It is a herbaceous shrub with creeping rhizomes. Their leaves are more or less upright and dark green with lighter shade of green at its margin. The petioles are relatively short and slightly flattened. The whole leaf can be more than 30 cm long and 13 cm wide. The clustered white to pink flowers are 6 to 30 cm long with sepals, petals, and stamens.
Kacip Fatimah has been used for centuries and is still commonly consumed by Malay women in Malaysia. In folk medicine L. pumila was thought to be useful for a number of applications, including labor induction and treating venereal disease and flatulence.
According to traditional practice, the whole part of the Kacip Fatimah herb will be boiled with other herbs for the wellbeing of women. It is traditionally used to maintain a healthy female reproductive system, to help tighten and lubricate, and to enhance sexual function.
Kacip Fatimah is rich in phytoestrogen and isoflavones, that may ease menopausal symptoms. . Other bioactive phytochemical contents are flavonoid (rutin, quercetin, kaempferol, myricetin), phenols (gallic acid, pyrogallol, caffeic acid), saponin, iron, benzoquinoid derivatives, alkenylresorcinols, triperpenoid and other antioxidative compounds consisting of β-carotene, vitamin C and anthocyanin. The plant also has been researched for use in making cosmeceutical products.
Kacip Fatimah
