A Review of an Important Medicinal Plant: Alpinia galanga (L.) Willd

Middle class people who live in rural or urban areas often find it difficult to access modern health services, so they more often use traditional medicines obtained from herbal plants that grow around them. Alpinia galanga (Zingiberaceae), often referred to as galangal, is one type of herbal plant that is widely grown in Asia. Many developing countries cultivate this plant, including Indonesia. This plant has a variety of benefits, ranging from being used as a food flavoring, which creates a distinctive aroma in cooking. This plant can also be used as a treatment for various diseases. Although the galangal rhizome is the most widely used and studied part of the plant, the flower on the galangal plant can also provide additional benefits because these flowers have antimicrobial and antioxidant properties, although their chemical composition is different from parts of the galangal rhizome. This study, therefore, aimed to describe the traditional use of rhizome galangal, its phytochemistry, its phytoconstituents, and its future prospects for identifying effective therapeutic compounds.