Shakar Tighaal | Trehala Manna| Echinops, Globe Thistle Manna | شکر تیغال

Latin: Echinops pungens Trautv

English: Echinops, Globe Thistle Manna

Urdu: Shakar Tighaal

Hindi: Trehala Manna

Shakar Teeghal is the cocoon of an animal called Teeghal.

Larinus maculatus insect cocoon or gall is formed after the insect bites the plant. It is yellowish white and is from Craie flower species, and its shape is egg-shaped and its length is about 2 cm. After the insect creates a cocoon, like a silkworm cocoon, it is trapped inside.

In some cases, the life cycle of the worm is over and it turns into an insect, pierces the cocoon and exits. Therefore, most of these manna do not have insects inside them, but in some cases there are insects inside it. When this manna, which is the cocoon or pod of the insect, is fresh, it is a little sweet. But when it is old, its sweetness decreases a lot and it gets a starchy taste.

Temperament: Moderate and moist

Health Benefits

Trehala Manna was known since the time of Avicenna and has been prescribed as a very useful medicine for cough and respiratory system.

Trehala Manna relieves chest pain and irritation of the esophagus and is useful for coughing and smoothing the voice and relieving dryness of the throat and stomach.

In Persian traditional medicine, it is used not only for the treatment of fever and constipation but also for sore throat, influenza and some other viral and bacterial infections which seems to be related to its boosting effects on immune system.

It is a stomach tonic.

Harms: Overeating Trehala Manna cause confusion.

Dose: Up to 12 grams

Mannas are the sweet herbal secretions usually created by elements such as insect׳s activities on different parts of the plant. Different herbal mannas like Oak manna, Tamarisk manna, Gesengebin or Astragalus manna, Shirkhesht, Taranjebin or Al hagi manna, Bidkhesht or Willow manna, Atraphaxis manna and Shekar tighal have been used traditionally in Persian folk medicine (Takavar and Mohammadi, 2008). Although different therapeutic activities have been reported in the traditional Persian literature, little has been done to evaluate the therapeutic effects of mannas systematically. However, there are some preliminary reports about their monosaccharides content; the chemical structures of polymeric molecules of mannas are still unknown. One of the most interesting manna is Shekar tighal known also as Trehala manna, Echinops manna or insect manna

Trehala manna (Shekar tighal) is a cocoon-shaped manna produced by larval activity of Curculionidae family on some Echinops species.