Editing Lac (resin) (section)

== Uses ==
[[File:Laksha - ලාක්ෂා - Lacquerware.jpg|thumb|right|''"Laksha"'' is a traditional form of lacquerware from Sri Lanka which is made from shellac derived from Lac.]]
The use of lac [[dye]] goes back to ancient times. It was used in ancient India and neighbouring areas as wood finish, skin cosmetic, lacquerware and dye for wool and silk.<ref name="ref38hodop" /><ref name="ref08bepip"/><ref name=FAO1995Ch5>{{cite book|last1=Green|first1=C. L.|title=Non-Wood Forest Products 4: Natural colourants and dyestuffs|date=1995|publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations|location=Rome|url=http://www.fao.org/docrep/v8879e/v8879e08.htm|access-date=3 July 2014|chapter=5: Insect Dyes|archive-date=12 August 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110812090550/http://www.fao.org//docrep/V8879E/V8879e08.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> In China, it is a traditional dye for leather goods. Lac for dye has been somewhat replaced by the emergence of synthetic dyes,<ref name=FAO1995Ch5 /> though it remains in use, and some juices, carbonated drinks, wine, jam, sauce, and candy are coloured using it.<ref name=Flinn2011>{{cite web|last=Flinn|first=Angel|title=Shellac & Food Glaze|url=http://gentleworld.org/shellac-food-glaze/|website=Gentle World|access-date=3 July 2014|date=15 Aug 2011}}</ref> It is still used as [[sealing wax]] by the [[India Post]]<ref name=indiapost1>[https://www.itokri.com/pages/the-art-of-sealing "The art of sealing."]</ref> but its use is being phased out.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Admin |title=Department of Post (DOP) Special Campaign 2.0 {{!}} Post Office (DOP) Decided to Discontinue the use of sealing wax and replace with recyclable seals |url=https://www.postalstudy.in/2022/10/department-of-post-dop-special-campaign.html |access-date=2023-08-23 |language=en }}</ref>

Lac is used in [[folk medicine]] as a [[hepatoprotective]] and [[anti-obesity medication|anti-obesity drug]]. <ref>{{Cite web|url=https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2024/03/metformin-weight-diabetes.html#:~:text=The%20finding%2C%20made%20jointly%20by%20researchers%20at,a%20new%20class%20of%20weight%20loss%20drugs.|title=Weight loss caused by common diabetes drug tied to "anti-hunger" molecule in study|access-date=2025-02-04|website=Standford medicine}}</ref> It is used in [[violin]] and other [[varnish]] and is soluble in [[ethanol|alcohol]]. This type of lac was used in the finishing of 18th-century fowling guns in the United States.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}}