Hibiscus sabdariffa (Hindi-Lal Ambari/Patwa,Marathi-Laal ambaari/Tambdi-ambadi,Bengali-Chukar, Assamese-Chukiar Tangamora,Sanskrit-Ambasthaki,Kannada-Kempupundrike/Pulichakire,Tamil-Simaikkasuru, Telugu-Erragomguru/Ettagomgura, Malayalam-Polechi,Manipuri-Silo-sougree,Popular-Jamaica sorrel/Red sorrel/Roselle)Malvaceae.Syn-H.digitatus, Sabdariffa digitata.It is an annual, erect,bushy, herbaceous shrub growing upto 2.4 m tall with smooth or nearly smooth cylindrical typically red stems.Leaves are alternate,7.5-12.5 cm long, green with reddish veins and long or short petioles.Upper leaves are simple while the lower leaves are deeply 3 to 5 or even 7-lobed with toothed margins.Flowers are borne singly in the leaf axils,12.5 cm wide,yellow or buff with a rose or maroon eye.Fruit is bright red,ovoid capsule with hooked hairs having 3-4 seeds.It is native to North Africa and SE Asia but now grows in many tropical and subtropical climates.It is distributed in almost all warm countries such as India,Saudi Arabia,Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam,Sudan, Egypt and Mexico.It has antioxidant, antibacterial,anti inflammatory, emollient, antipyretic, diuretic, laxative, anthelmintic,chemopreventive, sedative,hypolipidemic, hypotensive, antidiabetic,lactogenic, anticancer,anti-obesity, hepatoprotective,nephroprotective activities.The main phytoconstituents are flavonoids, anthocyanins, polysaccharides,triterpenoids, alkaloids and steroids.Nutrients are protein, carbohydrates,Ca,Fe,K,Mg,P and vitamins A,C,B1,B2,B3.It has been traditionally used as a food,in herbal drinks,in hot and cold beverages,as a flavouring agent in the food industry and as a herbal medicine.It is one of the most important species grown commercially as a fibre plant.It is used as a substitute of jute in making clothing,linen, fishing nets,ropes and similar items.Hibiscus flower is traded and used worldwide today as an important ingredient in industrially priduced teas and beverages.Hibiscus tea has been used in African countries to decrease body temperature,to treat heart diseases and sore throat.In India,the tea is used to treat high BP.The part of the plant that protects and supports the flower is called the calyx.The dried calyces are used to make herbal tea.Calyx and bract portions are collected when slightly immature.In Brazil,roots are believed to have stomachic and emollient properties.In Chinese folk medicine,it is used to treat liver disorders and high BP.In India,seeds decoction is used to relieve pain in urination and indigestion.In Northern Nigeria,it has been used to treat constipation.It is widely used in Egypt for the treatment of cardiac and nerve diseases.In Iran, drinking sour tea is a popular practice to treat hypertension.
– Mukherjee Bk
