The 10 most common Aboriginal bush medicines
1. Tea tree oil
(Melaleuca alternifolia)
Bundjalung Aboriginal people from the coast of New South Wales
crushed tea-tree (or paper bark) leaves and applied the paste to wounds as well
as brewing it to a kind of tea for throat ailments. In the 1920s, scientific
experiments proved that the tea-tree oil's antiseptic potency was far stronger
than the commonly used antiseptic of the time. Since then, the oil has been
used to treat everything from fungal infections of the toenails to acne.
2. Eucalyptus oil
(Eucalyptus sp.)
Eucalyptus leaves can be infused for body pains and fevers and
chills. Today the oil is used commercially in mouthwash, throat lozenges and
cough suppressants.
3. Billy goat plum/Kakadu plum
(Terminalia ferdinandiana)
The world's richest source of Vitamin C is found in this native fruit
from the woodlands of the Northern Territory and Western Australia. The plum
has 50 times the Vitamin C of oranges, and was a major source of food for
tribes in the areas where it grows.
4. Desert mushrooms
(Pycnoporus sp.)
Some Aboriginal people suck on the bright orange desert mushroom to
cure a sore mouth or lips. It has been known to be a kind of natural teething
ring, and is also useful for babies with oral thrush.
5. Emu bush
(Eremophila sp.)
Concoctions of emu bush leaves were used by Northern Territory
Aboriginal tribes to wash sores and cuts; occasionally it was gargled. In the
last decade, leaves from the plant were found to have the same strength as some
established antibiotics. South Australian scientists want to use the plant for
sterilising implants, such as artificial hips.
