Monday, October 12, 2009

Piper bettle leaves

Piper bettle plants belong to the family Piperaceae. Its leaves have certain aroma due to their essential oil content. They have certain hard smell. The essential oil contains much phenolic component, especially which are called chavicol and chavibetol. These components have "strong" antiseptic effect, and the essential oil is also a vasoconstrictor. That is why the leaves in traditional medicine are used to help nose bleeding. To use the leaves to stop nose bleeding, just roll the leaf or leaf part, and insert one side of the rolled leaf in the nose ( do not insert too deeply, otherwise it will dammage the nose). After a while the bleeding will stop( if this does not help, you need to go to the doctor ).

Alpinia galanga

Alpinia galanga is one of the member of ginger family (Zingiberaceae). Like the other members of the ginger family do, they have specific aroma, due to the essential oil content of their rhizome (big roots). Due to this specific aroma, Alpinia galanga roots are much used as an ingredient of certain dishes, and also used as a component of herbal medicine. Its roots are much used as an ingredient of herbal medicine used to combat cough. It relienes cough, because it has an antiseptic and local anaesthetic activity in the throat. The usual way to use as a cough medicine is. the rhizome are sliced into small pieces. then they are boiled in water for 15 minutes, then drink the infuse when it is cool or zip a bit and swallow when you feel pain in your throat.