Sudanese Senna, Cassia acutifolia, Del C. Senna L is a perennial 1-2 m height undershrub. The stem is erect, smooth, and pale green to light brown with long spreading ascending branches. Leaves are compound with four to six pairs of leaflets. The full grown leaflets are bluish-green to pale- green in color and emit a characteristic fetid smell when crushed. The flowers are small and yellow and axillary arranged racemes. The pods are broadly oblong about 5-8 cm long
and 2-3 cm broad, green in beginning and change to greenish-brown to dark brown on maturity. Each pod has 5 to 7 ovate, compressed, smooth, dark-brown seeds.
The two most widely exported and officially recognized species of seena are C. acutifolia and C. angustifolia.
Cassia senna; used as medicine, cosmetics, health hygiene and food supplements in improving the quality of life
Both Pods & leaves are used as natural laxative to treat constipation. They act on the large intestine to stimulate peristalsis (the muscular activity of the colon leading to elimination). It is known that several countries utilize the leaves of different indigenously available species for the same purpose. Senna also used as an expectorant, a wound dressing, an anti-dysenteric, and a carminative agent. It is useful in the treatment of gonorrhea, skin diseases, dyspepsia, fevers and hemorrhoids. The herb is used in the form of crude plant material or powder as oral infusion or extracts (liquid or solid). It is always advised to use the drug under the supervision of Physician, because the excess use of senna may have adverse effect leading to sudden and intense stomach pains and colic or abdominal pains.
