Botanical name : Lactuca sativa Linn.
Family : Compositae
SANSKRIT SYNONYMS
Kaahuu, Salad.
AYURVEDIC PROPERTIES
Rasa : Madhura
Guna : Guru
Virya : Snighdha
PLANT NAME IN DIFFERENT LANGUAGES
English : Common Lettuce, Garden Lettuce.
Hindi : Kaahu
Malayalam : Lettuce, Muttakose.
Distribution : Cultivated throughout colder parts of India.
PLANT DESCRIPTION
An annual glabrous herb with a thin tap root and an erect stem 30–100 cm tall, branched in the upper part. Leaves are spirally arranged, forming a dense rosette or a head before bolting, oblong to transverse elliptic, orbicular to triangular, undivided to pinnatisect. The leaf margin is entire to setose dentate, often curly. Stem leaves are oblong elliptic, with a cordate base. The inflorescence (capitulum, head) is composed of 7–15 yellow ligules (florets). The heads form a corymbose, densely bracted panicle. Fruit (achene) is 6–8 mm, and its colour is white, cream, gray, brown or black.
MEDICINAL PROPERTIES
Plant pacifies vitiated vata, inflammations, general debility, cuts, burns, painful ulceration, vitamin deficiency, and is using as a vegetable in various parts of India.
Useful part : Whole plant
CHEMICAL CONTENTS
The leaves contain calcium, phosphorus, iron, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, carotine, iodine, fluorine. A. dietary allowance of 10 g of lettuce is adequate to meet the vitamin K requirement of the body. Aqueous extract of roots gave a guaiene- type sesquiterpene glycoside, lactoside C, along with known glycosides, lactoside A and macro-cliniside A.
Dosage - Root- 5-10 g paste. (CCRAS.)
Photo taken by : Dinesh Valke
Mainscreen >
K > KAHU
Future of Ayurveda - Malayalam
Properties 