Medical Plants in the Amazon

The Amazon rain forest accounts for only 6 percent of Earth's surface but is home to more species than anywhere else on dry land. It supports an abundance of plant life currently being explored for benefits to modern medicine. Increasingly, plants found in the Amazon are being tested and used medicinally. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) estimates that 70 percent of known anti-cancer plants are from this area. Researchers are also testing plants for potential HIV treatments. Plants from the Amazon are also used in herbal supplements.

Yerba Mate

• Since antiquity, Indians in Brazil and Paraguay have consumed yerba mate, typically in the form of a tea. Even today, yerba mate is a popular beverage in South America, and is also used medicinally as a tonic, diuretic, a stimulant to reduce fatigue and suppress appetite and as a digestive aid. It is also used to promote cleansing and the excretion of waste. Stimulation of the nervous and muscular systems are also among yerba mate's purported uses, and some claim it eases nerve pain, depression, fatigue and obesity. Dr. James Balch, M.D., author of Prescription for Nutritional Healing, recommends yerba mate for arthritis, headache, hemorrhoids, fluid retention, obesity, fatigue, stress, constipation, allergies and hay fever.

Annatto

• Annatto is exported from South America and popularly used in North America and Europe as yellow or orange food coloring for margarine, cheese, microwave popcorn and other products. In Brazil, annatto leaves are taken two or three times daily for prostate and urinary difficulties in addition to high cholesterol and hypertension. The Piura tribe use a tea made from annatto leaves as an astringent, and to treat skin problems, liver disease, fevers, dysentery and hepatitis. Annatto is also used to stimulate the digestive system. The Cojedes tribe uses the flowers from an annatto plant to stimulate the bowels and aid in elimination. Traditional healers in South America have also used annatto as an antivenin for snakebites, an expectorant and cough suppressant. Annatto is also gaining notice as an ingredient in body care products. The oil from annatto seeds is an emollient, and its high carotenoid content supplies beneficial antioxidants to skin care products.

Bitter Melon

• The indigenous people of the Amazon have used bitter melon medicinally as a treatment for diabetes, to expel intestinal gas, to promote menstruation, and as an anti-viral medication for measles, hepatitis and fever. Topically, bitter melon is used for sores, wounds and infections, as well as hemorrhoids, scabies, itchy rashes, eczema, leprosy and other skin problems. Worms and parasites are also treated internally and externally with bitter melon. In South America, traditional healers have used bitter melon to treat tumors, rheumatism, malaria, inflammation, menstrual problems, diabetes and colic. Bitter melon contains many chemicals that are being researched. According to extensive research cited by Rain Tree, several chemicals and proteins found in bitter melon have anti-cancer effects and have successfully inhibited the HIV virus in test-tube studies. Numerous studies also demonstrate hypoglycemic (blood-sugar lowering) properties and other benefits for patients with type 2 diabetes.