PHILIPPINE NORMAL UNIVERSITY

The National Center for Teacher Education

The Indigenous Peoples Education Hub
North Luzon Campus
Alicia, Isabela

I. NONI
Scientific Name: Morinda citrifolia Linn.
Family: Rubiaceae
Common Names: Indian Mulberry (Engl.), Wild pine (Engl.), Tahitian noni (Engl.), Pain-killer tree
(Engl.), Great morinda (Engl.), Rukurok (Kuy.), Bankuru (Tag.) Apatot (Ilk.), Bangkoro (Tag.), Hai ba
ji (Chin.)

Morinda citrifolia is a tree in the coffee family, Rubiaceae. Its native range extends through
Southeast Asia and Australasia, and the species is now cultivated throughout the tropics and
widely naturalized. The tree can grow to as tall as 10 feet and bears a fruit about the size of a
potato which starts out green and ripens into yellow or white. The juice, fruit, bark, and leaves
are used in herbal remedies and Polynesian folk medicine. Leaves are broadly elliptic to oblong,
12 to 25 centimeters long, with pointed or blunted tips. Peduncles are leaf-opposed, solitary, 1 to
3 centimeters long. Flowers are not bracteolate, and form dense, ovoid or rounded heads, and
are 1 to 1.5 centimeters. Calyx is truncate. Corolla is white, 1 centimeter long; limb is 5-lobed, 1
centimeter in diameter. Fruit is fleshy, white or greenish white, ovoid, 3 to 10 centimeters long,
with the odor of decaying cheese.

TRADITIONAL USES:
In the Philippines, fruit is used as emmenagogue. and root/rhizomes were traditionally
used in Polynesian cultures to treat menstrual cramps, bowel irregularities, diabetes, liver
diseases, and urinary tract infections.

PHARMACOLOGICAL ACTIVITY:
Antimicrobial / insecticidal properties, Analgesic, Herbal Hepatotoxicity, Antiviral /
Cytotoxicity and Antipsychotic-like Activity

II. AKAPULKO

Common Name: Ringworm bush or Ringworm shrub (English) [1] Katanda, Andadasi and
Palochina in Tagalog, Ilocos and in Visayas regions [2] Ringworm tree, Christmas candle,
candlestick or candle bush.
Scientific Name: Cassia alata
Family Name: Fabaceae

Description of the plant and its parts:

The ringworm bush is a tropical shrub and found throughout the Philippines which grows
about 1.5-3 meters tall with an open crown branched at base brittle branches of distinctive
habit with large leaves and long terminal upright panicles of yellow flowers.
Leaves are pinnate and 40 to 60 centimeters long, with orange rachis on stout branches.
Each leaf has 16 to 28 leaflets, 5 to 15 centimeters in length, broad and rounded at the
apex, with a small point at the tip. Leaflets gradually increase in size from the base
towards the tip of the leaf
Flowers are roundish in compact axillary racemes, golden-yellow and very showy, about 20
to 30 cm long and 34 cm wide. The bracts are 23 by 12 cm. There are 5 unequal,
oblong, 1020 by 67 mm green sepals. The petals are bright yellow, ovate-orbicular to
 spathulate, short-clawed, 2 by 11.5 cm. There are 910 stamens; 2 large, 4 small, and 3
4 reduced. The anthers open via apical pores. There is only 1 pistil and glabrous ovary.
Fruit are 4-winged pods, 1015 cm long, dark brown when ripe.
Barks are smooth to rough, greyish more or less lenticellate, with green to yellowish slash.
Stems are more or less ridged at the leaf base, very shortly pubescent, becoming
glabrous.

TRADITIONAL USE
Akapulko is use against skin diseases [10]. Skin diseases such as Tinea infections, insect
bites, ringworms, eczema, scabies and itchiness [2]. The seeds are used for intestinal
parasitism. Tincture from leaves reported to be purgative. Decoction of leaves and flowers
for cough and as expectorant in bronchitis and asthma. Also used as astringent. Crushed
leaves and juice extract used for ringworm, scabies, eczema, tinea infections, itches,
insect bites, herpes [4].

