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Pito-pito

Pito-pito (literally, seven-seven) is a blend of seeds or leaves from seven traditional herbal medicinal plants, usually prepared as a decoction or a poultice and used in a wide variety of folkloric applications: headaches, fever, cough, colds, migraine, asthma, abdominal pains, diarrhea, etc. The ingredients vary according to availability and intended use. Seven (pito) is believed to be numerologically essential to the efficacy of the eventual formulation.

The traditional combination is seven leaves each of alagaw, banaba, bayabas, pandan, and mangga with half a teaspoon each of anis and cilantro, boiled for 30 minutes, strained and drained.

In the urban and suburban areas, it has become part of the alternative new-age menu as a herbal tea blend. Commercial tea preparations substitute one or two ingredients with other herbal medicinal components. Popular substitute in commercial herbal blends are gout-kola (takip-kohol, Centella asiatica). For local wild-crafted use,common substitutes are pineapple and kaimito leaves.

Variations are common in both contents and number. Albularyos readily suggest a substitute depending on seasonal scarcity or regional unavailability of some constituents. Recent combinations adding two more herbal ingredients are called "siyam-siyam."
 

Popular ingredients  
Common names Scientific names
Alagao leaves  Premna odorata Blanco 
Anise seeds  Pimpinella znisum 
Banaba leaves   Lagestroemia speciosa 
Coriander seeds  Coriandum sativum 
Guava leaves Psidium guajava 
Mango leaves  Mangifera indica 
Pandan leaves  Pandanus amaryllifolius 
Check out the individual herbal plant for botanical information, folkloric medicinal uses and related scientific studies.

Availability
- Wild-crafted.
- Commercially, as tea blends.

Updated April 2020 /October 2014

Photos © Godofredo Stuart / StuartXchange

Link to individual herbs
(1) Banaba (2) Alagaw (3) Haras (4) Bayabas (5) Manga (6) Pandan (7) Kulantro

                                                                          DOI
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                                                            List of Understudied Philippine Medicinal Plants

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