PEGAGA
Scientific name
:
Centella asiatica
(
L.)
Urban.
Common
name
:
Asiatic Pennywort, Gotu
Kola
Local name
:
Pegaga
Family
:
Umbelliferae
Introduction
This plant and its preparation have been in use
since ancient times especially in the Ayurv
edic
medical system of India and in the folk medicine of China
and Madagascar
.
It is recommended by the
World Health
Organization (WHO) as one of the most important medicinal
plant species to be conserved and cultivated. In Malaysia,
although it has been
used by our traditional healers in their
herbal
remedies, but its popularity is confined more as a
traditional vegetable or an ‘ulam’ especially among the
Malay communities rather than a medicinal plant.
Plant Description
Pegaga is a small, annual, slen
d
e
r, creeping her
b. It has
long
-
stalked, green
leaves with rounded apices which have
smooth textur
e with palmately netted veins. A
t the moment
there are three distinguishable pegaga subspecies namely
Pegaga salad, Pegaga kerinting or nyonya and Pegag
a
bi
asa
or pegaga ubi. The recommended race for commer
cial
production at this stage i
s pegaga ubi.
Plant habit
Pegaga grows wildly under a wide
range of conditions, some races prefer light shade, while
others do well in open sunny areas. Some even grow under
more harsh conditions like on stone
walls. In the wild, most of these plant are found in wet or moist surrounding like swamps, along
the margins of lakes, ponds and have also been seen growing in paddy fields
.
Plants parts
used
:
Whole plant, aerial pa
rts, roots
Uses in traditional medicine
Pegaga has been used for treating bronchitis, asthma, excessive secretion of gastric
juices,
dysentery,
kidn
ey trouble
and dropsy in many communities
.
This herb is said to have a direct
action on lowering the
blood pressure and is often referred to as rejuvenating medicament. In
Malaysia, it is commonly consumed
as
vegetable (ulam) among Malays, as a cooling drink by
the Chinese and as a brain tonic by the Indians. The Malays use the decoction of leaves to trea
t
leprosy and rheumatism. Infusion of the toased leaves or
juice extracted from the leaves
, together
with food
, is used to relieve minor dysentery in children. Some peoples also use
a
poultice of
leaves to treat sores, or pound leaves into a paste to apply
it to the body for fever. Juice from the
root is used to clean ulcerous wounds. The leaves are also believed to be good for mothers who
have just given birth and for preserving youthfulness
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