Asiatic pennywort or “Buabok” in Thai (Centella asiatica) was voted as “Herb of the Year” by the participants at the 8th National Conference on Thai Traditional Medicine, Thai Indigenous Medicine and Alternative Medicine in the 8th National Herbs Exposition held from August 31 to September 4, 2011 at the IMPACT Convention and Exhibition Center. This herb was selected because it is a common herb that is easy to find and cheap, but very useful in various aspects of health. Hence it has been included in the National List of Essential Medicine as a cream for external use and as capsules and tea bags for infusion for oral use. This review presents information from research reports on this herb, especially on its pharmacological activities that support therapeutic claims in order to further increase the use of herbal medicines made from this herb.

Key words: Asiatic pennywort, Centella asiatica, buabok, hydrocotyle