Coffee Senna, Senna occidentalis, Mogdad coffee, Stephanie coffee

Coffee Senna scientifically known as Senna occidentalis is a smooth annual plant belonging to Fabaceae / Leguminosae (Pea family). The plant is native to the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Cayman Islands, Mexico, and other regions of the North American continent. Also in the South American subcontinent, it is indigenous to Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia, Paraguay, Peru, and other regions. It is invasive in parts of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. Apart from Coffee Senna, it is also known as septicweed, coffee senna, coffeeweed, Mogdad coffee, negro-coffee, senna coffee, Stephanie coffee, styptic weed, ant bush, arsenic bush, Nigerian senna, sicklepod, stinking pea, stinking weed, stinkweed, Bana chakunda, Fedegoso, Rubbish cassia, Foetid cassia, Kasunda, Bari kasondi, Ran-takda, Kasivda, Kasoda, Rankasvinda, Nattam takarai, Nattam takarai, Payaverai, Mattantakara, Thangedu, Kolthogache, Kalkashunda, Kasundri, Kasonji, Hant-thenga, Kasundri, Reng-an, and Kasondi.

 

Coffee senna got its name from the fact that the seeds it bears can be roasted and used as a substitute for coffee. It doesn’t have caffeine so it’s perfect for those who tend to experience palpitations, lightheadedness and other unfavorable symptoms upon ingesting the said substance. The scientific name Senna occidentalis comes from Arabic and Latin roots, with Senna meaning “these plants” and occidentalis meaning “western,” in reference to its origin. While closely related to Sicklepod, Coffee Senna does not respond the same to many of the herbicides used for Sicklepod control in row crop production, making it challenging to control.

Coffee Senna Facts

Plant Description

Coffee Senna is a low-growing, sparsely branching annual or short-lived perennial herb to a small shrub that normally grows about 0.8-1.5 m tall. The plant is found growing in roadsides, cane fields, coconut plantations, degraded pastures, grasslands, open fields, river banks or sand dunes, wilderness tracts, arable lands, waste places, lakeshores, and coastal sand flats. It is also found around urban areas, open fields, plantations, sand dunes, ditches, and seasonally wet depressions. The plant has robust primary roots with several laterals roots. Stems are reddish-purple, erect, 4-angled when young, becoming rounded with age.

Leaves

Leaves are lanceolate or ovate-lanceolate, bipinnately compound, and about 20 to 25 cm in length. Each pinna has four to seven pairs of leaflets, which are 3 to 9 cm in length, and 2 to 4 cm in width, and arranged oppositely. Leaflets are ovate or ovate-lanceolate in shape with a long, fine pointed tip and is green in color. The leaflets have an entire leaf margin. The leaf apex is acuminate and has fine hairs on the margins of the leaflets. A conspicuous, dark-colored gland occurs at the base of the petiole (leaf stalk) but not on the stalks of the leaflets. It is located about 0.3 to 0.5 cm from the base of the petiole. On crushing of the leaf, there is a fetid smell which is a characteristic of the herb.

Flower

The flower grows in the leaf axis. They have green sepals which is 6 to 9 cm long. There are 5 petals; which are yellow in color have distinct red veins and 1-2 cm long. Stamens of the flower are different in length and are 6 to 7 in number. The ovary of the flower is tomentose and is monocarpellary. The plant gives flowers throughout the year.

Fruit

Fertile flowers are followed by dry, dehiscent seed pods, 8 to 12 cm long and 7-10 mm wide. It is laterally compressed and transversely partitioned. Flowers are initially green turning to dark brown as they mature. The seeds are dark brown in color. They are 3.5-4.5 mm wide in size and oval in shape with a pointed end. The surface of the seed is smooth and is flat. The seeds can be roasted and made into a coffee-like drink.

History

The plant of coffee senna is native to the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Cayman Islands, Mexico, and other regions of the North American continent. Also in the South American subcontinent, it is indigenous to Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia, Paraguay, Peru, and other regions. It is introduced in various other countries like Egypt, Angola, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mali, Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, and various other countries.  This plant is spread widely throughout the continent of Asia. It can be found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Brunei, Hong Kong, India, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Nepal, Pakistan, and other regions. In the Indian subcontinent, Cassia occidentalis grows up to an altitude of 1500 m. It can be found in Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim, Lakshadweep, Andaman, and the Nicobar Islands and in Gujarat.