PHARMACOLOGICAL ACTIVITY

Antibacterial, Antioxidant and Stimulating agent, Antifungal

III. Niyog-niyogan

Common name: Burma crupper, Chinese honeysuckle (English), tagaran, talulo (tagalog), pimon,
balitadham, pinones (visayan).
Scientific name: Quisqualis indica L.[1]

Description of plant and its parts

A vine known as Chinese honey suckle which bears tiny fruits and grows wild in
backyards. It is effective for the elimination of intestinal worms.
Grows at least 2.5m long and reaches up to 8m long when it matures.
Belongs to the combretaceae family, grows best in tropical areas and demands constant
sunlight.
Found in primary and secondary forests of countries like Africa, China, Taiwan, Malaysia,
Philippines, Vietnam, Papua New Guinea and other Asian regions

Traditional uses
Decoctions of the root, seed or fruit can be used as antihelmintic
Fruit decoction used for gargling. The fruits are also used to combat nephritis.
Leaves can be used to relieve pain caused by fever.
The roots are used to treat rheumatism.
Flowers are used to relieve headache.
Infusion of leaves is used externally to treat boils and ulcers.
Pounded leaves externally for skin diseases.
Decoction of boiled leaves used for dysuria.
Leaves are used to cure body pains by placing them on specific problematic areas of the
body.
Compound decoctions of the leaves of niyog-niyogan are used in India to alleviate
flatulence.

Pharmacological activity
Anti-inflammatory activity, Antipyretic Activity, Immunomodulatory Activity, Antioxidants
Activity Anti-staphylococcal Activity, Anti-Cancer, Hypolipidemic Effect/ Aerial Parts, and
Intestinal Ascariasis / Comparative Study with Pyrantel Pamoate

IV. TSAANG-GUBAT

Common name: Alangit (Bis.), Wild Tea, Scorpionbush, Putputai [4], Alangit (Bisaya); Kalamoga
(Tagalog), [1] [9]
Scientific name: Carmona retusa (Vahl.) Masam.[2]
DESCRIPTION OF PLANT AND ITS PARTS:
A shrub with small, shiny nice- looking leaves that grows in wild uncultivated areas and
forests . Tsaang Gubat is a shrub that grows abundantly in thePhilippines. The plant bears
white flowers that developed into a fleshy, yellow-orange fruits when ripe. [2]
Tsaang gubat is an erect, very branched shrub growing up to 1 to 4 meters high. leaves
are in clusters on short branches, obovate to oblong-obovate, 3 to 6 centimeters long,
entire or somewhat toothed or lobed near the apex and pointed at the base, short stalked
and rough on the upper surface. [2]
Flowers are white, small, axillary, solitary, 2 or 4 on a common stalk, borne in
inflorescences shorter than the leaves. Calyx -lobes re green, somewhat hairy, and linear,
about 5 to 6 millimeters long. [2]

TRADITIONAL USE
Traditionally, tsaang gubat is used as a disinfectant wash during childbirth. Newer studies
showed that it has an anti allergy component if used together with sambong and lagundi.
The leaves has been used as cure for diarrhea, ,as tea for general good health and
because Tsaang Gubat has high fluoride content, it is used as a mouth gargle for
preventing tooth decay [4]

PHARMACOLOGICAL ACTIVITY
Use of plant with clinical basis:
Antidiabetic activity, Antibacteria activity, Antiallergic Activity: Antimutagen
Triterpene Bioactivities/ Analgesic / Anti-inflammatory / Anti-diarrheal / Antimicrobial: Anti-
Tumor: 4 Herbal leaves of the plant cure diarrhea, gastroenteritis, stomach pains, and
antidote for poisonous and bleeding

V. ROSELLE

COMMON NAMES: RED SORREL,SORREL, FLORIDA CRANBERRY, ROSELLA,INDIAN SORREL

SCIENTIFIC NAME: HIBISCUS SABDARIFFA

Roselle is an erect herbaceous, nearly smooth annual herb with straight, prickly purple stems[i]
under the family of malvaceae(1) .it grows from 1 to 2 meters high with deep penetrating root.its
flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) insect pollinated. the stem is
reddish in color. its leaves are alternate, have long-petiole, palmately divided into 3-7, with
serrate margin. capsules are ovoid, beaked and hairy 5cm long, 5.3 cm wide.

ACTIVE CONSTITUENTS:
hibiscus contains free acids, which includes citric acid, maleic acid , and tartaric acid.
it also contains polysaccharides and flavonoid glycosides, such as cyanin and
delphinidin that gives it its deep red color characteristic. steroid, hibiscin, tannin and
carbohydrates are also present.

