Phenolic metabolites, vitamins, minerals and antioxidant profiling of medicinal teas of Ladakh

Abstract

The traditional pharmacopoeia of Ladakh comprises of a wide arsenal of wild plants having medicinal properties used in folk medicine and in foods as beverages and spices. Many of these plants are near to extinction and at the same time very less scientific studies have been done so far in this response. This paper explores and discusses the biochemical constituents of some wild plant parts traditionally used for therapeutic purposes in Ladakh. Bark of wild rose/sia, leaves of willow/chashing and seeds of iris/tesma used in the form of tea were evaluated while trying to relate with their nutritional and health promoting benefits. Extracts from these plant parts were reported to contain remarkable amount of nutrients (vitamins and minerals) and secondary metabolites (polyphenols and flavonoids) that exhibited important biological functions. Sia detected maximum quantity of total vitamins studied and londo (iris seed) detected maximum amount of total minerals analyzed while chashing was shown to have the best antioxidant activity with comparatively more phenolic acids and flavonoids. It would be beneficial to consume such types of natural plants having potent activity in limited doses as substitutes for chemical therapeutics.