Skanjabeen

Skanjabeen is a delicious summertime drink - and a Unani Tibb medicine. It is cooling and refreshing, often used medicinally for patients with bilious imbalance where there is an excess of heat. It has also been used for weight loss, especially when drunk on an empty stomach in the morning as well as clearing and beautifying the skin.

There are over 50 types of Skanjabeen (1), with Sikanjbin Limun (lemon), tending to be the most often used one. It is therefore often referred to as Pakistani or Desi Lemonade.

Recipe:

Equal parts of honey (sometimes substituted for sugar, though traditionally honey was always used) and vinegar. It is then diluted with water. This is the base recipe.

You could translate Skanjabeen with oxymel however what makes it stand out in Unani Tibb is the different varieties created with the addition of different herbs to produce unique medical actions and effects.

Sikanjabin Bazuri (2)

• Liver and Spleen Purifier.
• Detersive
• Febrifuge for fevers emanating from disturbances in the liver and spleen.

Sikanjbin Sada (2)

• Febrifuge in bilious fevers
• Cholagogue
• Antiemetic

Sikanjbin Limun

• Curative for bilious fever
• Antiemetic
• Thirst quencher

Reference:

• Anju, Idris M. Shikanji or sikanjabeen - a unani pharmacopoeial dosage form. Int J Health Sci Res. 2020; 10(9):304-309.
• Said, Hakim Mohammed. Hamdard Pharmacopoeia of Eastern Medicine. Hamdard National Foundation Pakistan.

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