BY DANAT TESFAYE
Traditional medicine is defined as “health practices, approaches, knowledge and beliefs incorporating plant, animal and mineral based medicines, spiritual therapies, manual techniques and exercises, applied singularly or in combination to treat, diagnose and prevent illnesses or maintain well-being”.
Historical findings revealed that humans have used natural products, such as plants, animals, microorganisms, and marine organisms, for the development of medicines and for the alleviation of pain and treatment of a number of diseases. Hence, early humans were able to develop the knowledge about edible materials and natural medicines through many years of practical experiences. This assures that the knowledge and experience of traditional medicines has evolved over millions of years and it was of such a valuable option for survival before the invention of the contemporary traditional medicines. Therefore, the importance of traditional medicine in the prevention and treatment of diseases remains undeniable.
High fever or pyrexia happens when the body temperature gets higher than the normal range. Having high fever is usually a sign of some sort of illness or infection. When body works hard to keep the healthiness of the body and protect from infection, part of the brain that controls body temperature (Hypothalamus) may reset the body to higher temperature. Fever or pyrexia is not an illness itself; rather it is an alerting sign spots something is going on in the body.
For most of Ethiopian family Ocimum lamiifolium or Damakese is the best traditional medicine for high fever caused by different diseases including what is known as Mich in Ethiopia. Mich is a kind of disease believed to be caused by extreme exposure to sunlight during cooking, eating oily food, preparing spices and red pepper, making coffee and so on. Getting infected by Mich, one will suffer with high fever, headache, inflammation, sweat, loss of appetite and sometimes diarrhea. Herpes simplex infection is also considered as Mich in Ethiopia, it is believed to be caused by eating buttery meal or drinking coffee with direct exposure to sun light. This kind of Mich is characterized by formation of blisters around the lips or tongue, inflammation of inside and outside parts of the mouth and whitening of the tongue and mouth.
Scientific findings proved that exposure to sunlight can trigger cold sores, which is caused by the herpes simplex virus (HSV). That is why using sunscreen and a lip balm is recommended to help protected from cold sores. Actually, up to 90% of the total population is expected to have latent HSV as long as they have intact immunity. But, as their immunity levels get compromised due to several reasons, the virus gets the chance to manifest as a disease, usually as a skin infection in different parts of the body.
For both kinds of Mich and other diseases, Damakese is home care doctor which is cost less and available in most of the neighborhoods. How it works is amazing, for the first type of Mich the Damakese is rubbed well till the leaf juice comes out of it, and then it will be added to a cup of tea or coffee to drink it with one sip. For the second type, the inflamed place can be rubbed well using Damakese or the juice of the leaf. How long it takes to cure from the diseases depends on how Damakese is appropriately applied to the infected area.
It may be surprising to hear that a single plant can be used for preparing different traditional medicines. Not only for the above mentioned Mich, Damakese is also used to treat cold and cough. Boiling the leaf of Damakese with Eucalyptus (Bahir Zaf) and inhale it is incredibly helpful for fast cure from the cold and cough. Researches also identified that the essential oil extracted from Ocimum lamiifolium or Damakese is highly important to treat infections of sores and urinary tracts. That’s why it is considered as antimicrobial, antibacterial and antifungal.
Garlic, yes Garlic or Nech shinkurt (the Amharic name) besides its use to sweeten food, is another traditionally used medicine in almost all parts of Ethiopia. If someone is suffering with cough, to drink grounded garlic boiled with milk, butter and honey will be effective medicine that gives fast relief.
Tina corporis is a skin infection caused by superficial fungal, it is characterized by inflammatory or non-inflammatory lesion on the skin. It is believed that rubbing the affected part of skin with grounded garlic 4-5 times a day will be helpful for quick cure.
Garden cress or Feto is another traditional medicine used at home, in order to cure from various diseases including the first type of Mich characterized by high fever, headache sweat and the like. One teaspoon of Feto with half cup of coffee is enough to cure from the headache and loss of appetite arise because of Mich. Also for the second type of Mich caused by herpes simplex virus, applying grounded Feto on the infected area will help the lesion heal.
Studies revealed that garden cress is scientifically recognized for being the best remedy for respiratory diseases, anemia, hypertension, diabetes and so on. Ethiopians have prominent expression about Feto, Lemangnawm Feto medhanit new: “Anyways Feto is medicine”. This expression is not meant for a specific disease; rather it focuses on indicating the medicinal nature of Feto.
Bearing in mind the effectiveness of these traditional medicines, it should not be surprising that about 80% of the Ethiopian population rely on traditional medicine. Because sources of the medicinal ingredients are locally available, the healers are culturally accepted, traditional medicine is relatively affordable, and the modern health facilities are less accessible in rural areas compared to traditional medicinal service. These make majority of the people prefer traditional medicines to the modern one.
Besides Ethiopia, traditional medicine is still being practiced in some countries like China. For example, the Chinese people formed a well-known traditional medicine, known as Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) which lasted for thousands of years and has changed little over centuries. Traditional Chinese medicine is still predominant practice in the culture acupuncture moxibustion (the burning of herbal leaves on or near the body), cupping (the use of warmed glass jars to create suction on certain points of the body), massage, herbal remedies, movement and concentration exercises (such as tai chi).
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD SUNDAY EDITION 23 OCTOBER 2022
