Kapittha
कपित्थ
Limonia acidissima L.
Rutaceae · Limonia
Benefits & side effects
TRADITIONAL VIEW, WITH SAFETY LIMITS
Hindi name: Kaith
What the texts say Kapittha does
- Grahi — digestive that absorbs excess fluid and binds the stool
- Chhardighna — relieves vomiting
- Hikkanigrahana — relieves hiccups
- Deepana — kindles digestion (appetiser)
- Vishaghna — antidote (against poison)
What the evidence says. Traditional use is long recorded. Modern clinical evidence is limited.
Side effects and limits
- Constipation with the unripe fruit in quantity
Avoid or ask first: No absolute contraindication is documented here. This is written deliberately rather than left blank.
A traditional classification, not a recommendation. The full safety record is below.
Stands in 2 groups
- Purishavirajaniya — Correcting the colour of stool
- Chhardinigrahana — Arresting vomiting
A Samhita can only be read forwards, from the group to its members. This is the same list read backwards.
Photographs
Photo: Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Siddarth Machado · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Vijay Barve · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Matra and anupana
AS THE CLASSICAL TEXTS AND THE API PRESCRIBE
| Churna of the unripe fruit | 3–6 g |
| Swarasa | 10–20 ml |
| Anupana | Madhu · Takra |
| Kala | Adhobhakta |
The unripe fruit for the grahi action; the ripe fruit is a food.
Reported from Sharangadhara Samhita and the Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India. Laisha states what the texts prescribe; it does not recommend. No quantity here is adjusted for a particular person — not for agni, koshtha, bala, age, pregnancy, kidney or liver function, or anything already being taken.
Rasapanchaka
| Rasa | AmlaKashayaMadhura |
| Guna | Guru |
| Virya | Sheeta |
| Vipaka | Amla |
| Prabhava | Named in the texts for chhardi and for hikka, and it is one of the dravya of the Chhardinigrahana and Hikkanigrahana groups. |
| Doshakarma | Kaphavatahara in the ripe fruit; the unripe fruit is grahi and can increase vata. |
Amla, kashaya and madhura with sheeta virya and amla vipaka in the unripe fruit; the ripe fruit is madhura.
Karma and part used
These are the actions the classical texts record. They are statements about what the tradition holds, and this library does not restate them as findings about a human body.
| Upayukta anga | Phala (the fruit pulp) |
| Why it matters | The fruit pulp, unripe for the grahi action and ripe as a food. The two states are used differently and the texts distinguish them. |
Paryaya
Kapipriya, dear to monkeys, and Kapittha itself both name the monkey - the fruit's shell is hard enough that little else opens it.
Names, by language
| English | Wood apple |
| Hindi | Kaith |
| Kannada | Belada hannu |
| Tamil | Vila palam |
| Telugu | Velaga pandu |
| Malayalam | Vilangakka |
| Marathi | Kavath |
| Gujarati | Kothu |
| Bengali | Kathbel |
| Odia | Kaitha |
| Urdu | Kaith |
Classical references
Formulations it appears in
| Kapitthashtaka Churna | Named for the dravya. |
| Dadimashtaka Churna | An ingredient in some recensions. |
Adulterants and substitutes
Bael fruit is sold as kapittha and the two are confused by name in several markets, which matters because Bilva and Kapittha are used for overlapping but not identical indications. The shells are quite different: Kapittha is woody and grey, Bilva smooth and yellowing.
Identity
Limonia acidissima, also published as Feronia limonia and Feronia elephantum. All three names appear in the Indian literature for one tree.
A WAY TO REMEMBER IT
Limonia from the lemon, for the family. Acidissima, most acid. Kapittha is kapi, a monkey, and ttha, standing - the tree the monkeys sit in, and the only animal that reliably gets the fruit open.
What the tradition holds
Kapittha is named among the Chhardinigrahana and Hridya mahakashaya of the Charaka Samhita. That is what the tradition records and where.
What the evidence says
| Status | Traditional use is long recorded. Modern clinical evidence is limited. |
| Suggested | The dravya holds a pharmacopoeial monograph in India, which records an accepted identity and quality standard for the article. That is a standard for the material, not evidence of an effect in a body. |
| Not established | There is not enough good clinical evidence to establish an effect on any named health condition. Long traditional use is not a substitute for that evidence, and this library does not present it as one. |
| The honest gap | Published work on this dravya rarely records the origin or the standard of the material tested, so results cannot be attributed to a defined article. |
Safety
An ordinary edible fruit eaten across India, with no significant toxicity recorded. The unripe fruit is strongly astringent and in quantity is constipating. Anyone pregnant, on medication or managing a diagnosed condition should speak to a doctor or a qualified practitioner first.
| Side effects | Constipation with the unripe fruit in quantity |
| Contraindications | No absolute contraindication is documented here. This is written deliberately rather than left blank. |
| Interactions | No specific drug interaction is documented for this dravya. That is the honest state of the evidence, not a statement that none exists — most Ayurvedic dravya have never been studied for interaction with modern medicines at all. |
| Pregnancy and breastfeeding | An ordinary food fruit with no documented harm in pregnancy. The medicinal use of the unripe fruit has not been formally assessed. |
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What this is not
- This is a study and clinical reference for practitioners and students. The matra and anupana it records are what the classical texts and the Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India PRESCRIBE — Laisha reports them, it does not recommend them. They are not a prescription for any particular person, and they are not adjusted for your age, agni, koshtha, bala, pregnancy, kidney or liver function, or anything else you are already taking. Only a qualified practitioner who has examined you can do that.
- Traditional classification is recorded as what the classical texts say, with the text and the place in it named so it can be checked. It is not restated as a finding about a human body.
- Nothing here replaces a qualified Ayurvedic practitioner or a doctor.
Sources
https://api.gbif.org/v1/species/match?name=Limonia%20acidissima%20L.
https://pcimh.gov.in/
https://niimh.nic.in/ebooks/ebnighantu/
https://niimh.nic.in/ebooks/esharangadhara/