Cannabis (Cannabis sativa) Containing Drug Formulations Mentioned in “Thalpathe piliyam”: A Review

Abstract

Introduction: Cannabis sativa is an herbaceous plant which is used as a remedy for many diseases in Traditional Medicine of Sri Lanka. Even though cannabis is the most illicit plant around the world, its medicinal properties are beneficial in numerous ways. The active ingredients of cannabis are Cannabinol, Cannabidiol, Tetrahydro cannabinol, Tetrahydro cannabivarin etc.
 Objectives: The aim of this study was to make an overview of the different formulae containing cannabis, their system wise indications, and preparatory methods and to analyze the amount of cannabis percentage in the formulations mentioned in “Thalpathe Piliyam”. And also to identify the social economic impact of cannabis to the community through this.
 Methodology: For this review all the twenty one “Thalpathe Piliyam” books were used and other necessary facts were obtained from published research articles in data bases such as Science direct, PubMed etc.
 Results: The results revealed that, majority of drug formulations, that is 49.23% acts on the Anna pachana Vyuhava (Gastro intestinal tract) and apart from that 40.77% acts on Naadi vyuhava (Nervous system), 7.69% on Raktha vyuhava (Circulatory system), 6.54% on Prajanana sansthaana (Reproductive system), 5.77% on Swasana sansthaana (Respiratory system) and 22.69% on other diseases by giving relief to diseases such as indigestion, vomiting, cancer, diabetes, piles, cough, diarrhea etc. Among the different preparatory methods of drug formulations which contain Cannabis as an ingredient, “Guli” (pills) was the most abundant formulation with a percentage of 48.07%. Other formulations such as Kalka (pastes), Kashaya (decocotion), Swarasa (fresh juice), Paththu (poultice) were also mentioned in the book. By analyzing the amount of Cannabis percentage, the highest amount of the drug preparations were in between the range of less than or equal to 5% while the least amount of drug preparations were in the range from more than 20%. This indicates that most preparations contain Cannabis less than 5% as an amount in them.
 Conclusion: Therefore it can be concluded that, “Thalpathe Piliyam” is a rich repository for the valuable traditional formulae which consist of multiple formulations which contains Cannabis and also very small amount of Cannabis amount can act very efficiently in curing diseases. Furthermore, its socio economic impact to the community can be also measured through it.