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Aloe

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NIH: National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health


WARNING: All medicines, drugs, plants, chemicals or medicial precedures below are for historical reference only. Many of these treatments are now known to be harmful and possibly fatal. Do not consume any plant, chemical, drug or otherwise without first consulting a licensed physician that practices medine in the appropriate field.

Felter's Materia Medica on Aloe

ALOEALOE
   The dried juice of the leaves of several species of Aloe: (1) Aloe Perryi, Baker; (2) Aloe vera, Linné; (3) Aloe ferox, Miller. (Nat. Ord. Liliaceae). Barbadoes, Africa and the Orient. Common Names: (1) Socotrine Aloes; (2) Curaçoa Aloes; (3) Cape Aloes. Description.—(l) Yellow-brown or black-brown masses, aromatic, bitter, and nauseous, half of which is soluble in water; powder, deep brown; aqueous solution yellowish. (2) Orange to black-brown masses, waxy, not aromatic; more than half soluble in water; powder, deep red-brown; aqueous solution, purplish red. (3) Red-brown or greenish-black, smooth, glassy masses, more than half soluble in water; powder, greenish-yellow (fresh), light brown (old); aqueous solution, pale yellow. Dose, 1 to 8 grains. Principal Constituents.-Aloin (C14H10). resin, and volatile oil. Preparations.-(1) Aloinum, Aloin (a very bitter, yellow-to-dark-yellow, finelycrystalline powder, soluble in water, slightly in ether). Dose, 1/12 to 1/2 grain. 2. Pilulae Aloes, Pills of Aloes. (Each pill contains 2 grains of Aloes.) Dose, 1 to 2 pills. 3. Tinctura Aloes, Tincture of Aloes (10 per cent of Aloes). Dose, 15 to 60 minims. Specific Indications.—Atony of the large intestine and rectum; mucoid discharges, prolapsus ani, ascaris vermicularis (Scudder). Difficult evacuation of the lower bowel when not due to fissure or inflammation. Action.—Aloes is a slow-acting stimulating purgative, probably affecting only the lower bowel, notably the rectum. In small doses it is laxative. It strongly increases colonic peristalsis, but does not greatly increase the secretions of the intestinal glands, consequently the stools are feculent rather than watery, unless the dose be large. As it takes from 10 to 15 hours to operate, it should be administered in the early evening so that evacuation may occur in the morning. When given alone it causes considerable griping and often rectal fullness and heat. These may be modified by giving it in pill with soap or an alkaline carbonate, or with hyoscyamus, belladonna, or carminatives. Sulphate of iron slightly restrains its action and ipecac increases it. Applied to a denuded surface it operates the same as if taken internally, and administered to a nursing mother it purges the sucking child. By its stimulating action upon unstriped fibre, as of the bowel and uterus, and its tendency to excite the pelvic circulation producing pelvic congestion, it proves- emmenagogue. It is a purgative for torpor and debility, and should not be given to plethoric persons, nor when gastro-enteritis, or actively inflamed hemorrhoids are present; nor when pregnancy exists. Therapy.—Aloes, in 1/2 to 1 grain doses, is a gastric stimulant of value in atonic indigestion, with obstinate constipation. It has had a large vogue as an after-dinner pill, but is now little used for that purpose. As a rule it is a good agent for use in atonic chronic constipation, but should never be exhibited in cathartic doses for this purpose. Aloes, or its derivative, aloin, is usually an ingredient of many favorite laxative pills, composed of varying amounts of either drug in combination with belladonna, strychnine, and ipecac, and sometimes with the addition of capsicum. One of the best of these is the “Lapactic pill.” When sulphate of iron is indicated in chlorosis and anemia, aloes is generally combined with it. It has the effect of restraining the constipating action of the chalybeate. Aloes and iron are both very useful in delicate women who are subject to amenorrhoea or menorrhagia, with pelvic and intestinal torpor, poor appetite, and a weak circulation. As most of these cases are profoundly constipated, the explanation of the combination may be found in the laxative action of the aloes. When hemorrhoids are due to feeble venous return, small doses of aloes or aloin may improve conditions, but it should never be given when there is active hemorrhoidal inflammation. In very small doses aloin is useful in rectal prolapsus, due to pelvic debility and general ill-health. It is still a debatable question whether aloes influences the flow of bile. When, however, jaundice is coexistent with torpor of the hemorrhoidal veins, it may be improved by laxative doses of aloes or aloin. Aloes is a decidedly useful but much abused medicine in chronic or habitual constipation. As stated above only slightly laxative amounts should be used. When a purgative is needed for bowel impaction in the insane—particularly in hypochondriasis and melancholia—aloes is probably the best that can be given. The improvement in the mental state often will be commensurate with the betterment of the intestinal torpor. 1

