Ewe laali, also known as Henna, or simply laali is an ornamental plant, and also very popular for its tattoo-like effects on the skin. This plant has been used by different cultures and civilizations to beautify their women’s body. It is most used by the Fulani and Hausa tribes of northern Nigeria.
How do you use ewe laali for body decoration?
Ewe laali fresh leaves are usually crushed, applied on the skin, and allow to dry. When this is done, it would leave a tattoo on your skin. Sometimes, women would design the tattooing according to some flower designs. Some people actually mixed other herbs to improve the quality of the die. In fact, it would be safe to say that Ewe laali is a natural dye plant.
How long does ewe laali dye last?
When the dye is done, you’d have to be patient for at least a month before the dye can fade away. This is actually dependent on the process of the dye making. When some other herbal leaves are added, it can leave a permanent tattoo on your skin.
Ewe laali beyond beauty designs
Henna leaves are not just good for design your body. That is just it’s cosmetic gifting, but beyond being a a cosmetic ornamental plant, laali is also used to treat several ailments. Are you shock st this information? So was I when I first stumbled upon the research findings. So sit down and go through this article. You surely will appreciate the many gifts Ewe laali came with.
Is ewe laali leaves edible?
Ewe laali is not a vegetable leaves, it can have a bitter taste, and may even leave a sour taste also, on your mouth. Except for herbal medicinal purposes, do not consume henna leaves.
That being said, lawsonia inermis do not show any harmful effects yet, but that is still under studies, and may prove to be harmful one day, in which many factors may have played roles.
What are the health benefits of ewe laali?
One if the surprising thing about henna plants is the amount of different bioactive compounds present in the plant. Some of these active natural chemicals include but not limited to quercetin, kaempferol, coumarins, tannins, epigenin, alkaloids, benzoic compounds, proteins, carbohydrates and essential oils. All these compounds contribute to the health benefits of ewe laali plant.
Henna leaves for hair growth
The relationship between ewe laali and hair growth dates back to the ancient Egyptian history. Henna leaves were used in ancient Egyptian formula for treating hair loss such as alopecia. Several studies have also backed the claim.
In a study, henna had exhibited a significant hair regeneration potential after the studied albino rats were shaved.
The mechanism could be through its action on the collagen and skin dermal surface.
How do you use henna for hair growth?
To make use of the hair growth promoting power if the herbal plant, get enough leaves, dry them and grind to powdered form. After that, get either a sheer butter, vaseline, or honey around you. When done, add a spoon if the ground leaves to a small jar of honey, sheer butter, or vaseline.
Keep the mixture for two day to enable proper homogenization. Use the now cream to massage your scalp.
Henna for wound healing
Another ancient use of ewe laali is in wound healing. The plant oil and leaf powder have both been studied by different researchers. Both the leaf powder and oil showed strong wound healing promotion. In a study, ewe laali showed that it improves wound healing through several mechanisms. As an antimicrobial agent, henna prevented the growth of bacteria 0n the wounded surfaces.
As an antioxidant, the bioactive compounds present in ewe laali encouraged fibroblast proliferative activity with epithelization. This fibroblast proliferative activity induce large amount of collagen which gives strength integrity to the tissue matrix and play role in homeostasis and epithelization at latter phase of healing. The henna extracts increase the wound contraction which increase tensile strength activity.
How to use ewe laali for wound treatment
The process of getting ewe laali leaves ready to be used for treatment may be long, but it is worth the stress. To begin with, pluck as much henna leaves as possible, spread them and allow to dry under shade. The dried leaves are then ground to powdered form. The bioactive components of ewe laali are extracted using 50% alcoholic solution to soak the ground leaves for 24hrs.
After soaking your herb for a day, it is now time to filter off the filtrates and then, used 70 degree warm water to evaporate the alcoholic solution, leaving only the active components. Mix the finely powdered bioactive compounds with a paraffin wax, sheer butter, or in a watermelon seed oil.
After mixing the oil and ewe laali compounds, it is now time to start applying the herbal oil, topically on the wounded surface. Ewe laali was said according to a research study to possess activity like the ampicillin. Thus, lawsonia inermis is a good wound healing herb.
Ewe laali for Alzheimer’s diseases
The seeds of henna has been frequently recommended for the improvement of memory in Iranian Traditional Medicine (ITM). This is because of its strong memory improvement properties.
Alzheimer’s disease is caused by severe factors which include but not limited to reduced levels of acetylcholine (ACh) in the brain, intracellular hyperphosphorylation of tau protein and formation of neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs), accelerated aggregation of β-amyloid peptides, and oxidative stress due to the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS).
ACh levels in the hippocampus and cortex are crucial for the regulation of memory, attention, learning, and motivation. What ewe laali suggestively does is to increase the level of Ach in the brain. This way it improves memory retention, and growth.
Ewe laali for diabetes
Ewe laali may well be used to treat diabetes in the near future. This is because the leaves of the plant has shown strong antidiabetic effects on diabetic experimental rats. In one of the studies, henna leaf extracts strongly inhibited the enzymatic activity of alpha-amylase. The inhibition of alpha-amylase and alpha-glucosidase enzymes are strong indication of the antidiabetic activities of any herbal remedy.
Another property of lawsonia inermis is the ability to greatly reduce the lipid profile level of diabetic rats. In another study, the results showed that the feeding of 0.8 g/kg bw of the extract decreased the glucose concentration from 194 mg/dl to normal condition after 14 d. The total cholesterol concentration decreased from 148.9 mg/dl to 55.3 mg/dl, while triglyceride concentration decreased from 225.7 mg/dl to 76.9 mg/dl.
