Istod

Useful properties and applications made of it

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Botanical characteristics of milkwort

The milkwort is a perennial dicotyledonous plant with unbranched erect stems 15-30 cm Leaves alternate, sessile, lanceolate, at the base of the visible form the rosette. Flowers zygomorphic, on short pedicels, blue, white, rarely reddish, with oval-elongated petals (5-7 mm), forming a brush on the tips of branches. Flowering period: may – June, fruits ripen in July-August. Fruit – obratnojajtsevidnye boxes, flattened laterally. Seeds glabrous or hairy, prisemyannikom.

Milkwort grows in almost all temperate and warm zones. The plant prefers moist soil and bright place. The milkwort can be found on roadsides, along river terraces and slopes, pastures, and even dry meadows.

The beneficial properties of milkwort

The milkwort is widely used in folk medicine despite the fact that there are a lot of bitter substances. For the preparation of drugs using the aerial part and roots. The leaves and flowers are cut during flowering, the roots are dug late. The grass is dried under a canopy or indoors with free access of air, store in a dry place.

In the roots and rhizomes contain saponins (up to 6 %), including amorphous mixture known as "senegin". The roots are also a lot of tannin and dyes, essential and fatty oils, poligalova acid. Found in the leaves of ascorbic acid and flavonoids. The plant has cholagogue, antidiabetic, expectorant, anti-sclerotic and healing effect. According to ancient Chinese teachings, his regular use contributes to longevity.

The use made of it

From the roots to prepare decoctions and infusions used as an expectorant in the treatment of bronchial asthma, pneumonia, chronic bronchitis, emphysema. They increase the secretion of the mucous membranes of the bronchi, leading to liquefaction of mucus. Decoctions of the roots are also good for cystitis. Infusions of herbs used for diarrhea, catarrh of the stomach and intestines, as well as for the appetite. They are able to increase lactation in lactating women.

Infusions of the leaves are soothing and beneficial effect upon the convulsions, they are useful for impotence and memory loss, as protivosudorozhnogo funds. In the form of poultices and protyani infusions of herbs is prescribed for boils and eczema.

A decoction of the root:8 g of dry chopped roots pour a glass of boiling water and boil on water bath for 20-30 minutes, then let stand, then strain and bring the resulting broth to the same level, giving him boiled water. Medication should 30 minutes before eating 4 times a day for 1 tablespoon.

Infusion of flowers and leaves: 1 teaspoon chopped herbs, is poured 400 ml of boiling water, insist 2 hours and filtered. Dosage: 10-15 minutes before meals taking 100 mg of infusion 4 times a day.

Tea from herbs: 2 teaspoons dried leaves and flowers pour 1/3 Cup of boiled water, bring to the boil and after 1-2 minutes strain. The tea you can drink one Cup 2-3 times a day, sweetening with honey.

The root of milkwort

In the harvesting of roots and rhizomes carefully dug from the earth and good clean (wash it!). Dried material outdoors in the shade, in a room with ventilation or in a dryer at a temperature of 45-50 °C. After drying, the roots are once again shaking up on a special sieve to completely remove the remains of the soil. Store the dried roots in cloth bags in a dry place, the shelf life of raw materials – up to three years. Harvesting the roots is carried out from August to September.

For a long time the roots istoda imported into Russia, but over time domestic botanists explored the local plant varieties and came to the conclusion that they also have excellent medicinal properties.

The milkwort Siberian

The Siberian milkwort grows in the steppe and forest-steppe zones of the South-East of the European part of Russia, Western and Eastern Siberia, the far East and the Caucasus. It is a small perennial plant has delicate, korotkoopushenny, more or less bushy stems. Upper leaves lanceolate, the lower – elliptic, pointed at the ends. Sepals green with whitish edges, Corolla blue or light purple. The plant blooms from late may to mid-June.

The roots of this species of milkwort contains saponins, tannins, salitsilovaya methyl alcohol, fatty oil, glycosides. Medicinal preparations from the roots are used in diseases of the lungs and bronchitis, when the mucous diarrhea, catarrh of the intestines and stomach. Good results are obtained when external use of infusions and decoctions for the treatment of boils, gargle in laryngitis.

Istod mortality

It is an evergreen shrub with a height of 1 meter. Itthin branches covered with dense foliage. The leaves are oval, in different shades of green. At the ends of short branches, the flowers are collected in small brush. The flowers are large, purple or bright purple, similar to a fluttering butterfly. This species blooms from may to September.

This South African plant needs plenty of light, we have grown in pots. The medicinal properties of this species have not been studied.

The fine-leaved milkwort

This kind of milkwort is found in the Primorye, Amur, Altai, in the southern regions of Eastern Siberia. It grows along river terraces, stony mountain slopes, in dry meadows. Plant height from 10 to 30 cm, it has many thin branching stems. Lower leaves lanceolate, the upper narrowly linear to filiform. The flowers are bluish or light purple, on drooping pedicels, collected in inflorescence sparse. Fruits – bilocular rounded boxes with dark-brown seeds.

Chinese traditional medicine recommends a decoction of the roots istoda fine-leaved with neuroses of the heart, vegetative dystonia, diabetes, hypertension and nephritis. In Tibetan medicine, the milkwort is used for inflammation of the kidneys and bladder, diseases of the stomach and intestines, swelling, lack of appetite. In complex charges, it is prescribed for sleep disorders, arteriosclerosis, anemia, nervous system disorders, vascular spasm.

The roots istoda fine-leaved differ anomalous wood structure. On cross-section clearly shows the absence of the full disk. Most often the wood is only 1/2 or 3/4 of the disc, the remaining space is filled with cortical parenchyma. The roots have no smell, they have a whitish fracture, taste sweet, irritating the throat.

The common milkwort

This species is distributed throughout the European part of Russia, in the Ukraine (Carpathians), more rarely in woodland. It grows in wet meadows, along rivers, forest edges, in bushes. Stems many, they are branched or simple, nearly glabrous. Plant height 15-30 cm Lower leaves are alternate, oval shaped, length 0.5–2 cm, upper oblong, sessile, acute. The flowers are five-petal, blue, rarely pinkish, collected in rare brush. Fruit – capsule. Flowering period – June-July, fruits ripen in July-August.

Decoctions and infusions made of ordinary contribute to liquefaction of sputum, have anti-inflammatory action and enhance the secretion of bronchial glands. Funds are assigned on the basis of the milkwort laryngitis, pneumonia, asthma and bronchitis. Positive therapeutic effect associated with the action of triterpene saponins.

Contraindications to the use made of it

Root istoda can irritate the gastrointestinal tract, so it is not recommendedpatients with peptic ulcer disease and gastritis. Possible individual intolerance to the drugs. Contraindicated treatment milkwort children under three years of age.