BAY-LEAF
Salam is the name of the spice-producing trees the leaves are used in the cuisine of the Nusantara. In English, known as Indonesian bay-leaf or Indonesian laurel, while the scientific name is Syzygium polyanthum.
Salam has a lot of names are:
- Malay: ubar serai.
- Sundanese, Javanese and Madurese: Salam.
- Kangean: kastolam.
- Java: manting.
- Sumatra: meselengan.
Bay leaves are used mainly as a cooking spice fragrances in several countries in Southeast Asia, both for cooking meat, fish, vegetables, and rice. The leaves are mixed in one piece, dried or fresh, and also cooked up the food cooked. This spice gives a distinctive herbaceous aroma but not hard. In the market and in the kitchen, bay-leaf often paired with laos galangal alias.
The wood is reddish brown orange and medium quality. Timber belonging to the brown wooden (trade name) can be used as building materials and home furnishings. Salam bark contains tannin, often used as Ubar (for coloring and preserving) the mesh, material woven from bamboo and others. Bark and leaves used as traditional ingredients to cure stomach aches. Fruit edible salam people as well, although only the kids who loved it.
Usefulness of Traditional Medicine.
Traditionally, bay leaves used as an upset stomach. Bay leaves can also be used to stop excessive defecation. Laurel can also be used to overcome gout, stroke, high cholesterol, blood circulation, stomach ulcers, diarrhea, rashes, diabetes, and others.
The use of bay leaves as above caused by the abortion drug that is on a bay leaf contained approximately 0.17% of essential oils, with an important component kavikol eugenol and methyl (methyl chavicol) in it. Ethanol extract of leaves showed antifungal and antibacterial effect, whereas extracts metanolnya is anticacing, especially in the nematode Bursaphelenchus xylophilus kayupinus. Chemical content contained in these plants is essential oils, tannins, and flavonoids. Parts of trees that can be used as medicine are the leaves, bark, roots, and fruit.Bay leaf extract 3x250 mg/day showed a tendency to lower blood sugar levels fasting and 2 hours after meals, especially on blood sugar levels below 200 mg/dL, although the difference was not statistically significant..
