Rice-Traditional Medicinal Plant in India

Abstract

Rice is rich in genetic diversity, with thousands of varieties grown throughout the world. Rice cultivation is the principal activity and source of income for about 100 million households in Asia and Africa. Rice has potential in a wide range of food categories. Besides having nutritional and medicinal benefits, the by-products of rice are equally important and beneficial. By-products from growing rice create many valuable and worthwhile products. The un-edible parts, that are discarded through the milling process, and the edible part could be transformed into some of the following suggested products. Rice can be used to treat skin conditions. The rice is boiled, drained and allowed to cool and mashed. The rice is made into a paste or moulded into balls and these can be applied to boils, sores, swellings and skin blemishes. Other herbs are sometimes added to the rice balls to increase their medicinal effects. Sticky glutinous rice is often taken to treat stomach upsets, heart-burn and indigestion. Extracts from brown rice have been used to treat breast and stomach cancer and warts. They have also been used to treat indigestion, nausea and diarrhoea.