Health benefits of Coffee Senna

Listed below are some of the popular health benefits of using Coffee Senna

1. Relieves Acid Reflux

Everyone who suffers from acid reflux knows that a cup of coffee is a no-no because it’s a big trigger. If they already miss drinking coffee, they can always go for coffee senna. They may consume it, too, if they are being pestered by acid reflux because it is actually very good at neutralizing excess stomach acid.

2. Promotes good digestion

Cup of coffee senna may be taken after meals to facilitate proper digestion of food, thus keeping an upset stomach at bay. Consumption of coffee senna is also recommended for people who are prone to constipation.

3. Kills off Parasites

Perks of drinking coffee senna to the digestive system do not begin and end with controlling acid reflux and constipation. Individuals who are believed to have parasitic worms in the intestines can also benefit from the intake of coffee senna. It’s also known to put abdominal cramping and distention under control.

4. Deal With Anemia

Coffee senna supplies the body with iron, a mineral that’s necessitated for the production of red blood cells or RBCs. It’s for this reason that this invasive weed is regarded traditionally as a remedy for iron deficiency anemia.

5. Controls Inflammation

Traditional healers also used coffee senna for the management of various health issues that are inflammatory in nature. Since it has the ability to control inflammation in the body, it is commonly used for lowering a person’s risk of heart disease and cancer. Coffee senna is also known to be very good against joint pain and swelling.

6. Treats Many Skin Issues

Coffee senna may be turned into poultice, infusion, or paste that can be used for dealing with a host of skin problems. Some of them include rash, insect bites, acne, psoriasis, and eczema.

