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Euphorbia hirta
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Malpighiales
Family:	Euphorbiaceae
Genus:	Euphorbia
Species:	E. hirta
Binomial name
	Euphorbia hirta; L.
Synonyms
	Chamaesyce gemella (Lag.) Small ; Chamaesyce hirta (L.) Millsp. ; Chamaesyce karwinskyi (Boiss.) Millsp. ; Chamaesyce rosei Millsp. ; Desmonema hirta (L.) Raf. ; Euphorbia bancana Miq. ; Euphorbia capitata Lam. ; Euphorbia chrysochaeta W.Fitzg. ; Euphorbia gemella Lag. ; Euphorbia globulifera Kunth ; Euphorbia karwinskyi Boiss. ; Euphorbia nodiflora Steud. ; Euphorbia obliterata Jacq. ; Euphorbia pilulifera (L.) Thell. ; Euphorbia verticillata Vell. ;

Euphorbia hirta (sometimes called asthma-plant^[3]) is a pantropical weed, originating from the tropical regions of the Americas.^[4] It is a hairy herb that grows in open grasslands, roadsides and pathways. It is widely used in traditional herbal medicine across many cultures, particularly for asthma, skin ailments, and hypertension.^[5] It is also consumed in herbal tea form as folk medicine for fevers in the Philippines (where it is known as tawa-tawa), particularly for dengue fever and malaria.^[6]^[7]

Description

This erect or prostrate annual herb can grow up to 60 cm (24 in) long with a solid stem that is furnished with many yellow to reddish coarse hairs, and produces an abundant white latex.^[8] There are stipules present. The leaves have an oblique base and are simple, elliptical to slightly rhombic, hairy (on both upper and lower surfaces but particularly on the veins on the lower leaf surface), with a finely dentate margin, the veins upperside being deep-set and conspicuous on the underside, and the leaf surface somewhat leathery. Leaves occur in opposite pairs on the stem. The flowers are unisexual and found in axillary cymes at each leaf node, held as dense balls of flowers and fruit capsules usually close to the stem, the flower glands with tiny white/pinkish petal-like appendages. The fruit is a capsule with three valves (creating 3 sides), uniformly appressed hairy, containing tiny (0.7–0.9 mm), oblong, four-sided orange to pink or red seeds. It has a white or brown taproot. FNA