What pharmacological effects does agarwood and agarwood have?

In a natural forest, from 1,000 to 1,500 aquilaria trees, there is only one tree with agarwood, and from 10,000 to 20,000 trees with agarwood, there is only one tree with agarwood.

What are agarwood and agarwood?

Herbalist Phung Tuan Giang, Chairman of the international naturopathic organization in Vietnam, said that astragalus is a rare and precious wood found in nature. It is the wood containing a large amount of aromatic resin produced by the Aquilaria tree (of the genus Aquilaria).

The formation process of agarwood and agarwood is similar. It is believed that agarwood formation is due to the host plant's immune response due to wounding or infection. It can be the result of illness or injury.

Aphids must suffer strong impacts from nature or be injured by creatures, such as natural disasters causing cracks, broken branches, rotting or cutting off, ants and termites digging into tree trunks to make nests, fungal diseases. That wound Having to stagnate water through a rainy season, the tree begins to secrete resin around it as a self-protection and wound-healing mechanism.

The dark, variegated part is the part that contains agarwood on the tree. (Photo: MK).

The wood commonly known as agarwood includes agarwood and agarwood . There are also some people who believe that agarwood is made from a damaged Aquilaria tree, while Agarwood is an Aquilaria tree that accumulates resin and essential oils without being injured.

According to Dr. Giang, in China, agarwood is considered the best quality agarwood due to its high resin concentration and delicate aroma that can be easily smelled without burning, dozens of times more expensive than agarwood. normally. Ky nam is a soft, oily part of the wood due to its large essential oil content.

The essential oil of aloe vera is red in color, viscous and viscous like honey wax, and has a gentle and lasting natural fragrance. The wood part of the tree has the characteristic of sinking in water due to its high specific gravity.

The values ​​of agarwood and agarwood

Incense and perfumes produced from agarwood have been valued for centuries and used by many cultures for spiritual purposes. Agarwood is highly revered in the spiritual texts of Hinduism, Christianity, Buddhism and Islam.

The spiritual significance of agarwood has been emphasized in ancient texts as it is often referred to as the "spirit of life" and is used as a fragrant smoke to spiritually connect with heaven and as an offering during the process. worship the gods.

The use of agarwood has a long history of being associated with cultures where it is deeply ingrained in the cultural experience, such as the Middle East, India, China and Japan. Agarwood has always been considered one of the most prized for its use as a base for incense, perfumes, other aromatic products, and medical preparations.

The medical use of agarwood has been recorded in Greek, Roman, Chinese, Middle Eastern and European literature. The use of agarwood in Oriental medicine remedies at the same time has also been recorded. Traditional medicine uses it as a sedative, pain reliever, digestive aid, and natural qi releaser.

The demand and trade for agarwood continues to this day and with increasing wealth in consumer countries in recent decades, demand exceeds supply. This leads to increased prices, depletion of natural resources, reduced product quality, increased interest in farming and the development of plastic induction methods.

Chemical composition and pharmacological effects

Dr. Giang added that agarwood is considered the most valuable wood product used as perfume as well as medicine. The quality of agarwood plays an important role in determining its commercial value, especially agarwood is a high quality and rare type of Agarwood, so the value is very great.

To date, more than 250 compounds have been identified, mainly sesquiterpenoids, chromones and volatile aromatic compounds. The aroma of agarwood is a complex mixture of many volatile components, creating a unique fragrance.

Crude extracts and some isolated compounds have anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, anti-cancer, antioxidant, anti-ischemic, anti-bacterial, hepatoprotective, laxative properties and protect the nervous system. These are the pharmacological effects reported by a series of studies around the world, proving the effects of agarwood in traditional medicine.

Agarwood is used in a number of different ethnic communities, with the majority of its medicinal uses related to its anti-inflammatory and related actions . For example, it is used to treat rheumatism in Bangladesh and Indonesia.

"However, the majority of pharmacological research on agarwood is being conducted on crude extracts and is very limited on isolated compounds. Agarwood is considered safe based on tested doses However, the safety of burning agarwood smoke still needs more research ," Dr. Giang noted.

In China , it is used to treat diarrhea, dysentery, vomiting, anorexia, dental diseases, facial paralysis, tremors, sprains, fractures, rheumatism, cardiovascular disorders, coughs, and asthma. , leprosy, headaches, gout and arthritis. Japan, it has laxative and sedative effects.

In Korea , agarwood is used to treat coughs, croup, asthma, tonic, sedative, expectorant.