Traditional uses and benefits of Coffee Senna

• It is a traditional remedy for ailments such as typhoid, malaria, liver complaints, snake bites, and dog bite.
• It is also used to treat diabetes, pains, rheumatism, venereal diseases, fevers, hematuria, and convulsion.
• It is used in Ayurvedic traditional medicine in India, being the source of the drug Kasamarda.
• The whole plant is diuretic, febrifuge, stomachic, and tonic.
• It is used in the treatment of hypertension, biliousness, ringworm, and eczema.
• The plant is boiled and gargled to treat throat troubles.
• Externally, it is pounded and mixed with wood-ash and rubbed on areas of leishmaniasis and eczema.
• The root is cholagogue, emetic and purgative.
• An infusion is used in the treatment of bilious fever, ordinary fever, stomachache, and to ease menstruation.
• The tincture of the root is rubbed onto rheumatic areas.
• Tea made from roots and dried flowers is used as a treatment for colds and upset stomachs.
• The leaf is used as a remedy for renal calculi.
• Leaves are made into a tea for treating afterbirth problems, fevers, coughs and colds, headaches, hemorrhage, and thrush.
• An ointment prepared from the leaves is applied as a remedy for ringworm and other affections of the skin.
• Flowers are used in preparation to reduce stomach acid in children.
• The seed is febrifuge and sedative.
• An infusion is drunk to calm one’s nerves, and as a treatment for kidney problems, hemorrhage, worms, and cleaning womb and tubes.
• Extracts of the leaf and seed have shown antibiotic activity.
• Seeds are roasted, brewed, and served as a tea to treat hemorrhoids, gout, and diabetes in Jamaica.
• This plant is mainly used for the treatment of bone fractures and bone dislocation as an herbal treatment in India.
• It is used for the treatment of whooping cough, convulsions, heart disease, snakebite, asthma, fever, and the flu.
• All plant parts are said to have tonic, diuretic, stomachic, and febrifuge properties and are specially used for dropsy, rheumatism, fevers, and venereal diseases.
• An ointment prepared is also used to treat all kinds of skin diseases (e.g. ringworm, eczema).
• Roots are especially used as an anthelmintic and against malaria and hematuria.
• An infusion of the bark is applied as a remedy for diabetes.
• The leaves are used as a purgative and antiherpetic, and a poultice is administered against toothache in Indonesia and against headache in Malaysia.
• Seeds are used in the treatment of whooping cough, a disease of the heart.
• Paste prepared from leaves of the plant is taken in the dose of 1 gm. twice a day to treat colic pain.
• Bark infusion is useful in diabetes.
• The root of the plant is used in intermittent fevers, as a tonic and diuretic.
• The Indians use again the roots and seeds to treat dyspepsia and flatulence.
• Indians also use the leaves and seeds to treat hiccough.
• Decoction of the leaves, roots, and flowers is useful in relieving the flatulence of dyspeptic and nervous women.
• Roots are used to treat and fortify the liver in Peru and Brazil.
• Leaves are used in the treatment of hepatitis in some countries in Africa.
• An aqueous decoction of the leaves or the whole plant is used to treat jaundice and fever in Benin.
• Juice of the roots is anthelmintic and taken 6 teaspoons at bedtime and is also given for fever in Nepal.
• Seeds are brewed into a coffee-like beverage and given in cases of asthma while the flower infusion is used for bronchitis.
• Coffee senna is used in the treatment of sore throat, colds & flu, and asthma in Suriname.
• Leaves and seeds are considered expectorant and are used to treat cough, whooping cough, and bronchitis.
• African healers prescribe infusion of the leaves or boiled roots to treat their fevers, but the Congo healers warm leaves, macerate them in water and use this to bathe their patients.
• Malays used a decoction of the roots to treat this condition, especially those associated with bleeding.
• Leaves are used to treat gonorrhea and various urinary tract disorders.
• The Brazilians use the roots and the leaves to address menstrual problems.
• Mistico Indians of Nicaragua use the decoction of the whole plant to treat uterine pains and dysmenorrhea.
• Decoction of the roots is being used to ease delivery in Congo.
• Creole society used the root decoction and infusion for inflammation of the uterus and to induce abortion.
• Leaves whether fresh or dried have been found to be suitable for use in the treatment of skin disorders, fungal and parasitic skin diseases, and inflammatory skin conditions.
• Indians use the roots to treat fungal infections of the skin, the leaves to control pruritus, treat wounds and ulcers while the seeds for more sinister skin infections like leprosy and erysipelas.
• The Chinese use it to treat hypertension.
• Pounded fresh material is applied as a poultice for snakebites.
• Roots are used for gonorrhea, black-water fever, malaria, and dysentery.
• Decoction of roots used for fevers; seeds brewed for asthma in Peru.
• A poultice of leaves is used for skin irritation and eczema.
• A leaf infusion is used as a specific for black-water fever in Lagos.
• A poultice of leaves used for toothache in Dutch Indies.
• Infusion of leaves is used for yellow fever in French colonies of western Africa.
• A poultice of leaves used for headache in Malaya.
• Fresh leaves are used for constipation and malaria; also used as an enema for its abortive properties in African pharmacopeia
• In Nigeria, leaves are used for the treatment of measles: Dried root and leaves are milled and mixed with black soap and used to bathe twice daily.
• In Zambia, traditional healers used the roots for the treatment of gonorrhea.
• In African traditional medicine, it is used for the treatment of hypertension and associated cardiovascular diseases.
• In Andhra Pradesh, India, the leaf and stem is used for treating fractures and bone diseases.

