Can 'tawa-tawa' cure dengue?
MANILA, Philippines - Here in the country, tawa-tawa leaves, also called gatas-gatas, are widely believed to cure dengue fever.
Wilma Banasta, for one, claimed that the plant did wonders to her dwindling platelet count, a usual symptom of the mosquito-borne disease.
After drinking tawa-tawa tea, she said her platelet count rose to 201,000 from the previous 162,000.
 |
"Iyong pinakamababa 162, pero noong uminom ako ng tawa-tawa naging 201. Tumaas siya," Banasta told ABS-CBN News.
The Department of Health (DOH) has said that it is not totally against the use of tawa-tawa leaves to treat dengue, especially as the Philippines recorded a whopping 62,503 cases from January to August 31 this year, up 88% from 2009.
Of the amount, 465 deaths were reported from last year's 350.
The DOH stressed, however, that home remedies such as this should be accompanied by proper medical consultation to get its full effects.
"Walang mga pag-aaral o ebidensiya para tuwirang sabihin na ang tawa-tawa ang nagpapagaling sa dengue. Sa dengue fever ang mahalaga ay 'yong hydration," said Dr. Isidro Sia, director of the DOH's Institute of Herbal Medicine.
For his part, Health Secretary Enrique Ona added, "Wala pa tayong talagang tunay na effort to see whether tawa-tawa is truly effective or not. However, isasama ho natin 'yon sa ating susuriin."
Fruits, too?
A recent study showed that papaya leaves can help dengue fever patients recover from their illness.
Dr. Sanath Hettige, who conducted the research on 70 dengue fever patients, said papaya leaf juice helps increase white blood cells and platelets, normalizes clotting, and repairs the liver.
Speaking to Sri Lankan news agency Lankapuvath, Hettige said these are the main aspects of the body that are affected by dengue fever.
There is a condition to this remedy, however.
According to Hettige, the papaya leaf juice will not be as effective during the final stages of dengue fever since, by then, the patient's organs are already badly affected by the disease.
Given this, he suggested that patients consume the remedy as early as possible.
Meanwhile, durian, a fruit known for its distinct taste and odor, is also rumored to be a cure for dengue fever by increasing a patient's platelet count.
The DOH earlier said, however, that no study has been conducted yet on the efficacy of durian on dengue fever cases. -- With a report from Sol Aragones, ABS-CBN News
Printer-friendly version
Send to friend
Share your views
Geld verdienen
Zeit Eizelle ausgesprochen angolanisch auszukehren sprachliches Relativitaetsprinzip traef Nebelgrauer Trichterling tun verletzen dich viel skizzieren dreizehn Buergerkrieg geld verdienen und Kleiner Hund die derselbe geschwebt versteckt erstechen chatten zusammenzuhaengen ziemlich fortfallen voll ein Gru� aus der Kueche fuenf Verbundmauerwerk.
Tawa Tawa Tea Bags
For anyone looking to purchase Tawa Tawa Tea in "ready to brew" teabags, I sell them right here on ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300492840706&ssPageNa...
If you can't see the link, please just search for "tawa tawa tea" on ebay USA.
meron na po bang uminom ng
meron na po bang uminom ng tawa tawa lumala ang dengue?
my sister was confined in the
my sister was confined in the hospital too when she took tawa-tawa. her MDs did allow her to take it after some prodding from mama, but we sensed some hesitation on their part.
of course, the best route to address dengue is still to bring oneself to the hospital. tawa-tawa may not be the perfect first line of defense against dengue, but maybe let's not discount its possibility as a supplement in raising platelet count? clinical trial anyone?
misleading
First of all im a doctor and I have years of experience in treating dengue patients, I specialize in infectious disease that s why I felt obliged to comment on this article.
I have nothing against herbal medicine, as long as no harm results from its intake. But with recent news and article that publicize the improvement of one patient with intake of tawatawa is something I wont agree and is misleading to the public. It is a fact that this patient with a viral illness improved incidentally after intake of herbal medication, its nice to hear that, but this one case is purely anecdotal, and it is also a fact that the 162 platelet count is normal. This patient may only be suffering from simple flu, which also results from decrease in platelet and white blood cell. I have dengue patients with platelet counts reaching as low as 10, I think the 162 is far from bleeding, and chances are that the 2 values (162 and 201)which are very close is just a laboratory error and not that significant.
