Traditional and Integrative Medicine
Volume:4 Issue: 1, winter 2019

Ethnic foods, a distinctive part of a cultural group or nation, have recently attracted scientists' attention because of their potential health benefits. The city of Mohr in Fars province has an old record in history, dating back to periods of Achaemenids and Sasanids. To collect local data about ethnic foods and desserts of Mohr city, a questionnaire was designed and handed out to students of one high school. Thirty female students, familiar with the city culture and rituals, answered the questionnaire. The average age of respondents was 16.04 ± 0.84 years. The references were women in the families, mostly mothers. Thirteen desserts and fourteen types of food were extracted from questionnaires. Among local foods, Sorou, Sholak, Reshtakou, and Gevzeh were highly mentioned. Halva Khorma, Ranginak, Jollab, Kaster, and Dishou had higher numbers among Mohr ethnic desserts. Using local products like date, fish, and wheat as food ingredients was more common. Recording old recipes and eating behaviors of ethnic groups are of great importance. For the next step, health benefits of these dishes are suggested to be deeply studied in further research.

Vaginal infections are one of the most common reasons a woman visits a gynecologist. The increased resistance to conventional antibiotics is one of the main reasons for searching and developing new antimicrobial agents, especially those of natural origin. In traditional Persian medicine, the gall of Quercus infectoria has been claimed to eliminate vagina and cervix from excessive discharge. So, the aim of the present study was to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of ethanolic extract of Quercus infectoria gall as well as its active constituent, gallic acid, against some vaginal pathogens. In this study, the ethanolic extract of Quercus infectoria gall was obtained by maceration and standardized based on amount of gallic acid. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of this extract as well as its active compound, gallic acid, were determined against Candida spp., Gardnerella vaginalis, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus agalactiae, Trichomonas vaginalis and Lactobacillus acidophilus. The results demonstrated remarkable activity of ethanolic extract of Quercus infectoria gall against investigated pathogens with MIC and MBC in the range between 0.125 mg/ml and 16 mg/ml. The most inhibitory and bactericidal activity was observed on Streptococcus agalactiae and Staphylococcus aureus. The effects of gall dried ethanolic extract on Trichomonas vaginalis showed 100 % inhibition of the parasitic growth with concentration of 800 µg/ml after 24 h incubation. The antimicrobial and anti-trichomonas activity of extract was more than gallic acid. It seems that ethanolic extract of Quercus infectoria gall could inhibit the growth of vaginal pathogens. Further preclinical and clinical studies are required to confirm the efficacy of this natural extract in vaginitis.

Herbal medicine represents an alternative for treating dyslipidemia. It has been probed that aerial part of Eryngium heterophyllum, a species of medicinal plant that belongs to the family Apiaceae, reduces cholesterol by 27% in rats. On the other hand, Amphipterygium adstringens, a Mexican tree exerts a significant hypocholesterolemic effect on rats, lowering cholesterol levels by 31%. The aim of this project was to evaluate the PC-300 tea (Eryngium heterophyllum egelm + Amphipterygium adstringens) against hypertriglyceridemia. It was a non-randomized, descriptive, prospective, longitudinal, and comparative clinical study. Voluntary subjects were assigned sequentially into two treatment groups: 1) fibrate (bezafibrate) 200 mg/day, and 2) PC-300 tea, one cup half an hour before eating. Baseline samples of serum total cholesterol and triglycerides were obtained and measured again after 1 month of treatment. There were 17 patients (males: 6, females: 11) treated with the tea, with a mean age of 49 ± 15 years, and 17 patients (males: 8, females: 9) treated with bezafibrate, with a mean age of 44.7 ± 13 years. In the first group, the percentage of triglyceride reduction was 19.7% (p ≤ 0.05), while in the second group, this was 44.8% (p ≤ 0.001). We conclude that consumption of PC-300 reduces triglyceride levels an average of 20% after 1 month.

Persian medicine (PM) scholars have explained the structure and function of each organ based on clinical observations and past experiences. The liver is one of the three commanders in the body (brain, heart, liver) that manages nutrition and growth. This study was aimed to evaluate the anatomy and physiology of the Liver as presented in PM school and compare with conventional medicine. Relevant keywords were searched through PM reference books, Google scholar, PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus. After extracting the data, the results were classified in terms of concepts and categories. PM scholars believe that liver is one of the first organs created in the fetal period. In their view, the liver has a warm and wet temperament. In this manner the natural blood’s temperament is warm and wet and it arises from the temperance of the liver and its correct function. In conventional medicine, the Liver consists an operational unit called hepatic lobule and plays an important role in the metabolism of the nutrition’s and growth of tissues. Overview of fetal origin, structure and function of the liver between these two schools of medicine interpreted in many ways, revealed many similarities. Thus, we can utilize PM's point of view on the liver and its important functions in the body, especially in the field of disease prevention and treatment.

Dying of hairs is customary cosmetic proceeding in all communities since immemorial time. There might be various reasons for hair coloring but the practice is very much alive in the society irrespective of creed and gender. The persons who are aesthetically sensitive give color to their hairs as per their choice.
There are various synthetic substances which are being used for dying hairs in requisite tones and shades but the Paraphenylene diamine (PPD) is the usual ingredient, utilized in preparation of these dyes. Studies revealed that use of these hair dyes related to allergic and respiratory disorders and even cancer. Whereas, the classical Unani medicine suggest considerable number of substances with promising results and safety. In this paper an attempt is made to highlight the health risks of the synthetic dying agents and presents various natural substances which are claimed to be safe and effective for toning and coloring of hairs according to Unani medicine.

Infertility affects about 10-15% of couples in reproductive age, and puts a lot of economic burden on communities. Persian Medicine (PM) introduces perspectives on causes of infertility that can be useful in prevention and treatment of this common healthcare problem. Gastrointestinal problems are one of the causes of infertility based on PM literature. The purpose of this study was to collect evidence of gastrointestinal problems associated with infertility in conventional medicine, and ultimately compare the results with the viewpoints of PM. By reviewing literature on PM, we classified the digestive causes of infertility and then, by searching the keywords "infertility" and "gastrointestinal disorders" and symptoms such as, "dueodenal ulcer", "pepticulcer", "dyspepsia","fatty liver","maldigestion", "H. Pylori infection", "celiac", "inflammatory bowel disease", and "obesity" in databases of SCOPUS, PubMed, Web of Science. Based on the review of the literature on PM, gastrointestinal causes of infertility include digestive failure, liver weakness, and inappropriate eating habits. There is also a growing scientific evidence of this connection in modern medicine. Attention to the treatment of gastrointestinal disorders in patients with infertility can help to treat unknown causes of infertility.