Adas ( Fennel ) the Efficacious Herbs

Fennel or Adas is one of the nine herbs that are considered to have miracles in Anglo-Saxon. In Indonesia, it has grown as herbs and medicinal plants. This plant can live from lowlands to an altitude of 1800 meters above sea level, but it will grow better in the highlands. He came from southern Europe and Asia, and because of its benefits, it is later widely grown in Indonesia, India, Argentina, Europe, and Japan. The plant is long-lived, with a height of about 50 cm - 2 m, and grows in clumps. One clump usually consists of 3-5 stems.

The trunk is bluish green, grooved, segmented, perforated, which emits fragrance when bruised. The leaves are needle shaped tapered on the tip and base, flat edge, has a white sheath, webbed with the hat shaped top. The flowers composed as umbrella shaped floral compound with 6-40 peduncle, the length of the main peduncles 5-10 cm, the length of the flower peduncles 2-5 mm. The petals are yellow. The fruit is oval, ribbed, length of 6-10 mm, width 3-4 mm. The color of the fruit varies depending on the country of origin. The ripe fruit has a distinctive aromatic smell, taste relatively like camphor.

Fennel oil is produced by purifying the powdered ripe and dry fennel fruits. There are two kinds of fennel oil, sweet and bitter. Both are used in the pharmaceutical industry. Fennel is also used for seasoning, or used as an ingredient that improves the taste, scent and as medicinal herb. Usually, fennel is used in conjunction with pulosari (Alyxia stellata) bark. The leaves can be eaten as vegetable. Fennel plant is cultivated by its seed or by separating the young plant.

Some of the diseases that can be cured by fennel herb are abdominal pain (heartburn), flatulence, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, jaundice, loss of appetite, cough, asthma, menstrual pain, irregular menstruation, arthritic goat, insomnia, orchidophtosis, colic, inguinal hernia, gallstones, epididymis, hydrocele testis. It can be an antidote to plants, drugs, or fungi intoxication. Fennel herbs can also improve eyesight and add breast milk.

Parts of the fennel plant that can be used as medicine is the ripe fruits and leaves. The ripe fruit are collected, and then dried in the sun to dry.

Fennelfruits are useful to cure abdominal pain; heartburn, flatulence, full feeling in the stomach, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, Jaundice and lack of appetite, cough with phlegm and asthma, menstruation; menstrual pain and irregular menstruation, lack of breast milk, proteinuria, insomnia, orchidoptosis, inguinal hernia, epididymis, hydrocele testis, relieve pain caused by urinal stones and help destroy it, rheumatic gout, and plants, drugs, or fungi intoxication.

Fennel leaves useful to overcome cough, flatulence, colic, thirst, and are also useful in increasing vision.

How to use fennel as an alternative medication?  Boil 3-9 grams of fennel fruit then drink the boiled water. Alternatively, you can finely ground fennel fruit and brew with hot water to drink while warm. Fennel leaves can also be eaten as a vegetable or boiled then drink the boiled water. For external use, finely ground dried fennel fruit and used for local use on canker sores, toothache, earache and wounds. Fennel oil can also be used to rub the children’s body to keep them warm or to prevent them from cold.