Nelumbo nucifera Anhang
https://ir.dut.ac.za/bitstream/handle/10321/2587/PILLAY_T_2017.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
[Tharushka Pillay]
A double blind placebo controlled proving of Nelumbo nucifera 30CH with
subsequent comparison to its cultural significance
Nelumbo nucifera possesses some unique features. It has the ability to
regulate the temperature of its flowers within normal range, seeds with long
viability periods and
in addition its leaves show the Lotus effect, the self-cleaning property
(Sheikh, 2014:42).
It is an interesting phenomenon that the Lotus can produce a significant
amount of heat during the sequence of flowering and regulate its temperature
with precision to
form its own microclimate. The best and profuse flowering has been
observed at the temperature between 30° - 35° C for 2 - 4 days duration. The
thermoregulation mechanism
in the Lotus enhances and stabilizes the floral development and helps
insect pollinators with a warm and hospitable environment (Sharma and Goel,
2000).
Blooming for two to five days and darkening with age, it opens each
morning at dawn and closes late in the day. The Lotus closes to make it easier
for the plant to control its
inner circulation of water, so as to avoid being affected by the weather
(Herrick, 2003). The plant has a remarkable ability to warm itself; the flower
can actively maintain a
relatively stable core temperature regardless of the external air. The
flower achieves this stability by increasing its oxygen consumption, and thus
heat production when the air
is cold and decreasing oxygen consumption when the air is warm (Herrick,
2003).
The term nucifera means “having hard seed” and was given this name as
the impenetrable outer shell allows seeds to survive under extreme adverse
conditions for
thousands of years. This was confirmed recently by radiocarbon testing
which showed ancient Lotus seeds germinating after more than 2000 years of
dormancy (Herrick, 2003).
Jane Shen-Miller, a plant physiologist, who grew a tiny green shoot from
a 1288 year old Lotus seed unearthed in China concluded: “This sleeping beauty,
which was already
there when Marco Polo came to China in the 13th century must
have a powerful genetic system to delay its aging” (Herrick, 2003).
2.6.3 Traditional Use Nelumbo nucifera has been used as a food in Asia
for about 7000 years and is cultivated for its edible rhizomes, stems, seeds
and leaves (Sheikh, 2014:42).
In many parts of the world, the Lotus is consumed for its nutritional
and medicinal properties. The rhizome is rich in starch, vitamins, minerals and
dietary fibre and is widely
consumed amongst the Asian population. In China and Japan, the rhizome
and seeds are roasted or eaten raw and are used as one of the ingredients in a
number of
traditional pastries and desserts (Sheikh, 2014:43). In India, the stem
of the Lotus is consumed in many areas. The stem is referred to as Nadru in
Kashmir and is deeply related
to the economy and culture of the area. Here, it grows naturally in two
lakes, Dal lake and Wullar lake, in Kashmir valley, from where it is harvested
and supplied to the local
population. Nadru based cuisines are an integral part of every Kashmiri
feast including those made at religious, cultural or social occasions. Nadru
contributes significantly to
the economy and is the source of the livelihood of thousands of people
directly or indirectly in Kashmir (Sheikh, 2014:43).
In Ayurvedic medicine, the stem is used as a diuretic and anthelmintic
as well as in the treatment of strangury, vomiting, leprosy, skin disease and
nervous exhaustion (Mehta, 2013:153).
In modern medicine, it is commonly used in the treatment of tissue
inflammation, cancer, skin diseases and as a poison antidote. Rhizomes are used
as demulcents for
haemorrhoids and are beneficial in dysentery, chronic dyspepsia, as a
diuretic and has cholagogue activities. The leaves are used for the treatment
of haematemesis, epistaxis,
haemoptysis, haematuria, metrorrhagia and hyperlipidaemia. The flowers
are useful in the treatment of diarrhoea, fevers, and gastric ulcers. The seeds
which are commonly used
in Asia as a health food can be used for poor digestion, enteritis,
insomnia, palpitations, halitosis, menorrhagia and tissue inflammation. In
traditional Chinese medicine, the
seed powder mixed with honey is useful in treating cough (Mehta,
2013:153).
2.6.4 Other Research conducted on Nelumbo nucifera
Following the traditional claims for the use of Nelumbo nucifera as a
form of treatment for numerous diseases considerable efforts have been made by
researchers to verify its utility
through scientific pharmacological screenings. Studies have shown that
Nelumbo nucifera possesses various notable pharmacological actions such as
anti-ischaemic, anti-viral, anti-bacterial,
anti-obesity, anti-pyretic, hypoglycaemic, anti-inflammatory and
diuretic activities (Mehta, 2013:152).
2.6.4.1 Chemical Constituents
Nelumbo nucifera produces a number of important secondary metabolites
namely alkaloids, flavanoids, steroids, triterpenoids, glycosides and
polyphenols (Sheikh, 2014:42).
Steve Clarke, a biochemist, who discovered the enzyme
L-isoaspartylmethyltransferase (MT), found it repairs proteins damaged as part
of the aging process in plants, mammals and bacteria.