GLYCYRRHIZA
   The dried rhizome and roots of Glycyrrhiza glabra typica, Regel et Herder (Spanish Licorice), or of Glycyrrhiza glabra glandulifera, Regel et Herder (Russian Licorice), (Nat. Ord. Leguminosae). Southern Europe and western Asia; cultivated. Dose, 5 to 60 grains. Common Names: Licorice, Licorice Root, (1) Spanish Licorice Root, (2) Russian Licorice Root. Principal Constituents.—The sweet glucoside glycyrrhizin (C24H36O9), asparagin, glycyramarin and an acid resin. Preparations.—1. Specific Medicine Glycyrrhiza. Dose, 5 to 60 drops. 2. Fluidextractum Glycyrrhizae, Fluidextract of Glycyrrhiza. Dose, 30 drops. Derivative: Glycyrrhizinum Ammoniatum, Ammoniated Glycyrrhizin. Very sweet, odorless, dark-brown or red-brown scales; soluble in alcohol or water. It is derived from glycyrrhiza and combined with ammonia. Dose, 1 to 8 grains. Action and Therapy.—Glycyrrhiza root is demulcent, laxative, and expectorant. It acts upon mucous surfaces, lessening irritation and relieving coughs, catarrhs, and irritation of the urinary tract. The powdered extract is sometimes used to give solidity to pills, and the powdered root as a dusting powder for the same. The fluidextract is an agreeable flavoring agent for other medicines and soothing to irritated bronchial surfaces. The bitterness of cascara, quinine, aloes, quassia, the acridity of senega, guaiac, and the taste of ammonium chloride and sodium salicylate are more or less masked by the fluidextract. Licorice root is an ingredient of Compound Licorice Powder. (See Senna).1

MYRRHA (Commiphora spp.)
   The gum-resin obtained from one or more varieties of Commiphora (Nat. Ord. Burseraceae). Region of Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, Africa, and Arabia. Dose, 1 to 15 grains. Common Names.-Myrrh, Gum Myrrh. Description.—Brownish-yellow or reddish-brown tears or masses, covered with a brownish-yellow dust; taste: bitter, acrid, and aromatic; odor: balsamic. Soluble in alcohol; forms an emulsion with water. Dose, 1 to 30 grains. Principal Constituents.—A resin, myrrhin, 23 to 40 per cent; a volatile oil, myrrhol, 2 to 8 per cent; gum, 40 to 60 per cent, and a bitter principle. Preparation.—Tinctura Myrrhae, Tincture of Myrrh (Myrrh, 20 per cent). Dose, 1 to 30 drops. Specific Indications.—Mucous membrane pale and lax; tonsils enlarged and spongy; throat pale and tumid; chronic bronchitis with profuse secretion of mucus or muco-pus, difficult to expectorate; soreness and sponginess of the gums; ptyalism; weight and dragging in pelvis in females; leucorrhea; muscular debility. Action and Therapy.—External. Myrrh is the best local application for spongy and bleeding gums and is effective in mercurial and other forms of salivation. The tincture may be diluted with about 6 to 10 parts of water. It may also be used with benefit when the throat is sore and exhibits aphthous or sloughing ulcers, and in chronic pharyngitis with tumid, pallid membranes and elongated uvula. In spongy, enlarged tonsils it is an ideal topical medicine. After the removal of tonsils the following gives great relief from pain and deodorizes the fetor: Rx Tincture of Myrrh, 1/2 fluidrachm; Asepsin, 10 grains; Echafolta, 2 fluidrachms; Glycerin, 2 fluidrachms; Water, enough to make 4 fluidounces. Shake. This may be applied by means of an atomizer. This combination is also a good mouth wash and dentifrice and minimizes the possibility of pyorrhea alveolaris. Myrrh, in powder, is often added to dentifrices. Internal. Myrrh is a stimulant to mucous tissues and should not be used, as a rule, in active inflammatory conditions. Small doses promote digestion and prove antiseptic to the intestinal canal. Large doses quicken the pulse, raise the temperature, cause gastric burning, great sweating and prostration; vomiting and purgation may follow. Myrrh is a remedy for enfeebled conditions with excessive mucous secretion, exhibiting its restraining power especially upon the bronchial and renal mucosa. It is of much value in chronic bronchitis with relaxation of tissues, profuse, unhealthy and exhausting secretion and difficulty in raising the sputa. Locke advised the following: Rx Compound Tincture of Myrrh and Capsicum, 2 fluidrachms each; Syrup of Wild Cherry, Syrup of Senega, 2 fluidounces each. Mix. Sig.: One teaspoonful every three hours. This acts kindly upon the stomach and sustains the strength of the patient. The same combination often relieves the asthma of the aged. Myrrh is useful in chronic gastritis and atonic dyspepsia, with full, pale tongue and membranes, and frequent mucous stools accompanied by flatulence. It acts well with the simple bitters, especially gentian. Myrrh is probably emmenagogue, though much of its reputation as such has been acquired in anemic states in which it has been administered conjointly with iron and aloes. It is used in diseases of women when there is weight and dragging in the pelvis and leucorrhea; and in suppression of the menses in anemic girls. For the type of amenorrhea dependent upon uterine torpor and constipation Locke advised the following: Rx Myrrh, 30 grains; Aloes, 10 grains; Macrotin, 10 grains. Mix. Make into #20 pills. Sig.: One or two pills, three times a day. Myrrh is an ingredient of the celebrated Griffith's Mixture (Mistura Ferri Composita) for the amenorrhea of chlorosis and other forms of anemia; and of the Compound Pills of Rhubarb (Pilulae Rhei Compositae).1