TRADITIONAL USES
seeds are used as a decoction to cure earache, strangury (slow, painful urination) mild
dyspepsia, weakness and as an appetizer.
 infusion of leaves is used for dysentery, purgative,decreases blood viscoscity,
choloretic, febrifugal and hypotensive.
heated leaves fasten the maturation of skin ulcer, boil and applied on sole cracks.all
plant parts have been used as an astringent, cooling agent, diuretic.(2)
it also has antioxidant .antihyperlipidemic, hypocholesterolemic, anti-inflammatory
and antiviral activity.(2)(11)

PHARMACOLOGICAL USES
internal antimicrobial, anticancer, hepatoprotective, antioxidant activity,
antihyperlipidemic and antimotility

VI. BANABA
Scientific Name: Lagerstroemia speciosa
Family: Lythraceae

Common name: Agaro, Mitla, Bugarom, Nabulong, Pamalauagon, Duguam, Pamarauagon,

Kauilan, Parasabukung, Makablos, Tabangau, Tauagnau(7), Giant Crape Myrtle, Crepe Myrtle,
Queens Crape Myrtle(11)

Banaba, known scientifically as Lagerstroemia speciosa, is a flowering tree that is native to

the Philippines and India, where it has been used for thousands of years as a treatment for
digestive problems, kidney inflammation and diabetes. The Medical Health Guide reports
that banaba can grow up to 30 feet high, producing pink and lavender flowers and leaves
that are 3 inches wide by 7 inches in length. The banaba leaves are often used in herbal
preparations, as they offer health benefits. Since banaba does not grow in most other
parts of the world, it is taken as a dietary supplement. Never self-treat any medical
conditions with banaba leaf, and get approval from your physician before adding it to your
routine.(2) Lagerstroemia speciosa is from the Lythraceae family. The tree is also known as
Queens Crape-myrtle, Giant Crape-myrtle, or Pride of India. It is a large and tall tree (up to
60 feet), which has a fast growing rate. Banabas crown is round, spreading to about 40
feet. The tree is also characterized with thin, smooth and easily injured flaky bark. The
oblong opposite leaves of Lagerstroemia are about 12 inches long. Being dark-green in
summer, they turn into bright red in autumn before falling down. The most attractive thing
about Banaba is the large panicles of its lavender or pink flowers, which bloom from June
to July. The fruit of the tree is a hard round or oval brown nutlet. It is known for its
persistent nature.(1)

Parts used:
Leaves of the Banaba tree are used medicinally most often. At the same time,
preparations from the bark, roots, and flowers have always been extensively used in
Japan, Taiwan, Phillipines, and other Asian countries.(1)

Traditional Use
Traditionally, banaba is a popular medicinal plant. Its dried bark and dried leaves are used
for the preparation of medicinal tea against kidney trouble. Extracts obtained from boiling
its bark is used as a drink to induce alertness, reduce fever and to cure abdominal pains.
Bark soak in water can be taken to stop diarrhea. The bark leaves and flowers are used to
induce bowel movements or loosen the stool. Old leaves and ripe/dried fruit, taken like
tea, reduce blood sugar. Leaves boiled in water are taken to clear obstructions from the
natural ducts of the body and induce urination. Extracts from boiling the roots are used
against small ulcers of the mouth. A leaf poultice is used to relieve malarial fever and
applied on cracked feet.(8)

Folkloric uses of Banaba herbal medicine include the treatment for diarrhea, constipation,
inflammation of kidneys, dysuria and other urinary dysfunctions.(4)

Pharmacologic activity
 The potential of Banaba preparations to have insulin-like action is the most valuable and
frequently and extensively researched by the modern science. It is known that the tree has
a triterpenoid compound called corosolic acid. The latter stimulates glucose receptors
increasing their activity and thus aiding in the absorption of blood sugar into the cells of
the body. For its action corosolic acid is called the natural plant insulin, which helps lower
blood glucose level. By this time it has been found out that the effect of sugar lowering
depends on the dose of the plant remedies taken. The larger the dose, the more
pronounced results are. Lagerstroemin, flosin B and reginin A the ellagitannins isolated
from the leaves of Lagerstroemia speciosa are the other components, which may add to
the efficacy of the plant remedies to lower glucose level.(1)
Other uses of Banaba extract include the following:
Controls blood sugar, Reduces Appetite, Prevents obesity, Helps with diabetes, Helps the
body use insulin, Kidney problems and Bladder ailments
Roots are used for stomach problems. The leaves are used to heal diabetes and for weight
loss. The red-orange leaves have high levels of corosolic acid (interpenoid glycoside) that
can lower blood sugar. Corosolic acid may have an influence on diabetes. Banaba also
contains concentrations of dietary fiber and minerals such as magnesium and zinc. It helps
the body to handle glucose and as such, it's also effective in weight loss. The
hypoglycemic (blood sugar lowering) effect is similar to that of insulin (which induces
glucose transport from the blood into body cells). Its tea is therapeutic against ailments
such as diabetes and kidney and urinary problems. The taste is pleasant and smooth.
Japanese pharmaceutical companies import tons of its leaves to us to make a SLIMMING
TEA. It is not only used for slimming but also for cholesterol deduction, hypertension and
diabetes.
VII. Atsuete or Achuete

Scientific name: Biva orillana Linon

is an orange-red condiment and food coloring derived from the seeds of the achiote tree
(Bixa orellana). It is often used to impart a yellow or orange color to foods, but sometimes
also for its flavor and aroma. Its scent is described as "slightly peppery with a hint of
nutmeg" and flavor as "slightly nutty, sweet and peppery".