He went on to find the MT enzyme in ancient Lotus seeds and believes
studying these seeds will provide valuable information about the aging process
in plants and humans (Herrick, 2003).
The flower receptacle, containing an alkaloid nelumbine, helps stop
lung, nose and uterine bleeding and eliminates stagnant blood (Herrick, 2003).
2.6.4.2 The psychopharmacological activity of the rhizome from Nelumbo
nucifera
The methanol extract of the rhizome of Nelumbo nucifera produced
significant psychological actions in rats and mice. Reduction in spontaneous
activity was noted in the head dip and Y-maze tests thus, the extract is
thought to possess most of the pharmacological characteristics of a minor
tranquilizer (Mehta, 2013:161).
Cheryl Williams reports in Australian Wellbeing that Lotus seeds have a
sedative action, thought to be due to the release of histamines. This proves
useful for insomnia, nervous complaints,
high blood pressure and heart palpitations (Herrick, 2003).
2.6.4.3 Monograph of Nelumbo nucifera
The following information is based on a systematic review of scientific
literature edited and peer-reviewed by contributors to the Natural Standard
Research Collaboration.
The report (Natural Standard, 2011) was established from tests in humans
and animals and refers to Nelumbo nucifera taken as a herbal supplement rather
than in homoeopathic potency:
May lower blood sugar
levels. Caution is advised in patients with diabetes or hypoglycaemia.
May increase the risk
of bleeding. Caution is advised in patients with bleeding disorders; patients
who are taking drugs that increase the risk of bleeding (a spirin,
anticoagulants or non
steroidal
anti-inflammatory agents. Multiple cases of bleeding have been reported when
taken in conjunction with Ginkgo biloba.
May cause low blood pressure.
Caution is advised in patients with low blood pressure.
Drowsiness or sedation may occur.
Use caution if driving or operating heavy machinery or if taking sedatives or
CNS depressants.
Use cautiously in
patients with constipation and stomach distension.
2.6.5 Proving on Sacred Lotus by Nancy Herrick, a homeopath from the
United States, conducted a proving on Nelumbo nucifera. According to Herrick
(2003), the formulation of themes within
homoeopathic materia medica is based on the following criteria:
Each theme must be
confirmed by the proving entries from at least three different provers. Entries
from one or two provers cannot make a theme no matter how strong their
experience.
The themes come
exclusively from the words of the provers.
No theme developed is based on a
study of the substance or any known aspect of the substance.
A theme is considered very strong if it has confirmation from:
1) emotional/mental states,
2) events,
3) dreams
4) physical sensation.
After completion of the proving of Nelumbo nucifera and her data
analysis, Herrick established the following themes:
Psychosis/Inside vs.
Outside
Killing/Violence
Irritable/Anger
Sharp/Stuck/Stabbed
Police/Prison
Lost/Travel
Indifference
Clarity/Expansion/Energy
Altered States
Heavy vs. Floating
Feeling
Vertigo
Herrick conducted her proving using the potency 30CH and 200CH to
investigate if it would elicit similar symptoms. The sample was obtained from
India, where it indigenously grows. Herrick’s study was conducted as a double
blind placebo controlled trial.
In chapter 5, themes developed by Herrick (2003) have been discussed in
relation to the symptoms of the current proving.
3.3.1 Sourcing and harvesting of the crude substance
For the manufacture of Nelumbo nucifera 30CH, the crude substance (a
Lotus plant in bloom) was obtained from the Durban Botanic Gardens, established
by the Natal Agricultural and Horticultural Society as early as 1849 when the
settlement of D’Urban was little more than a village with a few sandy tracks,
an assortment of thatched cottages and one double storey house on the corner of
Anton Lembede and Dorothy Nyembe Streets (formerly Smith and Gardiner streets).
At first, the Durban Botanical Gardens was situated on the south bank of
the Umgeni River but it had to be shifted from the hippo and crocodile infested
site to the lower slopes of the Berea forest in 1851. There it languished in
splendid isolation, still visited by roaming a lion, though somewhat cut-off
from the growing town by the Eastern Vlei, an extensive wetland which ran from
the Umgeni rivers far as the present day Warwick Avenue (Durban Botanic
Gardens, 2016).
According to the Harmonised Proving Guidelines, the identity of the
proving substance, in terms of its scientific name and its common name(s) must
be clearly defined. In the case of botanical sources, it is advised that these
be accurately identified by an appropriately skilled botanist (Jansen and Ross,
2014). In order to obtain the sample permission had to be first granted by Mr
Sipho Mkhize, the head horticulturist at the Durban Botanical Gardens. On the
early morning of March 6th 2015, Mr KK Dlamini, a gardener and
keeper of the gardens, assisted the researcher
in obtaining the specimen. The specimen was taken immediately to the DUT
Homoeopharmaceutics laboratory for preparation of Nelumbo nucifera 30CH.
