Despite its wide use for both domestic and industrial purposes; many people believe bamboo is under-utilized in Ghana.
Now scientists have found the giant grass plant and four others which are common in Ghana can cure malaria.
Findings on them are published in the journal Parasitology Research.
Other plants are phyllanthus, known in Akan as ‘’wo awo mma gu w’akyi’’, teak, cassia and another, also known in Akan as framire.
Various parts of the five plants have, for many years, been used in herbal preparations for medicinal purposes.
Bamboo has effectively been used over the years to treat typhoid and venereal diseases.
Phyllantus is used for treating anemia and pain associated with urination.
Cassia is known cure for asthma and toothache while teak is potent against diabetes, headache and piles.
Framire has successfully been used for treating rheumatism and muscular pains.
For the research, Scientists boiled 100 grams of each plant material in two litres of water for 30 minutes.
Dr. Gustav Komlaga of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology is one of the researchers and urged caution in the use of phyllantus and framire as they showed some level of toxicity.
Dr. Komlaga also suggests isolation of active substances to formulate anti-malarial drugs.
