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SECRETS IN THE AMAZON By Heather Anderson In 1996, a team of scientists at the Texas Christian University found that amargo water extract fought HIV infected cells. Several years before that, in 1978, another study discovered that sap extracts stopped the growth of leukemia in mice. Testing done in 1991 demonstrated amargo's effectiveness against head lice, confirming previous research. Most recently, it has been proven that wood extracts are also effective against ulcers in mice. Amargo has many other common names including bitterash, Jamaica bark, kwassi, Surinam wood and bitterwood. It is a short plant, only 2 - 6 meters tall that has red flowers and produces a fruit that, as it matures, turns black. Its leaves grow in sets of 3 - 7 on a stalk. Commonly found in Brazil, Peru, Venezuela, Surinam, Colombia, Argentina and Guyana, it is used similarly to quinine bark in these countries. It is the chemicals in the plant that are responsible for this healing quality. The chemical quassimarin has shown antileukemic and antitumorous properties in numerous studies. Simalikalactone D has been reported to have antimalarial, antiviral, and antitumor activity. Another chemical found in amargo, quassin is the most bitter natural substance found on earth. It has a bitterness rating of 40.000. Quassin is found in the bark and wood of amargo. Therefore, amargo is also used in the food industry for its flavor. It is on the FDA's GRAS list, which is considered safe. Currently, the studies concerning amargo as a possible HIV or leukemia treatment drug are only in the preliminary stages. After it is shown to have little or no side effects on animals, it must be turned in to a useable drug and then pass several years of testing before it can become widely used. Very few products make it this far, but there’s always a chance. The rain forest is home to thousands
of plants that may be able to cure many of the numerous diseases that
plague our earth. Fewer than 1% of all plants found in tropical rain
forests have been studied for their medical properties. Considering
that over half of the world's plants are found in the rain forests,
it's obvious that if we destroy these biological jewels, we are losing
the possibility for the millions of people who have a disease like AIDS,
to live a healthy life. But the rainforest is being destroyed at a rate
almost beyond belief. In the time it takes for you to brush your teeth,
one hundred and thirty-five acres of rainforest will be destroyed. That's
about the size of 1100 football fields! Everyday, 137 plants and animals
die out due to rainforest destruction. The natives who have lived in
the jungle for thousands of years know a lot about the plants in the
Amazon and their medicinal purposes. However, since the arrival of Europeans,
their numbers have declined from an estimated ten million to less that
200,000. This means that village shamans, or medicine men, die without
passing on what they know. Consequently, thousands of years of accumulated
knowledge have been lost. Just imagine what answers are slipping through
our fingers. Currently, amargo is utilized in at least ten countries around the world including Brazil, Peru, Surinam, Britain and the United States. It encourages appetite and is therefore prescribed for anorexia or digestive sluggishness. Amargo is taken for a wide array of problems with the stomach, from kidney stones to getting rid of worms and other intestinal parasites. It is employed as an insecticide, both in the garden and for skin parasites. In North America and Europe it is used in the same way as Picrasma excelsa, a plant with a similar chemical makeup, found slightly farther north, in the tropics of Jamaica, the Caribbean, the Lesser Antilles and northern Venezuela. In the Amazon, amargo is a successful treatment for malaria. A slave, named Kwasi, who noticed that it was effective against malaria, first discovered it in Surinam. After this it was given the scientific name quassia amara. Natives also used it as a mouthwash after the removal of a tooth and as a bath for measles. Through the knowledge of shamans, we may learn more of what the rainforest holds for us. There are other plants with qualities like amargo. Many plants have provided a basis for medications used today by people like you and I. In fact, twenty-five percent of western pharmaceuticals come from ingredients out of the rain forest. The rain forest's treasures will only continue to multiply, as the secrets within the Amazon are uncovered for the good of humankind. Unfortunately, the loss of both the rainforest and those who reside within it, the secrets of the Amazon may stay secrets, forever.
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