Discovery of the therapeutic value of herbal product

Dr K Paochunbou *

Nongmangkha Mapal - A medicinal plant :: Pix - Richard Laishram

I have achieved a great medical breakthrough by discovering a herbal drug extracted from a plant for treating kidney failure with 100% success guarantee whereby I have opened a new avenue for medical science and I have spent nearly 20 years of research in this particular field and the herbal drug has been developed under the system of local health tradition based on a locally available endemic plant known as Inpensing in Liangmai dialect which can be identified in English, Botanical, Scientific and local name with full photograph of the plant to ensure real identification. With this traditional medicine, I have treated a good number of patients who have been suffering from renal ailments/kidney failure.

I have recorded 100% success rate which can be physically verified. There is a wide variety of species of this kind of plant and proper identification is prerequisite. There are five different varieties of this particular plant species out of which one smallest one has the potential of medicinal value and therefore careful identification is necessary.

Even if the patient is under renal dialysis for 4 to 4 months or more, the patient can be treated to achieve efficacious result. Success is indeed a journey in the herbal research field and not a destination. As for me, this journey is really an ameliorating one. It is perhaps my great contribution to discover a new plant as a godsend to ensure wonderful remedy: remedies that use medicinal plant which may be cheap, or free or cost-effective but sure-healing to the extent practicable. The local people know about the medicines used are prepared solely from plant material that traditional healing methods or plant based medicinal practices are acceptable in terms of efficacy and cost effectiveness.

The need to validate local healers raises several issues. There are a large number of local healers in Manipur but they often cannot openly practice their skills because of legal constraints. However, traditional medicine, folk-medicine or herbal drug which has potentially curative property is also available in the form of powder, or tincture is not under legal constraint. But traditional bone-setters are subject to legal binding because they are uncertified and systems are needed to screen and certify healers and are to be codified.

The value of traditional healing knowledge can be further promoted through research and documentation that offers scientific validation of these techniques.

The need is felt to establish a scientific evidence to prove the validity and that every approach to herbal treatment/remedy or folk-medicine should be made on the basis of scientific method. Modern health delivery systems are still unable to adequately reach rural and hill areas in Manipur. Traditional folk-wisdom which is low cost and environmentally sound needs to be rediscovered and revitalized.

Every ethnic community in Manipur both valley and hill areas have well-established traditional knowledge, skills, beliefs and practices and they have their proven mettle. As my area of specialization is medicinal plants and their healing practices, I have come to know that herbal medicine is having an age long pedigree deeply rooted in traditional skills and experience but now it is increasingly using scientific research to expand and to fully substantiate the ancient wisdom.

In view of the present scientific methods and systems, it is necessary that basic training in scientific methods for all including those who wish to practice and those who are the local healers who are in practice should be imparted. It is the scientific approach that is of paramount importance. We need to train a man who wishes to swim before he swims over the lake, pool or river.

I have edited and published 4 (four) books on medicinal plants and herbs and I have vigorously researched on the medical plants and herbs for treating various ailments including chronic diseases. The names of the edited and published books by me are namely:

1. Phytochemistry and Research Investigationon the medicinal plants of Manipur. First Edition – 1995

2. Sanjeevani Herbal Guide. First edition – 2001

3. Research Guide to Herbal Treatment. First Edition – 2003

4. Tribal Medicine. First Edition – 2011

The purposes of my researched documentations are to unfold the mystique of alternate therapies and medicinal plants to enhance the health knowledge on pharmacognosy as a scientific discipline rather than an art. Instinctive urge, intuition and the accumulated knowledge had guided me to discover herbal remedies. The traditional system of medicine itself is of great antiquity and is believed to be of the most ancient.

It is now advisable that unless a system is tested, a method is tested, a line of treatment is tested, or a result of efficacy is clinically tested, it could be extremely dangerous to start it off and impose it on the sick people. Any people who have diabetes, high blood pressure or any viral disease have to suffer most from kidney disease.

I have physically discovered and identified curative values of the medicinal plants for treating the following diseases, infections and other ailments.

1. Renal failure
2. Hepatitis – B
3. Breast Cancer
4. Cirrhosis of the liver.
5. Rabies which is a viral neuro-invasive disease. It is a zoonosis commonly transmitted by a bite from a mad-dog
6. Immunity boosters like herbs, shrubs and cash crops for HIV/AIDS infected people.

‘Old is Gold’ said the sages of antiquity. When one considers medicinal plants, there is truth in this saying. We are still using many plants derived drugs in much the same way as our ancestors did. Plants hold great promise of chemotherapeutic drugs to fight cancer like periwinkle plant, Croton Caudatus Gieseler, Paris Polyphylla Smith, Tritium Aestuivum, Eupatorium Adenophorum Spreng and many others. I have identified and introduced many more anticancer, antimutagenic and immune enhancing herbs and plants and developed herbal medicine in powder form to fight cancer with no side-effect. Considerable scientific evidence has been accumulated to prove the efficacy of herbal remedies.

WHO estimates that 80% of the global population still relies on plant based medicines for primary healthcare and a large section of this almost entirely so. Even in the most developed countries, 25% of the currently prescribed medicines were first identified in plants. Plants have been economical source of feedstock molecules that can be transformed into drugs. The potential for discovering new drugs from plants is far exhausted. There are an estimated 250,000 species of flowering plants worldwide and less than 10% of them have been investigated for their medicinal properties.
– Sources: Heal with Herbs – 1995
by Dr (Mrs) Sharadini Dahanukar. MBBS, MD, PhD and
Dr Avijit Hazra, MBBS & MD.

There is a legend from Ramayana that Laxmana felled mortally by an arrow from Ravana but he revived completely by a potion prepared from the herb known as Sanjeevani. This herb Sanjeevani is growing in abundance in all hill areas of Manipur and the herb has phenomenal medicinal properties. We are not to ignore the ancient traditional systems of medicine.

Therefore, the former Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh during the inaugural function of Navajyothisree Karunakara Guru Research Centre for Ayurveda and Siddha held on the 15th February – 2005 in his keynote address stated as follows: All over the world, there is a growing recognition that the western hospital oriented system of medicine is proving to be much too expensive and a waste of resources. We must use our ancient traditions creatively to ameliorate suffering and diseases among our people.

As I see it, the challenge before us today is to recognize the rational principles that were intrinsic to these systems of knowledge. We have often gone wrong in trying to validate one system of knowledge with the normative postulates of another. There are complete systems in their own right and it must be our effort to explore the contemporary relevance of this great storehouse of knowledge which is our proud inheritance.

Though as old as human civilization, pharmacognosy remained more an art than a science for several millennia. It was left to the tribal medicine man, the folk healer, the witch doctor or the faith healer to gather his own herbs, prepare pills and potions from the plants and put them to use. The knowledge gained through a lifetime of such efforts was passed on by word of mouth to others of his own creed. Now we need systematic efforts to be made to subject these to dispassionate scientific scrutiny.

When developed countries are busy researching on their native plants and herbs and exploring newer uses and newer sources of useful constituents, we only talked of our glorious past, our miracle herbs including sanjeevani, and our wealth of past knowledge of our ancestors, we remained complacent.