Ewe laali for treating ulcer
If you are treating ulcer, henna leaves may be your next door medicinal plant for it. The leaves has exhibited strong antibacterial activities as well as the ability to greatly decreased the volume of gastric acid secretions, free acidity and total acidity and ulcer index. Another herb with strong antiulcer activity is rapini juice. However, you may also consider drinking broccoli juice for a quicker response.
Lawsonia inermis for treating cancer
I would say that ewe laali is a miracle plant, just like the miracle seed. This wonderful plant possess some of the chemical compounds you would find in orthodox drug formulations like lawsone and juglone. Both compounds inhibited the growth of HCT-15 (human colon cancer cells) by blocking the S-phase of cell cycle.
In another study, amino-derivatives of lawsone and lapachol were found to be cytotoxic against Ehrlich carcinoma and human K562 (leukemia cells). The cytotoxicity of fifteen compounds isolated from the flower of Lawsonia inermis was studied against four cancer cell lines (MCF-7, Hela, HCT-116, and HT-29), where they exhibited stronger inhibitory activities than the positive control 5-fluorouraci.
These studies and many more showed that both the leaves, flowers, and root of henna plants are likely going to be the next focus on therapeutic studies of anticancer drug development.
Improves your heart health
Ewe laali also improves your heart health. It reduces the excess bad cholesterol which is accumulated in your blood vessels over time and had started blocking the free flow of blood to and fro your heart. Bad cholesterols are the risk factors for high blood pressure and cardiac arrest. It can also cause stroke when the deposited fats are being oxidized and cause atherosclerosis.
Henna protects your liver
As a strong detoxifier, the strong antioxidants present in henna leaves offer protection to your liver against toxic substances like heavy metals and from free radicals generated from oxidative stress. You should drink more of the decoction made of laali to enjoy these numerous health benefits. However, you should involve your doctor’s advice before doing so.
Ewe laali prevents dandruff
Aside promoting hair growth, ewe laali also prevents the growth of dandruff. This is where henna leaves beat most synthetic hair growth cream. When mixed in paraffin oil, and used to massage the scalp very well, the chemical compounds present in the leaves would kill every dandruff and other hair diseases. The leaves also prevent hair fall, but maintain strong and thick hair growth.
Promotes nail growth
Growing up in the village, we usually apply laali on our nails and leave for sometimes before washing off. This leaves our nails with orange color and promotes quicker growth. We usually marveled at the color change and long nail growth in few days. So if you are the type that love long nails, you should apply the leaf extract on your finger nails and allow to stay for an hour or so to assimilate into your nail roots.
Prevents diarrhea
In traditional medicines, the leaves and flowers of ewe laali were being used in the treatment of diarrhea. This may not be a surprise giving the strong antimicrobial activities of the plant. You can make a home alcoholic decoction of the leaves and flowers and keep for emergency.
Lawsonia inermis protects your central nervous system
The plant leaves also possess central nervous system depressant activity. This is useful for the treatment of epilepsies, convulsion and insomnia. The nerve-depressant activity is seen in the increased sleep hour of patients who take the leaf tea. It is also good for depression, as it relaxes the nerves and causes one to fall asleep quickly.
May boost your immunity
Ewe laali is fortified with numerous antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds, which confer strong immunity on your body. The plant also promotes the productions of white blood cells and immune regulatory bodies.
Ewe laali for healthy skin
Are you aware that laali doesn’t just beautifies your skin but also promotes healthy skin? Oh yea! The leaves of lawsonia inermis are indeed miracle leaves. When the plant oil is applied topically on the skin, it removes every bacterial or fungal infections, smoothen your skin and enhance your skin tone. The antioxidants in the plant promote youthful body and delay ageing of your skin. This is just wonderful, right? Sure! So next time you come across henna, try to gather some of its leaves and extract the oil from them.
Henna tea for kidney stone
Ewe laali also dissolves kidney stone when taken as tea. The leaves are boiled in water and a cup of the tea taken every morning tillthe stones are dissolved and removed from the body.
What are the side effects of ewe laali?
At a moderate consumption, henna does not cause noticeable side effects. This does not mean it may not cause. So, if you notice any allergic reactions from your body, please stop taking it, and consult your doctor immediately. Some of the allergic reactions of henna on the skin include:
- Redness.
- Blisters.
- Raised red weeping lesions.
- Loss of pigmentation.
- Increased sensitivity to sunlight.
- Permanent scarring
Conclusion
This article is for academic purposes and does not in anyway replace the service of your family doctor. Please do not make use herbal remedies without consulting your doctor. Currently, henna is only approved for use as a hair dye in the USA, it is yet to be approved for medical purposes. This website cannot be held liable for any misuse of the pieces of information written here.
References
Majid Balaei-Kahnamoei, Mina Saeedi, Arezoo Rastegari, Mohammad Reza Shams Ardekani, Tahmineh Akbarzadeh, Mahnaz Khanavi, “Phytochemical Analysis and Evaluation of Biological Activity of Lawsonia inermis Seeds Related to Alzheimer’s Disease”, Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, vol. 2021, Article ID 5965061, 10 pages, 2021.
Hassan S.W.,Abubakar M.G.,Umar R.A.,Yakubu A.S.,Maishanu H.M.and Ayeni G.(2011).Pharmacological and toxicological properties of leaf extracts of Kingeli Africana(bignoniaceae). J.Pharmacol.Toxicol.,6;124-132.
Sharma Y. , Jeyablan G. , Singh R. and Semwal A. (2013). Current aspect of wound healing agents from medicinal plants: a review. J. of Med. Plants Studies, 1:3 Pp: 1-11.
