Charcoal-Tree

MEDICINAL PROPERTIES
Charcoal-tree trees 6-10mts tall. Rapid growing tree, Bark greyish green with numerous lenticels. Wood light reddish grey, soft, excellent for making charcoal. Leaves 6-12x 3-6cm,ovate-lanceolate, serrate, acuminate, oblique and 3 nerved at the base. Flowers 5-6mm across, polygamous, greenih, in axillary cymes. Perianth calycine, 5 partite, minute in males. stamens 5, erect, ovary sessile, style central with 2 styles.Drupe ovoid, sub globose, tipped by the styles.
The Leaves and Bark of Charcoal-tree vata, pitta, epilepsy, diabetes, fever and infection.
The tree has various uses as an herbal medicine in a wide range of cultures. The leaves and the bark are used to treat coughs, sore throats, asthma,bronchitis, gonorrhea, diabetes, yellow fever, toothache, and as an antidote to general poisoning. A bark infusion is reportedly drunk to control dysentery and a leaf decoction is used to deworm dogs. In recent pharmacological studies, an aqueous extract from the bark has been shown to reduce blood sugar levels in an experimental animal model of diabetes mellitus, and may be useful for treating this disease. Extracts from leaves of related species (Trema guineense and Trema micrantha) showed anti-inflammatory, anti-arthritic and analgesic activity in rodents, suggesting that Aamattali could produce similar results.