Irritable Bowel Syndrome: Indian Medicine Aegle-foila & Aegle-marmelos
NATIONAL JOURNAL OF HOMOEOPATHY 2004 Mar / Apr VOL VI NO 2.
'Aegle-foila / Aegle-marmelos
Dr. Prasad Rasal
Utilization
- The fruits are usually consumed by humans. These protein-rich fruits are also used to make a very good drink and a good jam.
- The fruits are used in making paints in Burma. They are also used as a substitute for soap, as source of essential oils and perfumes. The mucilage of the seed is a good cementing material (Watt 1889).
- The wood of the bael-tree takes a fine polish and is used in building houses, constructing carts, agricultural implements, in oil-mills and sugar-mills, in making pestles, handles of tools, in making combs, etc., and for carving but the tree is too valuable to be felled for its timber. A yellow dye is obtained from the rind of the unripe fruits and is used in calico printing. An essential oil is distilled from the rind (Dastur, 1964).
- The dried fruits, after their pulp separated from the rind, are used as pillboxes for keeping valuable medicines, sacred ashes and snuff.
Scientific Evidences: (Medicinal Properties)
- Watt (1889) reported the unripe dried fruit to be astringent, digestive and stomachic. According to him, they are prescribed to cure diarrhoea and dysentery. The ripe fruit is a good and simple cure for dyspepsia. Both its roots and bark are used in the treatment of fever by making a decoction. A poultice made of leaves is used in the treatment of ophthalmia. According to Dastur (1962), the rind of the ripe fruit is also sometimes used as a medicine.
- The roots are sweet, cure the fevers caused by tridosho, stop pain in the abdomen, the palpitation of the heart, and allay urinary troubles. They are also useful in the disordes of vata, pitta and kapha (Kirtikar and Basu, 1935).
- The fruits are very useful in chronic diarrhoea and dysentery, particularly in the case of patients having diarrhoea, alternating with the spells of constipation. Sherbet prepared from the pulp of fruits produce a soothing effect on the patients who have just recovered from bacillary dysentery. The unripe and half-ripe fruits improve appetite and digestion (Jain, 1968; Jauhari, 1969).
- The pulp from the unripe fruits is soaked in gingelly oil for a week and this oil is smeared over the body before bathing. This oil is said to be useful in removing the classic burning sensation of the soles.
- According to Dixit and Dutt (1932), the fruits of Aegle-marmelos Correa contain a furocoumarin marmalosin, which is responsible for its medicinal properties. The bark contains umbelliferone and other coumarins.
- Sur T K; Pandit S; Pramanik Department of Biochemistry & Biophysics University College of Medicine, University of Calcutta-700020, India
Antispermatogenic activity of leaves of Aegle-marmelos, Corr. in albino: a preliminary report.
Abstract: Extract of Aegle-marmelos leaves (EAM) showed significant decrease in the weight of sex organs, reduced sperm count, increased sperm motility and both protein and RNA contents of testis dose dependently indicating the anti-spermatogenic properties of Aegle marmelos in albino rats.
Department of Biochemistry & Biophysics University College of Medicine, University of Calcutta-700020, India
Abstract: Experiment showed that Aegle-marmelos increases the force of contraction of cardiac muscles and also its action is not blocked by Calcium channel blockers and Beta-blockers. As the doses of AM extract increases, there is a graded decrease in the heart rate and increase in the force of contraction. Thus our study proves the Cardiotonic action of Aegl- marmelos Corr. on amphibian heart.
- Aegle-marmelos Extract
This extract is derived from the leaves of plant of Aegle-marmelos commonly called as Bael belonging to family Rutaceae. The leaf and seed of bael are primarily used in the treatment of diabetes. Their use in ophthalmia and ulcers is well established. In the traditional Indian system of medicine the juice of leaves along with Black Pepper is reputed to be given in diabetes. Major therapeutically active constituents of bael fruits include tannins and mucilage. - Pharmacological experiments have revealed the active principle in aqueous leaf extract as showing hypoglycaemic activity similar to insulin.
- In animal trials oral treatment of diabetic rats with the Aegle-marmelos extract maintained the weight of the animals near to the control and caused a significant decrease in liver glycogen, blood urea and serum cholesterol levels to that of control ones. (Ed: What about Blood Glucose?)
- In another set of experiments aqueous and alcoholic extracts of Aegle-marmelos @500 mg/kg dose produced hypoglycaemic in normal fasted rabbits.
- The alkaloid aegeline present in leaf extract is also found to be effective in the treatment of asthma. Scientific studies have also reported its use as smooth muscle.
