AJHM Summer 2015 65
Volume 108 Number 2
Abstract
: The Materia Medica Pura Project is an international endeavor to update our materia medica and repertories.
Thus far over 100 remedy monographs have been prepared and the final goal is to complete close to 600. remedy mono-
graphs. Excerpts from the
Asafoetida
monograph are presented which include a portion of a new genius of the remedy
and several cases from the old as well as modern homeopathic literature. One of the main themes of the remedy is within
outward, which applies to the reverse peristalsis and the pains in various parts of the body. Also, the remedy is character-
ized by fetid discharges and painful carious ulcers which are sensitive to touch. Finally, the remedy is characterized by
flatulent hysteria and wandering pains.
Keywords
: Materia Medica Pura Project, Asafoetida, reverse peristalsis, carious ulcers, flatulent hysteria
Timothy Fior, MD, André Saine, ND
Asafoetida: An Excerpt from the Materia
Medica Pura Project
Materia medica
Asafoetida
(Asaf.)
Stinkasand, Stinking gum, Devil’s dung.
Botanical Information
A
safoetida
, or
asafetida (
Ferula assa-foetida
)
is the
dried latex (gum oleoresin) exuded from the living un-
derground rhizome or tap root of several species of
Ferula
,
which is a perennial herb growing to 1 to 2 meters high
.
Ferula assafoetida
is in the family Umbelliferae, as the
flowers which are pale greenish yellow are produced in
large compound umbels
.
The species is native to the moun-
tains of Afghanistan, and is mainly cultivated in nearby
India
. Asafoetida
is a Latinized form of the Farsi/Persian
asa
, meaning, “resin”, and the Latin
foetidus
, which means
“smelling, fetid.” This refers to its strong sulfurous odor
.
Asafoetida
has a fetid smell, but in cooked dishes, it deliv-
ers a smooth flavor, reminiscent of leeks
.
All parts of the
plant have the distinctive fetid smell
.
1
In French it is known (among other names) as
merde du
diable
(devil’s feces).
In some dialects of English, too, it
was known as
devil’s dung.
It is also known as
asant
,
food
of the gods
,
giant fennel
, and
stinking gum
.
It was familiar in the early Mediterranean, having come by
land across Iran
.
Though it is generally forgotten now in
Europe, it is still widely used in India (commonly known
there as
hing
)
.
It was brought into Europe by a team
involved in a expedition for Alexander the Great, who,
after returning from a trip to northeastern Persia, thought
they had found a plant almost identical to the famed
silphium
of Cyrene in North Africa—though less tasty
.
Fortunately it could be substituted for
silphium
in cooking
because the true
silphium
of Cyrene became extinct, and
Asafoetida
became more popular amongst physicians, as
well as cooks.
The resin-like gum comes from the dried sap extracted
from the stem and roots and is used as a spice
.
The resin is
greyish-white when fresh but dries to a dark amber color
.
The
Asafoetida
resin is difficult to grate and was tradition-
ally crushed between stones or with a hammer
.
Today, the
most commonly available form is compounded
Asafoetida
,
a fine powder containing 30%
Asafoetida
resin, along with
rice flour and gum arabic.
Traditionally-ascribed Properties/Uses
Antiflatulent
:
Asafoetida
reduces the growth of indig-
enous microflora in the gut, reducing flatulence. In
the Jammu region of India,
Asafoetida
is used as a
medicine for flatulence and constipation by 60% of
locals.
A digestion aid
: In Thailand and India, it is used to aid
digestion and is smeared on the abdomen in an alco-
hol or water tincture known as
mahahing
.
Asafoetida
in this tincture form was evidently used in western
medicine as a topical treatment for abdominal inju-
ries during the 18th and 19th centuries.
Fighting influenza
:
Asafoetida
was used in 1918 to fight
the Spanish influenza pandemic. In 2009, researchers
reported that the roots of
Asafoetida
produce natural
antiviral drug compounds that demonstrated potency
against the H1N1 virus in vitro and concluded that
“sesquiterpene coumarins from
F. assa—foetida
may
serve as promising lead compounds for new drug
development against influenza A (H1N1) viral infec-
