with sugar and given every morning, is an efficient remedy in the treatment of the dyspepsia of Europeans in India, especially in the form characterized by constipation and flatulence. The green fruit is a powerful astringent used by the Hindoos for diarrhoea. In cholera epidemics Dr. Bose advises the daily use of an ice made from the pulp of the ripe fruit, the object being the regulation of the functions of the intestine.

The Pharmacopoeia of India contains the following preparations:

Mix, and if desired add chopped ice. This forms a very agreeable drink which has the aroma of the fruit itself, and may be repeated 2-3 times a day. When the fruit is ripe, this preparation is not only astringent in cases of diarrhoea, but possesses the additional property of increasing the appetite. If the patient's stomach is very weak, the preparation may produce vomiting in which event it is necessary to give it in small doses or to employ the extract.

Pulp of Bael 500 grams. Water 3 liters. Rectified alcohol 60 grams.

The Bael is macerated in a third of the water and at the end of 12 hours the liquid is decanted and another third of water is added; the maceration is repeated and the same process followed till the last third of water is used. Express the residuum, put all the liquid into one vessel, filter and evaporate till reduced to 800 grams, then cool and add the alcohol. Dose, 4-8 grams.

The fluid extract is less active than the freshly prepared solid extract.

Botanical Description.--A tree 7-8 meters high, the trunk covered with large, solitary spines. Leaves alternate, ternate. Leaflets lanceolate, scalloped and glabrous, the middle one larger than the others. Calyx 5-toothed. Corolla, 5 thick petals, linear, much longer than the calyx. Stamens 10. Ovary cylindrical. Style and stigma thick. Fruit oblong, more than 3' long and 2' thick, with a surface irregular with prominences and grooves; 10 or more compartments, each containing several ovoid, compressed seeds, ending with a woolly tuft.

Habitat.--San Mateo, Montalb?n ; Arayat .

Uses.--The pulp of the ripe fruit has an agreeable odor and is edible. In India the green fruit is used as an astringent in diarrhoea and dysentery; the ripe fruit is given in diseases of the gums and as a gargle. Mir Muhammad Husain states that the ripe fruit is a refrigerant, astringent, cardiac and general tonic, and is very efficacious in the treatment of salivation and ulcers of the throat, strengthening the gums and operating as an astringent. A sorbet made of the ripe fruit whets the appetite and the pulp is used locally for bites of venomous animals. In the latter case the pulverized bark may be used if the fruit cannot be obtained.

The fruit of Ferona is a substitute for Bael , and is used as such by the English physicians in the hospitals of India. The tender leaves have an agreeable aroma similar to that of anise and are used internally in decoction as a stomachic and carminative.

The incised trunk exudes a gum which is used in India as a substitute for gum arabic and there is an active trade in this gum in the bazars of Bombay and Calcutta. According to Pereira, it was at one time imported into England from the east of India under the name of gum arabic. It exists in the form of irregular, semitransparent pieces, of a brownish-red color. With water it forms a mucilage as adhesive as gum arabic, and this solution reddens litmus paper. It is dextrogyrous and is precipitated by the neutral acetate of lead and by caustic baryta.

Botanical Description.--Tree 3-4 meters high. Leaves fragrant, opposite, odd-pinnate. Leaflets, 2 pairs, lanceolate, entire, and glabrous. Common petiole flattened above. Flowers terminal, white, racemose, with 2 flattened peduncles. Calyx inferior, with 5-6 divisions. Corolla, 5-6 petals. Anthers oval. Ovary oblong, 5-lobuled. Style short, caducous. Stigma spindle-shaped. Ovules numerous, compressed, in several series. Fruit pulpy, globose, with woody rind, one compartment and many compressed, oblong seeds.

Habitat.--Mountains of Angat. Woods of Catug?n .

SIMARUBACEAE.

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