Traditional Use
The leaf, bruised with the head of a walis-tingting (broom made from frond ribs of the
coconut leaves), mixed with warm coconut oil is applied on the forehead for headaches.

Pharmacologic activity
Also used for wound healing, regulation of heavy menses, and thinning hair.

VIII. Balete

Glabrous spreading tree, up to 8 meters high, with numerous adventitious roots from the trunk
and branches. Leaves are smooth, leathery and shiny, slenderly acuminate and entire. The
stipules are red, as long as the leaves.

Uses

Skin eruptions and dermatitis: Boil one cup of chopped bark in 1/2 gallon of water for 10 mins;
use decoction to wash involved areas, twice daily.
Decoction of aerial rootlets used for wounds, cuts and sores.
Bark is astringent and used as styptics for wounds.
Decoction of latex for parasitic worms.

Balimbing Scientific name: Auerrhoa carambola L.

3 Replies
Tagalog: Balimbing
Vermifuge, laxative, refrigerant, antiscorbutic, febrifuge, sialogogue, antiphlogistic, stimulant, emmenagogue,
anodyne, emetic.

Uses:
Nutritional
Edible fruit is a source of iron (low in calcium) and vitamins B and C, oxalate and potassium.
Tea of boiled leaves used for aphthous stomatitis.
Crushed shoots or leaves used externally for headaches and ringworm.
Boiled flowers used to expel worms: 50 gms to a pint of boiling water; drunk in normal doses.

Fruit is laxative.
Decoction of fruit, 50 gms to a pint of boiling water, 4-5 glasses a day for bleeding piles.
Juice of fresh fruit for affections of the eyes.
Seed is used for asthma and colic: Powdered seeds, 10 gms to a cup of warm water, drunk 4 times daily.

English: Cucumber Tree

Tagalog: Kamias English: Cucumber Tree

Tagalog: Kamias

Small tree growing 5 to 12 meters high. Leaves are pinnate, 20-60 cm long, with hairy rachis and leaflets.
Leaflets are opposite, 10 to 17 pairs, oblong, 5 to 10 cm in length. Flowers, about 1.5 cm long, and slightly
fragrant. Fruit, green and edible, about 4 cm long, subcylindric with 5 obscure, broad, rounded, longitudinal
lobes.
Distribution
Cultvated and semi-cultivated throughout the Philippines.

Parts utilized
Whole plant.

Properties
Astringent, stomachic, refrigerant, antiscorbutic.

Medicinal uses

Skin diseases, especially with pruritus: Reduce the leaves to a paste and apply tolerably warm to
areas of affected skin.

Post-partum and rectal inflammation: Infusion of leaves.

Mumps, acne, and localized rheumatic complaints: Paste of leaves applied to affected areas.

Warm paste of leaves also used for pruritus.

Cough and thrush: Infusion of flowers, 40 grams to a pint of boiling water, 4 glasses of tea daily.

Fever: Fruit as a cooling drink.

The fruit has been used for a variety of maladies: beriberi, cough, prevention of scurvy.

Infusion of leaves also drank as a protective tonic after childbirth.

Others

Fruit used to remove stains from clothing and for washing hands.

A common seasoning for sweets and pickling.

Small tree growing 5 to 12 meters high. Leaves are pinnate, 20-60 cm long, with hairy rachis and leaflets. Leaflets
are opposite, 10 to 17 pairs, oblong, 5 to 10 cm in length. Flowers, about 1.5 cm long, and slightly fragrant. Fruit,
green and edible, about 4 cm long, subcylindric with 5 obscure, broad, rounded, longitudinal lobes.

Distribution
Cultvated and semi-cultivated throughout the Philippines.

Parts utilized
Whole plant.

Properties
Astringent, stomachic, refrigerant, antiscorbutic.

Medicinal uses

Skin diseases, especially with pruritus: Reduce the leaves to a paste and apply tolerably warm to areas of
affected skin.

Post-partum and rectal inflammation: Infusion of leaves.

 Mumps, acne, and localized rheumatic complaints: Paste of leaves applied to affected areas.

Warm paste of leaves also used for pruritus.

Cough and thrush: Infusion of flowers, 40 grams to a pint of boiling water, 4 glasses of tea daily.

Fever: Fruit as a cooling drink.

The fruit has been used for a variety of maladies: beriberi, cough, prevention of scurvy.

Infusion of leaves also drank as a protective tonic after childbirth.

Others

Fruit used to remove stains from clothing and for washing hands.

A common seasoning for sweets and pickling.