Centella asiatica (Latin: Centélla asiática) – a herbaceous flowering plant, a species of the genus Centella of the family Umbrella (Apiaceae); previously this genus was usually included in the Araliaceae family, and sometimes it was included in the Hydrocotylaceae family.
The plant is widely distributed in Asia and Australia, and is used as a food and medicinal plant.
Centella asiatica is common in Sri Lanka, in India, Northern Australia, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Melanesia and Papua New Guinea. It grows mainly in humid lowlands and along ditches.
Creeping perennial herb.
The stalk is weak, rooted in nodes.
The leaves are whole, on short petioles, round-bud-shaped with a wide notch at the base, obtuse-humorous along the edges, sitting on stems with whorls of 3-4. In nature, the height of plants rarely exceeds 2.5 cm; in a culture, plants grow to 15 cm.
The flowers are small, nondescript, reddish, on short pedicels, appear in spring.
Chemical composition
Centella asiatica herb contains 0.1% of essential oil rich in pinene, myrcene and other mono- and sesquiterpenoids; steroid compounds (campesterol, β-sitosterol, stigmasterol); triterpene saponins (asiaticosides, madecassosides, asiatic and madecassic acids, derivatives of R1-barrigenol), polyacetylene compounds, flavonoids rutin, kempferol, quercetin, etc., alkaloids, tannins.
In Southeast Asia, centella is used as a stimulant and tonic to improve metabolism in bronchitis, bronchial asthma, and tuberculosis. The plant is part of the Pharmacopoeia of India and the British Herbal Pharmacopoeia, is used as a diuretic, antiseptic, laxative, antirheumatic agent and in dermatology. In Madagascar, it is used to treat leprosy and tuberculosis.
Centella asiatica is known as the most important anti-aging agent in Ayurvedic medicine. According to the treatment methods adopted in it, this is the main tool for stimulating and strengthening nerve and brain cells. Doctors believe that it improves intelligence, improves memory, increases life expectancy, slows down aging and gives strength in old age. The use of preparations from centella strengthen the immune system, cleansing and nourishing it, and also strengthen the adrenal glands. At the same time, it is a powerful blood purifier with a specific effect in chronic skin diseases, including leprosy and syphilis, eczema and psoriasis. The plant is effective for intermittent and intermittent fevers, such as malaria. In the form of a milk broth, it serves as a good tonic for the nervous system.
In Vietnamese medicine, for the treatment of colds, fevers, headaches, centella grass is taken in the form of a decoction. For the treatment of abdominal pain, diarrhea, dysentery, nephrolithiasis, urolithiasis, the juice of the plant is taken. With dysmenorrhea and lumbago – dry powder from a plant.
Centella Asiatica, as a medicinal plant, is gradually gaining more and more popularity in different countries. It is widely used both in mono-and complex preparations for strengthening the nervous system, with hemorrhoids, varicose veins, cellulite, cervical dysplasia, periodontitis, obesity, memory impairment and other intellectual functions, encephalopathy (including perinatal).
Centella is used as a prophylactic for senile dementia, for rehabilitation after traumatic brain injuries, neuro-emotional disorders, with hypertension, lymphostasis, calf seizures, and leg fatigue. It is believed that it is effective in various skin injuries (wounds, ulcers, burns, etc., including after surgery), trophic ulcers, scleroderma, uterine circulation disorders and fetal hypoxia during pregnancy.
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