Page 155 - EBOOK_Jamu: The Ancient Indonesian Art of Herbal Healing

distilled from the bark is used to boost the sex drive of men and women. It is

also good for fevers and vomiting. Unfortunately, Indonesia’s sandalwood is
becoming very scarce, and as the tree must be ten years old before it is felled,
this makes future supplies uncertain. The patmosari (the gigantic Rafflesia) has a
reputation as a powerful female aphrodisiac, but it is often drunk for purifying
the uterus after childbirth and getting the abdomen back in shape.
Even cosmetic and perfume ingredients like jasmine and patchouli have
medical properties. Both are known to lift depression and help cure frigidity or
impotence. The smell of ylang-ylang or kenanga (canangium odoratum) is
equally effective sexually because it encourages relaxation and is an excellent
tonic for the nervous system. Similarly, Asian belief and Western medical
opinion agree that cardamom acts like a magnet on the opposite sex, so perhaps

it is not coincidental that it is a popular ingredient in Indonesian cookery.
Shortage of raw materials is not the only factor that has changed traditional
cosmetics in recent years. As with international brands, modern marketing has
transformed Indonesia’s beauty business. Today, many cosmetic powders,
creams, eye shadows and lipsticks carry poetic names, such as Thousand
Flowers (face powder) or Sunset eyeshadow, to attract both Indonesian
customers and intrigue Western ones.

As cosmetic manufacturers combine modern, Western technology with
ancient Asian remedies, hopefully they will start to pay more attention to the
future of their raw materials. In 1997 alone, the Medicinal Plant Exporters’
Association reported that at least 100 species were destroyed by forest fires in
Sumatra and Kalimantan. The government recognizes this problem as linked
with the general attitude to the environment. In the early 1990s, it approached
Professor Koesnadi of Gadjah Mada University to draft Indonesia’s new
environmental laws, a project he willingly undertook. Its knock-on effect also
brings increased Western support for a country that has had, up to now,
inadequate environmental policies. To this end, everyone stands to gain.

Jamu and the Burgeoning Spa Industry
Until recently, Europe has been the traditional home of spas, from the original
Spa in Belgium to the historical Baden-Baden in Germany and Bath in UK.
These began as clinical centres aimed at curing all types of disease, from arthritis

to infertility. Today, the spa concept has shifted emphasis from curing to
prevention. We see, worldwide, the rapid growth of spas, ranging in style from
‘lean and mean’ Californian retreats, to luxurious Southeast Asian resort spas,
and quick and easy day spas.