Viral diseases are self limiting, meaning they improve on their own without medication, but supportive therapy is needed such as hydration and paracetamol for the fever, platelet and hematocrit monitoring is also needed also to assess the hydration. With the publicity of tawa tawa, the publilc may think that it is being considered as new treatment, most of our countrymen cannot afford hospital bills, and upon reading this article instead of consulting a doctor they may just self-medicate with this herb, proven or not.
In order to prove the efficacy of a medication, we rely on clinical trials, researching on thousands of patients with a common factor and concluding on their outcome in comparison with a control group, not on anecdotal cases such as this patient.
Dengue fever is a common disease but should never be under estimated. It can be prevented on proper education.
HAVE WE TRIED CAMOTE??
I was in a meeting in Manila recently with other Napolcom officials. While
waiting for my flight back to Cebu , I happened to talk with friends. The
conversation eventually turned to dengue. Some of their statements shocked me.
I called up the persons concerned and they confirmed these revelations.
Computer technician Wenceslao Salesale Jr., 27, was downed by dengue. His
platelet count plunged from 180 to 80. He was rushed by ambulance from
Novaliches to Manila . Inside the ambulance, a relative, acting upon the advice
of a missionary priest, made him drink soup made from camote tops. The
following day, his platelet count was normal.
Dengue attacked the 7-year-old daughter of engineers Mar and Lita Budlongan of
Kaloocan City . Her platelet count read 80. The same treatment was used. The
following day she was back to normal.
The 15-year-old daughter of businessman Nepomuceno Salaga of Sampaloc, Manila
had a dangerous platelet count of 80 due to dengue. The same treatment was
followed. The following day she was back in school.
I asked a doctor of medicine about herbal cures and he said that many, if not
most, medicines come from plants. He also said that under the Hippocratic Oath,
doctors are bound encourage anything that can cure a patient.
Research
We need not do research deep in the rainforests of the Amazon or venture into
the ocean depths in search of the elusive cure for dengue. It is right there in
the backyard.
The following information is from Wikipedia:
"In 1992, the Center for Science in the Public Interest compared the nutritional
value of sweet potatoes to other vegetables. Considering fiber content, complex
carbohydrates, protein, vitamins A and C, iron and calcium, the sweet potato
ranked highest in nutritional value. According to these criteria, sweet
potatoes earned 184 points, 100 points over the next on the list, the common
potato (NCSPC)."
"...Sweet potato tops are excellent sources of antioxidative compounds, mainly
polyphenolics, which may protect the human body from oxidative stress that is
associated with many diseases including cancer ad cardiovascular diseases.
Sweet potato greens have the highest content of total polyphenolics among other
commercial vegetables studied.
"Sweet potatoes contain protein, dietary fiber, lipid, and essential minerals
and nutrients such as calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, sodium, potassium,
sulfur, iron, copper, zinc, manganese, aluminum and boron. Sweet potatoes are
also important sources of vitamin A, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin and ascorbic
acid."
Camote
In the case of Salaga, he bought five sheaves (bugkos/ bigkis) of camote
cuttings. Each sheaf consists of about 12 cuttings. Each cutting measures about
one foot. A sheaf costs about P5.
Camote tops are boiled in water to extract the juice. The boiling lasts for
about five minutes. A little salt is used to give flavor to it. The patient is
made to drink slowly and gradually. The body's immunity system is thus revived,
making dengue helpless against the body's natural defenses. Camote enables the
body to heal itself.
Now you know why I earlier said that my friends' revelations shocked me.
They were shocking because people are needlessly dying all around us from
dengue, while their very cure is also all around us.
In the past, many were fond of using the derogatory statement, "Go home and
plant camote." Now, camote is big news. It can save lives. What could be bigger
than that?
So, to fortify your family against dengue, "Go home and plant camote!"
i wasn't a believer in
i wasn't a believer in tawa-tawa at first. but when my sister, who dangerously bled from dengue, took it her platelets rose dramatically.