Repertory:
Mind: irritability (during menses/with people)
Loathing (in general/at life)
Love for friends
Mental exertion aversed
Mental power increased
Mood – changeable/repulsive
Morose
> occupation
Optimistic
Order desires it (to put everything into order)
Overwhelmed
Peace - heavenly peace; sensation of
Religious affections - want of religious feeling
Restlessness (anxious)
Sadness (morning on waking/at noon/from disappointment/from dream/about
the future/on seeing others happy/during menses/about the present/after quarrel
with husband)
Self satisfied
< social meeting
Apaced out feeling
Thinking aversed to
Thoughts – clear/persistent/thoughtful
Tranquility – morning on waking
Weeping during menses
Vertigo: afternoon
+ pain in head
< during menses
< warm room
Head: Heaviness
Pain [l./morning (on waking)/forenoon/in temples (ext.
head)//evening/forehead/occiput/with coryza/dull/< after eating/<
fasting/inflammation of sinuses/> after sleep)]
< washing head
Eye: Red (l.)/
“As if dry”
Heavy lids
Inflamed (conjunctiva)
Irritation
Itching [evening/lids (r.)/during coryza/itching
(morning/evening/lids/r.]
Sunken (afternoon)/”As if sunken”
Vision: Blurred
Objects seem brighter
Loss of vision > sleep
Nose: Boring in nose with fingers (until bleeds)
Catarrh (from frontal sinussen/watery)
Congestion (at night/sinuses)
Coryza (morning/followed by complaints of frontal sinuses/after getting
wet/with copious discharge)
Discharge copious (morning/on sneezing/yellow)
Epistaxis (boring with finger/during coryza)
Hayfever
Itching (l./inside/in nostrils)
Obstruction (l./discharge of mucous)
Sinuses; complaints of
Sneezing (with coryza)
Face: Eruptions (on cheeks/)
Itching (in eyebrows)
Pain in frontal sinuses
Mouth: Dryness (after drinking/with thirst)
Taste wanted/loss of taste
Throat: Inflamed
“As if a lump” [on (wempty) swallowing]
Pain [morning/sore/from a lump//”As from something sharp”/< (on
empty) swallowing]
Throat: pain on empty swallowing
Stomach: Acidity
Appetite diminished (morning/evening)
Appetite increased (forenoon/afternoon/daytime/evening/at night)
Distension – eructations
Emptiness (< after evening
Eructations
Heartburn (afternoon)
Pain
Abdomen: Distension (morning/during constipation/with
eructations)
Formification
Gurgling
Pain [r./cramping (in hypogastrium)/during diarrhoea/in hypogastrium/in
lower abdomen/before stool/twisting/below umbilicus]
Rumbling (morning/loud)
Shocks tingling
Stool: Hard
Bladder: Pain [burning (constant/ in women during
urging to urinate)
Urine: Burning
Odour strong
Female Organs: Painful
Menses (bright red/copious/dark/painful/absent)/horrible pain, crying
and weeping
Pain – absence/< before menses/< during menses/pressing/(in
uterus) cramping/> warm applications
Chest: Constricted # abdomen distended
Oppression [afternoon (16 h.)/< during cough/burning/on
exertion/behind ribs ext. sternum/sternum (pressing)/pain with suffocative
sensation]
Respiration: difficult (< motion)/
Cough: Dry/loose
Back: Itching (> scratching)/
Pain [aching/< bending/”As if broken”/in dorsal region/dull/<
(after) exertion/ext. downward/lumbar region/muscles/> pressure/< sitting
erect/< during sleep/sore/cannot straighten the back/
> warm applications]
Stiffness (“As after prolonged stooping”)
Limbs: (icy) Cold feet (with hot body)
Cramps [(l.) leg/(night) lower limbs]
Eruptions on feet (black/on soles/without itching)
Feet complaints
Pain [feet (aching/burning)/fingers (aching/sore)/hands < closing
them/palms of hands/shoulders (aching/sore/> warm applications/<
standing/in thumbs/toes (l./< pressure/< walking)/
Cramps [(l.) legs/lower limbs (at night)/]
Sensitive palms of hands
Shoulders complaints l.
Swelling of first l. toe (painful)
Tingling [afternoon/feet (r.)/palms of hands]
Coldness of feet (with hot body)
Eruptions on feet (black/soles/without itching)
Dreams: Airplanes – being on a airplane/amorous
(morning)/anxious/being attacked/being busy/confused/escaping from a
danger/dead of a relative/devils/disease in the family/
long past events/impending evil/own family/forest/(meeting) old (seeing)
friends/home/horrible/journeys/being lost/family/remembered/being at
school/sea/seeing again an old schoolmate/
supernatural things/unsuccessful efforts/vivid (morning)/being in an
ocean/weeping
Chill: Chilliness
Fever: Morning
Heat
Skin: eruptions – pimples
Warts (itching)
Generals: Activity increased
Excess of energy
Food and drink:
Desires: chocolate/spices/warm food;
“As if hot”
Inflamed sinuses
Pain (aching/sore muscles)
Tingling
< warm air
Weakness (morning/noon/daytime/18 h./16 h./evening)
Weakness during headache/< after rising