<Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This section needs more medical references for verification or relies too heavily on primary sources . Please review the contents of the section and add the appropriate references if you can . Unsourced or poorly sourced material may be challenged and removed . (May 2016) </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Ul> <Li> Antiflatulent: In the Jammu region of India, asafoetida is used as a medicine for flatulence and constipation by 60% of locals . </Li> <Li> A digestion aid: In Thailand and India, it is used to aid digestion and is smeared on the abdomen in an alcohol or water tincture known as mahahing . Asafoetida in this form was evidently used in western medicine as a topical treatment for abdominal injuries during the 18th and 19th centuries; although when it came into use in the West and how long it remained in use is uncertain . One notable case in which it was used is that of Canadian Coureur des bois Alexis St. Martin, who in 1822 suffered a severe abdominal injury from an accidental shooting that perforated his right lung and stomach and shattered several ribs . St Martin was treated by American army surgeon William Beaumont, who subsequently used St Martin as the subject of a pioneering series of experiments in gastric physiology . When St Martin's wounds had healed, there remained an open fistula into his stomach that enabled Beaumont to insert various types of food directly into St Martin's stomach and record the results . In his account of his treatment of and later experiments on St Martin, Beaumont recorded that he treated the suppurating chest wound with a combination of wine mixed with diluted muriatic acid and 30 - 40 drops of tincture of asafoetida applied three times a day, and that this appeared to have the desired effect, helping the wound to heal . </Li> <Li> Remedy for asthma and bronchitis: It is also said to be helpful in cases of asthma and bronchitis . A folk tradition remedy for children's colds: it is mixed into a pungent - smelling paste and hung in a bag around the afflicted child's neck . </Li> <Li> An antimicrobial: Asafoetida has a broad range of uses in traditional medicine as an antimicrobial, with well documented uses for treating chronic bronchitis and whooping cough, as well as reducing flatulence . </Li> <Li> A contraceptive / abortifacient: Asafoetida was said to have contraceptive / abortifacient activity in the Renaissance and before . It is related to (and considered an inferior substitute for) the ancient Ferula species silphium . </Li> <Li> Antiepileptic: Asafoetida oleo - gum - resin has been reported to be antiepileptic in classical Unani, as well as ethnobotanical literature . </Li> <Li> Balancing the vata and kapha: In India according to the Ayurveda, asafoetida is considered to be one of the best spices for balancing the vata dosha . It mitigates vata and kapha, and relieves flatulence and colic pain . It is pungent in taste and at the end of digestion . It aggravates pitta, enhances appetite, taste, and digestion . It is easy to digest . </Li> </Ul> <Li> Antiflatulent: In the Jammu region of India, asafoetida is used as a medicine for flatulence and constipation by 60% of locals . </Li> <Li> A digestion aid: In Thailand and India, it is used to aid digestion and is smeared on the abdomen in an alcohol or water tincture known as mahahing . Asafoetida in this form was evidently used in western medicine as a topical treatment for abdominal injuries during the 18th and 19th centuries; although when it came into use in the West and how long it remained in use is uncertain . One notable case in which it was used is that of Canadian Coureur des bois Alexis St. Martin, who in 1822 suffered a severe abdominal injury from an accidental shooting that perforated his right lung and stomach and shattered several ribs . St Martin was treated by American army surgeon William Beaumont, who subsequently used St Martin as the subject of a pioneering series of experiments in gastric physiology . When St Martin's wounds had healed, there remained an open fistula into his stomach that enabled Beaumont to insert various types of food directly into St Martin's stomach and record the results . In his account of his treatment of and later experiments on St Martin, Beaumont recorded that he treated the suppurating chest wound with a combination of wine mixed with diluted muriatic acid and 30 - 40 drops of tincture of asafoetida applied three times a day, and that this appeared to have the desired effect, helping the wound to heal . </Li>

Where does the last name partida come from