RHEUM
   The denuded and dried rhizome and roots of Rheum officinale, Baillon; Rheum palmatum, Linné, and var. tanguticum, Maximowicz, and probably other species of Chinese and Thibetan Rheum (Nat. Ord. Polygonaceae). Western and central portions of China and in Thibet. Dose, 5 to 30 grains. Common Names: Rhubarb, Rhubarb Root. Principal Constituents.—Chrysarobin (C35H26O7) (the yellow coloring glucoside, chrysophan or rhein) yielding chrysophanic acid (C15H10O4); the anthracene cathartic body emodin (C15H10O5); erythroretin, phaeoretin, aporetin, and the astringing principle rheotannic acid (C28H26O14); and quite a proportion of oxalate of calcium giving to rhubarb its grittiness. Preparations—1. Specific Medicine Rheum. Dose, 1/10 to 60 drops. 2. Syrupus Rhei, Syrup of Rhubarb. Dose, 1 to 4 fluidrachms. 3. Syrupus Rhei A romaticus, Aromatic Syrup of Rhubarb. Dose, 1 to 4 fluidrachms. 4. Syrupus Rhei et Potassa, Compositus, Compound Syrup of Rhubarb and Potassa (Neutralizing Cordial). Dose, 1/2 to 4 fluidrachms. 5. Pulvis Rhei Compositus (Eclectic), Eclectic Compound Powder of Rhubarb. (Equal parts of powdered rhubarb, peppermint and bicarbonate of potassium). Dose, 1/2 to 2 drachms. 6. Pulvis Rhei Compositus, Compound Powder of Rhubarb (Gregory's Powder). (Rhubarb; Magnesium Oxide, and Ginger). Dose, 5 to 60 grains. 7. Beach's Neutralizing Mixture, Neutralizing Cordial, or Physic.-Take of rhubarb, pulverized, salaeratus, pulverized, peppermint plant, pulverized, equal parts. To a large teaspoonful add half a pint of boiling water; when cool, strain, sweeten with loaf sugar, and add a tablespoonful of brandy. (The original formula from Beach's American Practice.) Dose, 1 to 4 fluidrachms. 8. Locke's Neutralizing Cordial. (Formula.) Take of coarsely ground rhubarb, peppermint herb, and potassium bicarbonate, of each three ounces; boiling water, four pints; diluted alcohol, one pint; essence of peppermint, one-half ounce; white sugar, two pounds. Macerate the rhubarb, peppermint, potassium bicarbonate in the boiling water for two hours (do not boil) in a warm place. Strain and while still warm add the sugar; after the sugar is dissolved and the liquid is cold, add the diluted alcohol and the essence of peppermint (Locke). Dose, 1 to 4 fluidrachms. (We have found that by adding the potassium salt to the strained infusion of the rhubarb and peppermint a clearer preparation is obtained.) 9. Glyconda.—A sugarless preparation of Neutralizing Cordial, in which glycerin is the sweetening and preservative agent. Dose, 1 to 4 fluidrachms. Specific Indications.—Gastric irritation, with elongated, reddened tongue, and nausea and vomiting; irritative diarrhea, with tenderness of abdomen on pressure; light-colored fecal discharges; gastrointestinal irritation, with marked nervousness and restlessness, and screaming and convulsive muscular contractions. Sour-smelling discharges are relieved by small doses of neutralizing cordial or glyconda, while larger doses of either, or of specific medicine rheum or powdered rhubarb, are indicated for the relief of constipation with a sense of intestinal constriction and muscular contraction. Action.