Indigenous Knowledge Meets Science: A Saponin Phytochemical Screening of Folk Medicines Used for Treating Cough and Colds in Cagraray Island, Philippines

Michael B. Bibon¹

Section:Research Paper, Product Type: Journal-Paper
Vol.8 , Issue.5 , pp.8-15, Oct-2021

Online published on Oct 31, 2021

Copyright © Michael B. Bibon . This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
 

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Abstract :
Shortcomings on access to quality health care professionals and facilities caused the locals of Cagraray island to rely on folk medicines for treating cough and colds. These illnesses were often treated by the ingestion of antibacterial medicines, expectorants, and antitussives. Saponin, an antibacterial chemical and expectorant, exists in some plant extracts in a form of phytochemical. This study screened the saponin content of folk medicines in Cagraray island used for treating cough and colds. Field immersion through survey and interview was conducted to 8 folk healers considered as key informants of the study. Saponin Foam Test was administered for 3 trials to the prescribed 9 folk medicinal herbs to test the levels of saponin and subjected for quantitative analysis. The screening test revealed the presence of the phytochemical saponin in varying quantities across tested medicinal herbs. This was supported by ANOVA indicating significant difference in the levels of saponin from different folk medicinal herbs tested [F (8, 18)=122.47, p<0.05]. The result concluded a strong link between science and indigenous knowledge by proving the potentiality of the folk medicines to treat cough and colds. Nonetheless, the research recommends to further study the phytochemical contents of the identified medicinal plants, with or without saponin, to testify the truthfulness of their healing effect and toxicity levels.

Key-Words / Index Term :
Cough and Colds, Cagraray Island, Indigenous Knowledge, Phytochemical Screening, Saponin Testing

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