Home Remedies using Coffee Senna

• Eczema and psoriatic patches: The seeds or leaves of coffee senna are crushed to make a paste and this paste is applied on the affected area of the skin. Regular application can result in relief from eczema and psoriatic patches.
• Allergic dermatitis patches: When the mixture of the root and seed of Coffee senna is mixed with gandhapashana and applied topically on the affected area there is a significant reduction and cure of allergic dermatitis patches.
• Ringworm and tinea infections: The seeds or leaves of coffee senna are crushed to make a paste and this paste is applied on the affected area of the skin. Regular application can result in relief from ringworm and tinea infections.
• Asthma: Fresh leaves of Coffee Senna are ground and made into a paste. The paste is filtered and the juice is extracted from them. Consuming 5 to 10ml of the juice has the ability to cure asthma.
• Indigestion: Consumption of Coffee senna cures indigestion and helps to stabilize the digestive system.
• Anorexia: Consumption of Coffee senna increases the appetite and thus increases the desire to intake food. Also helps to stabilize the digestive system.
• Colic pain: You should grind fresh leaves of Coffee Senna and make them into a paste and should consume it twice a day for three days to cure colic pain.
• Chickenpox: In water, the leaves of the following plants are taken, Coffee Senna, Neem, Khus khus grass, Sandalwood, Chamisa. The water is boiled and is filtered. One has to take bath in this water to cure chickenpox.
• Increase strength: When a drink containing the roasted seed of Cassia occidentalis is mixed with grounded coffee beans and orally administered it helps to increase the strength of the body.
• Antiperiodic Agent: The hot decoction of leaves of Kasaamrada when taken in every day can help from stopping the recurrence of any disease and thus functions as antiperiodic agent.
• Cold and cough: The roots and dried flowers of Coffee Senna are taken and tea is made out of them. Drinking, this tea can cure the common cold and cough.
• Upset stomach: The roots and dried flowers of Coffee Senna are taken and tea is made out of them. On drinking, this tea can cure upset stomach.
• Scorpion bite: The root is added to water and boiled. The liquid is cooled and filtered. The decoction of the root has the ability to cure scorpion bites.
• Body pain: One has to take bath with the fresh leaves of it added in boiled water for reducing body pain.
• Cough: Leaves of the plant are mixed with honey for alleviating cough.
• Asthma: Decoction of flowers in a dose of 20 ml 0nce or twice a day is useful in the treatment of asthma.
• Skin Infection: Paste of seed and leaves are applied over skin lesions, ulcers, ringworm, herpes, and infection.
• Filaria: Paste of the root mixed with cow ghee should be taken internally to treat filarial.
• Urinary Infection: Decoction of the plant is useful for the treatment of urinary retention, dysuria, and other inflammatory conditions.
• Piles: Dry the roots of the plant. Ground to make powder. Take in a dose of 5 grams. The seed powder is taken in a dose of 2 grams twice daily for a week.
• Snakebite: For snakebite 10 gm. root part is chewed three times a day for three days.

Culinary Uses

• Leaves, fruits, and flowers are consumed as a vegetable, to accompany rice or added to soups.
• Seeds are dried, roasted then ground into a powder and used as a coffee substitute.
• It is called Mogdad or Negro coffee.
• Immature seedpods are steamed and eaten as a vegetable.
• Flowers are steamed and eaten as a vegetable.
• In Indonesia, young leaves and fruits are eaten steamed as a vegetable.
• Young fruits are also said to be consumed raw as a side dish with rice.

Best practice management

Chemical control:

Coffee Senna is controlled easily by cultivation or with herbicides when in the seedling stage. In crops, pre-emergence herbicides give good control of germinating seeds. In pastures where there is a lot of bare ground, it is essential to establish a vigorous cover by reducing grazing pressure, topdressing where appropriate, and at the same time controlling emerging seedlings with herbicides.

Non-chemical control:

Pasture management:

In pastures, where Coffee Senna quickly invades bare and trampled areas, it is essential to maintain a vigorous pasture cover by reducing grazing pressure and top dressing with fertilizer where appropriate, while at the same time, controlling the actively growing weed with herbicides.

Precautions

• Seeds of S. occidentalis consist of compounds that damage the liver, vascular system, heart, and lungs of domestic livestock.
• Symptoms of poisoning include myopathy, muscle tremors, uncoordinated gait, tachycardia, dyspnea, diarrhea, and pulmonary emphysema which lead to the death of cattle, horses, goats, pigs, poultry, and rabbit.
• You should avoid the herb during the period of lactation as it has the ability to increase milk production. It is always safe to consult with a doctor before consumption.
• During pregnancy, Coffee Senna can interfere with the growth of the fetus and finally lead to miscarriage. So it is very dangerous to consume this herb during pregnancy.
• People with appendicitis, ulcerative colitis, and chronic diseases should be mindful of their use.

 

References

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