Economic and medicinal properties of some medicinal plants found in Kashmir Himalaya

Abstract

Medicinal plants have been a source of succour in the control of many diseases in developing countries and sickle cell disease is no exception. Crude extracts from plants have been used in treating an array of diseases since ancient times although, the bioactive components of such plants remain largely unknown. Various advances in scientific research on the use of plants and herbs brought the beneficial aspects of traditional medicine and the rational for their uses to the limelight. The medicinal properties of plant species have made an outstanding contribution in the origin and evolution of many traditional herbal therapies. These traditional knowledge systems have started to disappear with the passage of time due to scarcity of written documents and relatively low income in these traditions. The medicinal properties of various plants after having been ascertained in early times passed from generation to generation as trade secrets Many plants found in Kashmir have the folklore as being used for the treatment of many diseases like diarrhea, inflammatory disorders, Cholera, skin diseases, rheumatism, diuretics (Increasing flow of urine), cough, asthma, snake-bites and anti-cancer.