Papaya leaf juice can cure dengue:

Light at the end of the tunnel!

By Thulasi MUTTULINGAM

With fear running high over the dengue epidemic along with the medical profession's current 'no specific treatment and no vaccine' for dengue status quo, a ray of hope is being offered by one doctor.

"I was first motivated to do some research on this because of my wife. She is a doctor in a general hospital and would often come home in despair over the dengue patients asking, 'Is there nothing that we can do for them,' "says Dr. Sanath Hettige.

"So I turned to the internet and came across an e-mail which recommends the use of papaya leaf juice.

"When a labourer working on my land contracted dengue soon after, I tested it on him with his permission. I found the result 'amazing' so I decided to test it on other patients, as well.

I gave the papaya leaf juice to 24 patients in 2006, all of whom had recovered. I published this study in the Sri Lanka Family Physicians journal of 2008."

According to Dr. Hettige, the study is now in its third phase. The first phase was an observational study. In the second phase it was given to a larger number of patients. The third is a 'trial' where doctors across the country, are giving it to patients. It will be completed in six months and thereafter Dr. Hettige plans to publish his study in an international journal.

Dr. Hettige has himself given the juice to over 70 patients, all of whom have recovered without any ill-effects within two days. It is important that the juice should be taken as soon as the condition is identified to be dengue without waiting for the disease to progress and damage the vital organs.

"Once the brain, kidneys or liver get affected, very little can be done about it. I have given the juice to five or six patients at the last stage only one or two of whom recovered fully. This is a very simple thing to do so I would advise all those who are in the initial stages of dengue take this juice as it doesn't hamper the other medications."

Dr. Hettige too gives the normal medication for his patients along with the juice, and says that what modern medicine has now to offer is just symptomatic treatment. "Nothing like the papaya leaf juice which has a miraculous effect on the body and enables the patient to recover within two days, " he said.

According to him the papaya leaves should be well washed and then crushed with a mortar and then squeezed by hand to extract the juice. It should be consumed a fresh and raw, without adding water, salt or sugar 10 -15 ml twice a day for adults and 5 -10 ml for children.

"As a father of two daughters, my pulse rate goes up whenever either of them gets fever. Everyone is afraid of dengue. I wanted to share my knowledge with the maximum number of people. "

He says he believes that the aborigines of Australia and the Rishis of India used it. It could probably be found in Ayurvedic literature but it had not been developed by them. He quoted the Ayurvedic Commissioner Ramani Gunawardena as having said that the reason was that no one goes to Ayurvedic doctors for dengue treatment.

Asked how the medical fraternity responded to his findings he says he has had the support from several doctors and the Independent Association of Medical Practitioners.

"Western doctors are rather reluctant to recognise the efficiency of herbal medicine. We offer pharmacology as a subject but not much notice is taken of it. This could be a turning point" he said.

"Generally what happens with big pharmaceutical companies is that when they come across knowledge like this is that they keep quiet and carry out extensive research. They would identify the active healing properties in the papaya leaf and extract it to make it into a capsule, and sell it in the market at a huge profit.

I could have done that too if I had waited a little longer but I gave in to the need of the hour. The important thing is that this medicine reach the patients who really need this now."

Dr. Hettige said he had applied for a patient as he intends to do advanced research on this "Yes, the knowledge existed before but I am the first to do a scientific study on it. I do not know if I will get the patent but it should not go to someone else outside the country," he said.

Secretary of the Independent Association of Medical Practitioners, Dr. Samaranayake calling Dr. Hettige's exercise as 'Light at the end of the tunnel,' said the juice seems to be effective. We have nothing else in western medicine today as a cure for dengue and so we welcome this study and its findings."

Dr. Goonesekara, consultant oncologist at Maharagama Hospital said the juice of papaya leaves could also be used to combat the ill effects of chemotherapy on cancer patients.He gives the juice to patients in his ward after they have had undergone chemotherapy.

The effects seem to be beneficial. I have decided to do a study myself on the effects of papaya leaf on cancer patients, Dr. Gunasekera said.