Devajyoti Bokolial, assistant professor of Botany at St Anthony’s College, provides some facts about Jamyrdoh
THE PEOPLE of Meghalaya are familiar with Jamyrdoh, used as both vegetable and herbal medicine. Use of this plant is not confined to this state; it has multipurpose uses elsewhere across the globe.
Jamyrdoh is botanically known as Houttuynia cordata, named after famous Dutch biologist Maarten Houttuyn. It was first reported by Swedish scientist CP Thunberg in 1784 from Japan. Commonly the plant is called lizard tail, chameleon plant, fishwort or bishop’s weed. The plant is distributed across Southeast Asian countries, China, Japan, Korea and Nepal. It is also cultivated in Australia, New Zealand and North American countries for ornamental purposes.
Jamyrdoh is either used as salad or vegetable or as herbal medicine. In Northeast India, it is used as salad or leafy vegetable. In Manipur, leaves are also used in preparations containing raw or fermented fish. Chopped rhizomes are used in fish curries. In Nepal, some people use leaves or roots to flavor pickles.
Vietnamese call it fishmint. They use the plant as salad or fresh herbal garnish. Japanese call it dokudami which literally means ‘poison-blocking plant’. The plant is eaten fresh or in a dried form. Fresh leaves are used in bath. The dried powdered form is used in preparation of dokudami tea. This is a kind of beverage which is used as detoxifying drink to get rid of harmful bacteria. In China tender shoots and leaves are eaten raw or cooked. In some parts of China roots are also used as vegetable.
Jamyrdoh is an important component of the herbal or folk medicine systems in the places where it grows naturally. The whole plant or its juice is consumed for treating certain kind of ailments or applied externally. The plant possesses anti-inflammatory, diuretic, detoxicant, antiviral and antibacterial properties. It is considered to be an effective medicine against dysentery, hypertension, cough, indigestion, gastritis, fever, pneumonia, skin diseases, urine infection, constipation, laryngitis, etc.
In Meghalaya Jamyrdoh is used as blood purifier and anti-dysenteric. It is effective against blood deficiency, cholera and skin diseases and in snakebites. In other parts of north east India this herb is mainly used in stomach disorders and urine problems. In Nepal, juice from the roots is used in treating indigestion, wounds and skin diseases. In traditional Chinese medicine system the plant is used to treat respiratory tract infections and inflammations of urinary tract. The extract of the plant is also used to treat earache and pneumonia. They also use the plant extract in the form of injection to treat different infectious diseases and lungs related disorders.
Recent researches reveal many useful properties of this plant. Researchers have reported its anti-obesity, anti-allergic and anti-asthmatic properties. It has a powerful anti-oxidant activity i.e. to remove free radicals from the body. Reports also say that it stimulates immune system of the body to fight various ailments. So don’t run away from this herb that smells like fish; have it and stay healthy.