In several provinces, there is experience using soapberry to treat diseases in livestock. The method of preventing and combating avian influenza through soapberry fumigation has scientific backing.
Local residents often burn soapberry to help combat respiratory decline and difficulty breathing. The smoke from soapberry also helps to purify the environment.
Soapberry contains saponin, peroxidase enzymes, and several other active compounds that are effective against respiratory decline and difficulty breathing, which are the most severe clinical signs of acute pneumonia caused by the virus (avian influenza).
Soapberry: A Home Remedy for Influenza
According to Professor and Pharmacist Đỗ Tất Lợi, soapberry (scientific name: Gleditschia australis – Hems, belonging to the Fabaceae family) has long been used by the people to create herbal shampoo and medicine. Some hospitals have used soapberry to relieve constipation, aid post-surgery gas release, and treat intestinal obstruction. Soapberry powder has the effects of clearing the respiratory passages, reducing phlegm, disinfecting, inducing sneezing, and treating coughs, toothaches, children’s scalp diseases, chronic dysentery, and breast swelling in women.
The seeds of soapberry help relieve constipation and cure boils. Farmers often use soapberry to treat ailments in livestock. When cattle, chickens, or pigs die in large numbers, locals have continuously fumigated with soapberry for several days and nights by burning large piles of straw and occasionally tossing in a few soapberry fruits, allowing them to smolder and release smoke into the livestock pens. The animals inhale the smoke, which helps to prevent disease outbreaks.
Soapberry contains saponin, peroxidase enzymes, and several other active compounds. According to scientists, the traditional experiences of our people and modern research results show that soapberry and its active compounds have antibacterial and antiviral effects right at the entry points into the respiratory system.
The method of continuously and slowly burning soapberry allows saponin and other compounds to be vaporized and mixed into the smoke, spreading into the respiratory system, adhering to the mucous membranes, and exerting their effects against pathogens. Soapberry smoke helps to combat respiratory decline and difficulty breathing, which are the most severe clinical signs of acute pneumonia caused by viruses. The flavonoid groups found in soapberry contribute to protecting capillary walls, maintaining their integrity, and limiting bleeding…
According to Associate Professor Phạm Khắc Kiều and Dr. Bùi Thị Tho from the Pharmacology Department of Hanoi Agricultural University, soapberry and its active compounds are effective against respiratory decline and difficulty breathing – the most severe clinical signs of acute pneumonia caused by the H5N1 virus (avian influenza) leading to rapid death in poultry due to respiratory failure. Saponin present at the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract from the smoke of soapberry stimulates sensory nerve endings, thereby enhancing the respiratory center’s activity, improving breathing for the animals.
Moreover, saponin stimulates the glands in the respiratory mucosa to increase secretion, diluting phlegm, and encouraging animals to sneeze and clear their noses, making it easier to expel phlegm and clear the airways, facilitating better respiration. This is a cost-effective, simple method that can be implemented easily by both smallholder farmers and large farms. This method not only benefits the chickens but also contributes to a cleaner environment.
Professor and Doctor Vũ Hoan, Vice President of the Hanoi Union of Science and Technology Associations, stated that alongside vaccinating poultry against diseases and spraying disinfectants to clean the environment, localities should combine these efforts with soapberry fumigation to protect their poultry and purify the environment.
