It produces forskolin, an extract useful for pharmaceutical preparations and research in cell biology.

In the French Caribbean, it is called "doliprane" (from the brand name of a paracetamol-based drug) because of its uses as a painkiller in folk medicine.

[6][1] Although Coleus was previously sunk into Plectranthus, the original binomial was revived in a major study of the subtribe Plectranthinae in 2019.

[7] Vahl's name is illegitimate, because he treats it as a synonym of the earlier described Ocimum hadiense Forrsk.

It is native to Burundi, China South-Central, East Himalaya, Eritrea, Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Nepal, Oman, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda, Yemen and Zaïre.

[4] Herbal teas made from Coleus barbatus contain rosmarinic acid and also flavonoid glucuronides and diterpenoids.