Ipecac known as Cephaelis ipecacuanha belonging to the family Rubiaceae is a medicinal plant which is useful for treating gastrointestinal disorders like amoebic dysentery and diarrhea.

Ipecac is known by the same name Ipecac in Hindi and English.

Ipecac is a small herb with slender roots. The herb spreads horizontally with small white flowers in bunches.

Ipecac is cultivated in India for its medicinal properties and the useful part of the plant is rhizome.

Ipecac medicinal properties

When coming to the medicinal properties of Ipecac, it is a good appetizer and has the properties like anti-amoebic. It has anti-cough property and works as an emetic too.

Ipecac works as a diaphoretic and produces sweat.

The phytochemicals which are present in ipecac are alkaloids with the main active ingredient as emetine.

Ipecac is used in the form of ipecac tincture, ipecac powder, ipecac decoction and mainly as ipecac syrup.

Ipecac medicinal benefits

Ipecac syrup is extracted from rhizome which contains the drug that can be used to treat amoebic dysentery,diarrhea with abdominal pain and tenesmus.

Ipecac syrup in large doses works as emetic to induce vomiting to bring relief from cough. It also brings sweating as it works as a diaphoretic.

As ipecac works as emetic, it can be used in case of poisoning. So ipecac syrup can be used for expelling orally ingested poisons.

  Amoebic Dysentery, cough, diarrhea, Emesis, Emetic, Gastrointestinal Disorders, Ipecac