Lagerstroemia speciosa (L.) Pers.

DeFilipps, Robert A. & Krupnick, Gary A., 2018, The medicinal plants of Myanmar, PhytoKeys 102, pp. 1-341 : 107-108

Lagerstroemia speciosa (L.) Pers.

Names.

Myanmar: pyinma-ywetthey. English: queen’s crape myrtle.

Range.

India to Southeast Asia and Australia.

Uses.

Bark and Leaf: Purgative. Leaf: Used to treat diabetes. Seed: A narcotic. Root: Astringent.

Notes.

In India the bark and leaf are used as a purgative; the fruit is applied locally for aphthae of the mouth; the seed is used as a narcotic; and the root as a febrifuge, stimulant, and astringent ( Jain and DeFilipps 1991). In Indo-China the root and bark are used as an astringent, and the leaves and fruit have hypoglycemic properties in treating diabetes mellitus. On the Malay Peninsula a decoction of the bark is ingested to treat abdominal pain and dysentery; the leaves are made into poultices to treat malaria and cracked feet. In Indonesia a cold infusion of the bark is used to treat diarrhea. In the Philippines the leaves are pounded or rubbed with salt and applied to the forehead and temples as a remedy for headache; a decoction of the old leaves and ripe fruit, taken orally, is considered to be the best antidiabetic part of the plant (if not available, younger and mature leaves can be used as a substitute); a decoction of the bark is drunk for hematuria, and that of the roots is drunk for jaundice as well as during puerperium ( Perry 1980).

Reported constituents of leaves include tannin, glucose, and an antidiabetic principle; also an unnamed alkaloid has been found in the seed ( Perry 1980).

References.

Nordal (1963), Perry (1980).