Family • Cactaceae
Dilang-baka
DILA-DILA
Nopalea cochinellifera Linn.

Dila-dila is a shared common name by many different species of plants: (1) Onychium siliculosum: Buhok-virgin (Tag.); dila-dila (Tag) (2) Nopalea cochinellifera: Dila-dila (Ilk.); dilang baka (Tag.) (3) Elephantus scaber: Dila-dila (Tag.), kabkabron (Ilk.); prickly leaved elephant's food (Engl.) (4) Pseudoelephantopus spicatus: Dila-dila (Tag.); dilang-aso (Tag.) Kabkaron (Ilk.) Plus, close variations and use of "dila" for other plants further add to the confusion and difficulty in the list of common names: Dila-dilag (Spilanthes acmella); Dilang aso (P. spicatus); Dilang-baka (N. Cochinellifera); Dilang-boaia, dilang-halo (Aloe vera); Dilang-butiki (Dentella repens); Dilang-butiki (Hedyotis philippensis); Dilang-usa (Trichodesma zeylanicum); and Dildila (Cordyline roxyburghiana).

Other scientific names Common names
Cactus cochinellifera Linn.  Abakus (Bon.)
Opuntia cochinellifera Mill. Dapal (Bis.)
Cactus opuntia Blanco Dila-dila (Ilk.)
Opuntia ficus-indica Usteri Dilang-baka (Tag.)
  Nopal (Bik.)
  Palad (Bik.)

Botany
Fleshy, erect. branched, leafless plant, with joints that are thick, oblong-ovate, green, fleshy, compressed. 15-25 cm long, with scattered small cushion-like bodies that may bear small spines. Calyx is greem. fleshy, oblong-ovoid, 3-8 cm long. Corolla is red, about 2.5 cm long. Fruit is ovoid, about 3.5 cm long, fleshy and purplish.

Medicinal properties
Tonic, refreshing, antihelminthic

Distribution
Planted for ornamental purposes.

Parts used and preparation
Joints.

Uses
Folkloric
• Applied as poultices to relieve joint pains, erysipelas, earches and toothaches.
• In India, used for pain and inflammation.
• Used for menopause and hot flashes.
• In Tobago and Trinidad, used for scorpion and snake bites, hypertension and kidney problems.
• In Mexico, joints are applied as poultices for rheumatism, erysipelas, ophthalmia, earches and toothaches.
Others
• In Trinidad and Tobago, used in ethnoveterinary medicine for joint problems in horses.


Studies
• Diabetes: Studies have failed to find support for its traditional use in the treatment of diabetes. In one study, there was even an increase in baseline blood glucose levels. An oral glucose tolerance test showed the stems of NC increased blood glucose in mice.
• Reproductive: Studies show limited support for use in reproductive problems.

Availability
Ornamental cultivation.


Additional Sources and Suggested Readings
(1)
Ethnomedicines used in Trinidad and Tobago for reproductive problems / J Ethnobiol Ethnomedicine. 2007; 3: 13. / doi: 10.1186/1746-4269-3-13.
(2)
Comparative anti-hyperglycemic potentials of medicinal plants / doi:10.1016/j.jep.2005.08.067 / Journal of Ethnopharmacology
Volume 104, Issues 1-2, 8 March 2006, Pages 129-131
(3)


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