Common medicineplant
StarAdenostemma lavenia
Synonyms: Adenostemma lavenia var. typicum, Ageratum lavenia
Western Herbalism Properties
Traditional Uses
Adenostemma lavenia is a long-established folk medicine across Asia and the Pacific. In Taiwan and the Philippines the whole plant or aerial parts are taken as a herbal tea or applied as a poultice to treat skin wounds and ulcers, sunburn, sore throat, lung congestion and pneumonia, edema, fevers, diarrhoea and inflammatory conditions of the lungs and liver (StuartXchange, Philippine Medicinal Plants). Modern pharmacological work attributes much of its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activity to ent-kaurenoic-acid derivatives and p-coumaric acid (Therapeutic potentials of Adenostemma lavenia, 2023).
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Botanical Description
Adenostemma lavenia is an annual or short-lived perennial herb in the family Asteraceae, widely distributed across tropical and subtropical Asia, the Pacific islands and other warm regions of the world. It grows in moist, shaded and disturbed ground such as streamsides, ditches, forest margins and damp grassland. The plant produces an erect, often branched stem reaching roughly 0.3 to 1 metre in height, bearing opposite, ovate to triangular leaves with toothed margins and slender petioles. The small heads are arranged in loose terminal clusters and contain only tubular, whitish disc florets, lacking conspicuous ray flowers. A distinctive feature is the achene, which bears a few short, gland-tipped, club-shaped pappus projections that secrete a sticky substance, allowing the fruits to adhere to passing animals and clothing for dispersal. The species is highly variable in leaf shape and indumentum and is regarded as a weedy, fast-colonising plant of humid tropical landscapes.
This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before using any herbal remedy, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking medications.
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