SANGEETA KHANNA
AN ANCIENT HERB IS STAGING A COMEBACK FOR ITS PROPERTIES TO BOOST IMMUNITY
to restrict myself from putting something straight into the mouth—the reflexes now being readjusted to not touch anything and never reaching the face when outside. Nevertheless, I could not suppress my urge to uproot a few branches and bring it back for my own garden. The life force of the creeper kicked in quickly, and it is now a flourishing bunch of tiny branches. I could taste the new flowers.
Something more interesting happened later when I shared a picture of the plant on Instagram. Someone from Arunachal Pradesh replied that this therapeutic herb is called in her state, and a is made out of the leaves. That spurred my interest and I immediately made a tiny amount of the using about 10 leaves. It turned out to be an explosion of flavours in my mouth. Only tribal recipes—where minimal native ingredients are used for greater impact, both on the taste buds as well as on health—have such quality. I have to thank Yapi Gongo for this recipe that’s going to be a regular in my kitchen Another person from the Northeast, Jacqueline T Misra, messaged me that when the tribal heads in her state prayed for the safety of people after the COVID-19 outbreak, they got the vision of this herb. They shared the prophecy through a scripture from the Bible, urging everyone to stay behind shut doors. A friend from Manipur, Rina Akoijam, told me they call it and make
a spicy salad with steamed leaves. People in Kokrajhar, Assam, cook a chicken soup with it, adding just ginger and salt to boost immunity.
ANCIENT WISDOM
For generations,
has been used for toothache relief, treating oral infections, nerve-related conditions like headaches, epilepsy, facial palsy and stammering, apart from being used as a muscle relaxant and for its anti-rheumatic properties. has also been categorised in Ayurvedic and Unani medicine as one of the aphrodisiac herbs owing to its inherent properties to enhance testosterone levels coupled with improved nerve functioning.
Since is rich in pyrethrums, like many Chrysanthemum species plants, it has been trusted to be a potent insect repellent, anti-microbial, anti-bacterial and has been shown to kill intestinal worms.
Sialagogue action (increased secretion of saliva) of has also been used by some ethnic groups across the country. In some places when toddlers don’t eat solid food, they are made to lick a paste of its flowers to generate appetite. I was told by a family friend, Biranchi Sarang, that people in his hometown in Gaya, Bihar, mixed its flowers with chewing tobacco to increase salivation and their testosterone levels.
The saliva-inducing and anti-microbial action makes Akarkara a great aid for gum and dental hygiene. In fact, the taste is
METHOD
Rinse and clean Akarkara leaves, parboil them in minimal water.Now dry roast the chillies in a pan or over open flame till it becomes aromatic and smoky.Toast sesame seeds and powder. Now pound everything together and serve with meals like rice and dal, khichdi or congee. almost like natural camphor paired with schezuan pepper and it causes tingling along palate for some time. The root decoction is also used to treat foul breath and pyorrhoea, an inflammatory condition of the gum.
There are a number of chemical constituents in The photochemical screening of roots, stems, leaves and flowers have revealed the presence of alkaloids, reducing agents and catechism tannins. The flavonoids, total phenol and ployphenol contents are highest in flowers, compared to leaves and roots. The roots are rich in alkaloids, while the aerial parts are rich in tannins and flavonoids. Dried roots of this plant are sold by herb dealers across India, but it is mostly used as an aphrodisiac. The aphrodisiac action is due to the presence of a bioactive compound N-alkylamides (pellitorine). With such a wide spectrum of medicinal properties,
may well be the magic herb in times of COVID-19.
HAS BEEN USED BY SOME ETHNIC GROUPS ACROSS THE COUNTRY. IN SOME PLACES, TODDLERS ARE ASKED TO LICK A PASTE OF ITS FLOWERS TO GENERATE APPETITE