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| Basil: Ocimun sanctum |
Basil
(Ocimum sanctum L.), plant of the Lamiaceae family, is an
erect, annual herb, found commonly grown in India and the Andaman and Nicobar
Islands. All parts of the plant, i.e., its leaves, stems, roots, seeds &
the flowers are reputed to have therapeutic properties. This holy plant has
been used by herbal practitioners as analgesic, expectorant, antidiabetic,
carminative, anticancer, adaptogenic, antifungal,
antimicrobial, antiasthmatic, hepatoprotective, cardioprotective, hypolipidmic,
antiemetic, antispasmodic, antirheumatic, hypotensive and diaphoretic.
These
medicinal properties are believed to be due to the presence of essential oils
and other active compounds in the plant. The basil leaves contain essential oil
rich in eugenal, eugenol, limatrol, caryophylline, carvacrol, methylchavicol
and steroids like ursolic acid and n-triacontanol. The plant roots contain
active compounds such as triterpenes and sitosterol. The seeds of the herb are
a source of fatty acids and sitosterol. Owing to its active constituents, find
here some of the age old folk remedies with basil:
Traditional Herbal Remedies with Basil
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| Basil: A Doctor in your backyard! |
- To cure skin infections, prepare a mixture of crushed basil leaves, onion (Allium cepa) and lemon (Citrus limon) juice. Apply the mixture topically to treat skin infections and allergies.
- To improve lactation in nursing mothers, crush & boil 8-10 basil leaves in a cup of water and simmer for about 5 min. Sieve & add honey to taste. Have a cup of the same twice daily.
- To treat acne, apply a mixture of Basil & mint leaves juice along with lemon juice over the affected area.
- An aqueous concoction of the whole basil plant taken daily is said to control diabetes.
- A tsp of basil leaves juice taken with equal amounts of bitter gourd juice, taken for a month before going to bed is also said to relieve asthma and bronchitis.
- To treat cough and cold, grind together equal amounts of dried basil leaves, ginger and black pepper powder. To it, add a little honey to have a consistency to make it into pellets. These pellets can be sucked 3-4 times a day to ease the symptom.
- To cure nose bleeding, drink a tsp of basil juice with honey in a glass of water. Also, smelling basil blossoms can relieve the symptom.
- For indigestion, crush 3-4 basil leaves with a pinch of rock salt. Take it with water to ease the ailment.
- To get rid of lice, spread a handful of basil leaves around the pillow before going to bed.
- To treat fever, boil about 10g basil leaves in a glass of water till the water is reduced to half. Add a little rock salt to taste and drink. This preparation induces sweating and relieves fever.
- The leaf juice of basil along with triphala (amla, harada and behada) extract can be used as eye tonic. This formulation can also treat eye problems such as chronic conjunctivitis, glaucoma and cataracts.
- To get relief from headache, chewing a few basil leaves or rubbing the leaves of the herb is beneficial.
- To relieve migraine, shade dry & powder some basil blossoms and store in an airtight container. Mix 2g of the powder with a tbsp of honey and lick slowly.
- For insect bite, ground basil leaves with turmeric & apply over the affected area.
- For urinary troubles, take a tsp of basil seeds and soak them overnight. In the morning, grind them with sugar & have it with water twice daily.
