Hydrophilia

Hydrophilia (Hydrophilia spinosa) is indigenous to India, and is widely distributed in the sub-tropical regions of the world. The name is derived from the Greek, and refers to the medical doctrine of fluids in the body. It has tapering roots, a number of rootlets, and upright square stems; leaves and branches opposite, nodes swollen near them; the stem and leaves have three- to five-celled stiff hairs. Flowers, four pairs awl-shaped and like leaves in shape. Corolla glabrous on lower lip. Fruit has four to eight flattened brownish seeds, which contain a quantity of strong mucilage. The drug has no special odor or taste.

Hydrophilia is composed chiefly of mucilage, fixed oil, phytosterol, and a trace of an alkaloidal substance, properties similar to Couchgrass. Hydrophilia is considered a demulcent, and a diuretic for catarrh of the urinary organs. The dried herb & root, or rhizome, has long been used in India for dropsy, especially when accompanied by hepatic obstruction. It is also considered a popular aphrodisiac. In Southern India the root is the commercial part, but in Bombay the seeds are mostly used.

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