Boerhavia diffusa

Boerhavia diffusa Sw.

 

Local name: Punarnava

English Name: Red spiderling

Family:  Nyctaginaceae

Habitat: It is widely distributed throughout Bangladesh, India, Asia, Africa, the Pacific, and southern United States.

Plant Description: It is a large diffuse herb with long prostrate. Leaves are 1.25-5 cm long, thick, and broadly ovate, usually white beneath. Flowers are usually small pink in color.

Plant parts used:

Leaves, Roots

Chemical constituents:

The active constituent of the plant is a mixture of alkaloids ‘punarnavine’. The plant also contains inorganic salts as potassium nitrate, potassium sulphate and chlorides, ursolic acids, β-sitrosterol, fatty acids such as stearic acid, and xanthine derivatives.

The roots contain alkaloids (0.05%) triacontanol hentriacontane, β-sitosterol, ursolic acids 5,7-dihydroxy-3,4-dimethoxy-6, 8-dimethyl flavones, glucose, fructose, sucrose, ecdysone and hypoxanthine-9-arabinoside.

Medicinal and Traditional Uses:

Punarnava is diuretic, useful in nephrotic syndrome, chronic oedema and liver diseases. It is very useful in skin disease like scabies. It is considered as a cure for guinea worms. Punarnava is widely used to rejuvenate liver and detoxify it. It is useful in jaundice or hepatitis. It is combined with other herbal ingredients used for treating anemia.