India, the home of Ayurveda is blessed with a lot of nature’s goodness. Traditional and healing herbs can be easily found growing in your backyard or on roadsides whether you know them or not. However, the Himalayan foothills have got the lion’s share of this bounty, being home to countless medicinal and health building herbs. Kutki is one such herb, though most of us may be unaware of its existence or at least not well acquainted with its health benefits, it keeps on being an important part of ayurvedic medicine since ever. In fact, various hepatoprotective drugs are extracted from the roots of kutki plant and its demand is ever increasing in both the national and international market. However, overexploitation has put it in the critically endangered category and there is a need to preserve this plant to keep on getting all the benefits of this wonderful healer.
But the question remains, how do you recognise a kutki plant. For all you know you might be standing next to it right?
What is kutki?
Kutki is a small herb that grows all year round that is perennial. It has soft hairy stems and broad or narrow leaves which grow almost near the ground. Usually, the broadleaf kutki is found growing under shrub canopies while the narrow leaf kutki is more commonly found growing on rocks near springs. Stem becomes erect during the flowering season which is around June to August and the brownish grey roots are present in the form of rhizomes (fleshy food storing roots) which are somewhat cylindrical and clustered together. Kutki flowers are either white or a faded bluish purple and grow terminally (on top) in clusters.
Did you know?
The name Picorrhiza comes from the Greek word picroz and rhiza which translates to bitter and root respectively, referring to the bitter taste of kutki plant
Though a bit of bitter taste is worth all its health benefits. But before we start with those, here are some basic facts about Kutki:
- Botanical name: Picrorhiza Kurroa
- Family: Scrophulariaceae
- Common name: Kutki, Kardi, karwi, Karu
- Sanskrit name: Arishta, Anjani
- Parts used: roots or rhizomes
- Native region and geographical distribution: Kutki grows at an altitude of about 3500 to 4500 meters in the Himalayan region ranging from Kasmir to Sikkim. It is also found in China, Pakistan, Nepal, Tibet and Bhutan.
from myUpchar.com के स्वास्थ्य संबंधी लेख
via https://www.myupchar.com/en/tips/kutki-benefits-and-side-effects-in-hindi
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