Introduction

Our country has low economic condition and majority of the Filipino families have small income so they cannot buy expensive medicine. The research having had a sentiment on this kind of problem took the initiative of studying an alternative medicine and these are the herbal medicine.

Over seventy percent (70%) of the world’s population is dependent on herbal medicine. Asia is one of the continents in the world known for using herbal medicine especially Philippines. The use of medicinal plants has been popular for the past years and has been generation to generation.

Such medicinal plants is called “Takip-kuhol” it is found in the gardens, thickets, and open damp grasslands, on the rice paddy banks and streams throughout the Philippines. Takip-kuhol (Centella Asiatica) is a prostate, creeping, sparingly hairy or nearly smooth perennial herb, with delicate and slender stems rooting at the nodes. Leaves are rounded to reniform, 2 to 5centimeter wide, horizontal, more or less cupped, rounded of the tip, and kidney-shaped or heart-shaped at the base, palmately veined, margins undulate-crenate, the rounded lobes often overlapping. Petioles are erect 3 to 20centimeters long. Flowers are dark-purple, axillary, ovate, and about 1centimeter long. Peduncles occur in pairs or threes, less than 1centimeter long and usually bear 3 sessile flowers. Fruits are minute, ovoid, white or green, and reticulate each with a subsimilar longitudinal ridges. Carpels are five , cylindric compressed, about 2.5 millimeters long, white or green, reticulate. Ovary is inferior. Stamen are 5, epigynous.

Background of the Study

Takip-kuhol (gotu kola) also known as Centella Asiatica, Indian pennywort-has been used for centuries as the medicinal herb, as far back as 3000years ago in Indian ayurvedic medicine, 2000years ago in Chinese Medicine, in the late 1800s in French pharmacopoeia. Based on chemical analysis of this plant shows the presence of villarine, high vitamin B content in the leaves and roots, and a miscellany of other constituents such as carbohydrates, resins, proteins, ash, alkali, salts, phosphate and tannins.

This study aims to expand the researcher’s knowledge and to help other people for curing some diseases such as gonorrhea, chronic and obstinate eczema, chronic rheumatism, tuberculosis, syphilis, dysentery, hypertension, Alzheimer’s disease, cancer etc.. It is useful for treating infectious hepatitis, measles, respiratory tract infections, colds, tonsillitis, laryngopharyngitis, and bronchitis. It serves as anti-bacteria, antioxidant, immunomodulatory , nerve regeneration, anti-convulsant etc..

By using this medicinal plant for treating and curing some diseases they can save money out of takip-kuhol syrup. This product serves as alternative to commercial medicines because of its health benefits and it can help in terms of healing and curing such diseases without spending too much money and it has no harm effects on the human body.