—Rhubarb is stimulant to the gastro-intestinal tract, in sufficient doses increasing muscular contraction, and thus, rather than by increase of secretion, causing a cathartic action. This is probably due chiefly to the anthracene body, emodin. It affects the whole intestinal tract, especially the duodenum, and acts most certainly in the presence of bile, the secretion of which it probably promotes. The latter property, however, is still a point in dispute. Rhubarb usually purges in from four to eight hours and the stools are papescent and not watery, and of a yellowish-brown color (due to chrysophan). Their passage is attended with mild griping. The rapid absorption of the coloring matter imparts to the urine a yellow (if acid) or a carmine (if alkaline) color; the serum of the blood and mother's milk are stained yellow, and the sweat has a tawny hue. The cathartic effect of rhubarb is succeeded by a mild astringency due to the rheotannic acid, thus making the drug a calmative after a preliminary stimulating catharsis. Therapy.—Rhubarb is an ideal laxative and cathartic according to the dose administered. In smaller amounts it is a gastro-intestinal stimulant and tonic, promoting the gastric secretions and insuring good digestion. As a laxative it is one of the best that can be used for children and womene—specially the pregnant woman. As the evacuations produced by rhubarb are neither watery nor debilitating, when a tonic laxative is required for the feeble and for old people, rhubarb cannot be improved upon. In severe febrile or inflammatory affections of the alimentary canal it is usually contraindicated, but where there are enfeebled digestion and irritation, or where food causes distress and irregular bowel action, either diarrheal or constipating, its use is attended with excellent results. Aromatics mitigate its griping tendency. In lienteric diarrhea, and where fecal accumulations are to be removed, and as a laxative following parturition, rhubarb is perfectly safe and effective. In the summer diarrheas of children, when necessary to clear the intestinal canal of slimy, acid, or other irritating material, whether there is diarrhea or not, and there is both stomachic and intestinal indigestion, laxative doses of syrup of rhubarb, or the aromatic syrup or, preferable to either, the neutralizing cordial, have a most happy effect, and where other laxatives might leave an irritable condition and prolonged diarrhea, rhubarb, through its mild after-astringency, calms the excited intestinal tract. Sometimes castor oil, which also cleanses and afterwards checks the bowels, may be given with these preparations if so desired. For the constipation of dyspeptics, with hepatic torpor, it may be given with podophyllin or aloes; and in ordinary constipation it is sometimes effective i1

SAPO
   Soap, Hard Soap, White Castile Soap. Soap prepared from Sodium Hydroxide and Olive Oil. Description.—White or whitish, hard bars, easily cut when fresh; or a fine, yellowishwhite powder, having a faint, non-rancid odor, and an unpleasant alkaline taste. Soluble in water and alcohol—, more readily by the aid of heat. Preparation.—Linimentum Saponis, Soap Liniment (Opodeldoc), (Soap, Camphor, Oil of Rosemary, Alcohol, and water). This liniment is an ingredient of Linimentum Chloroformi (Chloroform Liniment). Action and Therapy.—External. Soap enters into the formation of some pills, as of aloes, rhubarb, gamboge, podophyllin, and other resinous cathartics, and asafoetida, and those of compound extract of colocynth. Soap is detergent and with water may be used, as indicated, to remove scales and crusts in cutaneous diseases, but is less useful than soft soap for this purpose. It is to be preferred, however, where a very mild action is necessary, being less irritant than the softer preparation. Internal. Soap is irritant to the stomach, but in small doses may be used as an antacid, and in cases of poisoning by the corrosive mineral acids.1


References

1) Felter, Harvey Wickes, 1922, The Eclectic Materia Medica, Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Cincinnati, Ohio.