Medicinal Uses of Rauwolfia (Rauwolfia serpentina)

By Liliana Usvat
Blog 260-365

Other Names

INDIAN SNAKEROOT

Description

More like a shrub than a tree in most places where it grows in India, rauwolfia produces extracts in its roots that have for centuries been used to treat nervous disorders. The extract also provides an antidote for snake- bites and insect stings. In the 20th century it was discovered that powdered rauwolfia root as a clinical medicinal ingredient would treat hypertension and mental disorders. Many drugs that make up tranquilizers have their origin in rauwolfia root.

Medicinal Uses

Indian snakeroot is used for 

• mild high blood pressure,
•  nervousness, 
• trouble sleeping(insomnia), and 
• mental disorders such as 
• agitated psychosis and insanity. 
• Indian snakeroot is also used for snake and reptile bites,
•  fever, 
• constipation, 
• feverish intestinal diseases, 
• liver ailments, 
• achy joints (rheumatism), 
• fluid retention (edema),
• epilepsy, and 
• as a tonic for general debilities.

One of the chemicals in Indian snakeroot is the same as a prescription drug calledreserpine. Reserpine is used to treat 

• mild to moderate hypertension, s
• chizophrenia, and 
• some symptoms of poor circulation.
• Root is a valuable remedy for dysentery and painful affections of bowel.
• Juice of leaves is instilled in eyes as a remedy for the opacities of cornea.

How does it work?

Indian snakeroot contains chemicals such as reserpine that decrease heart rate and blood pressure.

History

• It is one of the 50 fundamental herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine, where it has the name shégēn mù.
• The extract of the plant has also been used for millennia in India – Alexander the Great administered this plant to cure his general Ptolemy I Soter of a poisoned arrow.
•  It was reported that Mahatma Gandhi took it as a tranquilizer during his lifetime.
•  It has been used for millennia to treat insect stings and the bites of venomous reptiles. 

Habitat: Moist forests shady places near rain-forest.

Status: The natural reserves of this plant are declining, especially after reports of its medicinal properties appeared in literatures. International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) has kept this plant under endangered status.
Distribution: The snake-weed genus includes about 50 species, this has fairly wide area of distribution, including the tropical part of the Himalayas, the Indian peninsula, Sri Lanka, Burma, and Indonesia.