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The bird highlander (Polygonum aviculare) is a herbaceous annual plant that grows to a height of eighty centimeters. People also call it bird buckwheat, knotweed, murava grass, goose grass.
This is a medicinal plant that is fodder for birds. Young people can be successfully eaten in soups, salads, in the form of mashed potatoes. In Dagestan, knotweed is used for filling pies.
If the soil is well fertilized, the mountaineer grows so violently that a continuous carpet is formed - a real grass-murava. At the same time, other plants are completely suppressed. Dyes can be obtained from the herb of the plant, for example, blue is made from the roots.
Highlander grows everywhere. on rural streets, in courtyards, in parks, gardens, on playgrounds, in young plantings, along roadsides, along river banks.
For medicinal use, the grass is harvested during the flowering period, which should be cut with a knife. Raw materials are dried, spread out in a thin layer in the shade, in attics and shelves. Store in paper and canvas bags for no more than three years.
Knotweed can be used both independently and as part of fees.
The preparations of the plant show blood-purifying, anti-inflammatory, diuretic, diaphoretic, analgesic, tonic, antipyretic and wound-healing properties.
Knotweed preparations can dissolve and remove stones from the kidneys and gallbladder, expel sand, and normalize metabolic processes in the body. When taking them, caution should be exercised, increasing the dose progressively, and the course of treatment itself should begin with very small doses.
The infusion of the plant shows good therapeutic results even with jaundice against the background of gallstone disease. Knotweed is used internally for diseases of the bladder, kidneys and renal edema.
Highlander is also used for swelling of the legs, while compresses are made from fresh chopped grass or broth for the night.
The infusion of the plant is effective for gout, salt metabolism disorders, polyarthritis and obesity. It is prescribed as an antipyretic agent for bronchitis, pneumonia, pleurisy, bronchial asthma, cough, fever, pulmonary tuberculosis and whooping cough.
The agent is also used for rinsing with inflammation of the oral mucosa and with hoarseness. It is also consumed inside warm.
Knotweed has long been known as an effective hemostatic agent that can be successfully used for external, internal, uterine bleeding in the postpartum period, with heavy menstruation, bleeding after an abortion.
Alcohol tincture of knotweed is also actively used. The plant improves appetite for gastritis, has an astringent effect for diarrhea, gastrointestinal disorders and dysentery. Knotweed also helps with diabetes mellitus, diseases of the pancreas and liver, stomach ulcers and duodenal ulcers.
The broth can be used internally and used for douching with leucorrhoea, and externally it is effective for ulcers that do not heal for a long time, and in addition, for bruises, wounds, abscesses, tumors, burns and boils.
For the manufacture of lotions and washes, both infusion and decoction of this plant are suitable. Fresh grass is pushed and put on the affected areas, and the broth is good for baths and applications for skin diseases.
The plant tones up the nervous system, in this regard, it has found application as a strengthening agent after a serious illness, with nervous exhaustion, weakness, loss of strength, in old age, with neurasthenia, and also as an antispasmodic for headaches and rheumatic pains. The agent is also used to lower blood pressure.
A decoction of the herb is a good remedy for dandruff, and it also strengthens the hair. The people believe that knotweed has great power, which it gives to people, why since ancient times it has been advised to make barefoot jogs on a dewy grass-ant on a summer morning.
Classification
The plant has the following taxonometric classification:
- department: Flowering;
- class: Dicotyledonous;
- order: Clove;
- family: Buckwheat;
- genus: Peaches;
- species: Peppery mountaineer.
The genus Peacharium includes 66 species of annual and perennial herbaceous plants. The most common types of highlander:
- capitate;
- chinese;
- multi-leaved;
- sorrel;
- multi-headed;
- virginia;
- dyeing;
- senegalese;
- point;
- pennsylvania;
- oriental;
- small;
- long-bristled.
For medicinal purposes, amphibian and chinchillas are also used. They have healing properties similar to water peppers.
Medicinal properties of peppermint
Even the ancient Greeks and Romans noticed healing properties
herbs of this plant and used them as an astringent, antimalarial and hemostatic agent.
In modern medicine, water pepper is used - in the form of an infusion and liquid extract, also as a hemostatic agent for hemorrhoids and uterine bleeding, with uterine fibroids, chronic endometritis and heavy menstruation.
In folk medicine and homeopathy, the range of uses of this herb is much wider. It is used in diseases of the thyroid gland, as an astringent, hemostatic, analgesic, wound healing agent, as well as in skin diseases and liver diseases, urolithiasis, edema, gastric ulcer, eczema, bronchial asthma.
These medicinal properties are attributed to the rich chemical composition of the plant. Knotweed herb contains flavonoids (biologically active substances) - hyperoside, quercitrin, quercetin, kaempferol, rutin, rhamnazine, isorhamnetin, as well as tannins, vitamins A, D, E, K, ascorbic acid, organic acids - formic, acetic, and also glycoside polytopinerine.
Galenic preparations (medicines obtained from plant materials by extraction (extraction) are tinctures (alcoholic or aqueous-alcoholic extracts) or extracts) of peppermint have hemostatic properties.
The volatile essential oil of water pepper slightly lowers blood pressure. Herbal preparations of this plant also have some cardiotonic and diuretic properties and to some extent increase the tone of peripheral vessels.
On the basis of these properties, galenic preparations of Knotweed are actively used in obstetric and gynecological practice.
Also, infusions and extracts of the plant are prescribed for bleeding from small vessels and capillaries of the stomach, intestines, as well as for abundant hemorrhoidal bleeding.
Knotweed herb is sometimes used for diarrhea and enterocolitis in combination with other medicinal plants. In complex collections, this herb is prescribed for patients with chronic colitis, accompanied by erosive and ulcerative lesions of the mucous membrane, as well as in the treatment of hemorrhoids.
In official medicine, several dosage forms of water pepper are used. This is an extract of water pepper liquid, an infusion of herbs of water pepper, antihemorrhoid suppositories "Anestezol".
It is a transparent green-brown aromatic liquid with a bitter astringent taste. This extract is prescribed as a hemostatic agent - 30-40 drops three times a day.
To obtain it, two tablespoons of raw materials (20 g) are placed in an enamel dish, poured with a glass of hot boiled water (200 ml) and placed in a water bath for 15 minutes. Then it is cooled at room temperature for 45 minutes, filtered, and the remaining raw material is wrung out.
Apply the infusion as a hemostatic agent, one third of a glass three times a day before meals.
Knotweed herb is sold dried in pharmacies, packaged in packs of 50 g.
In places where water pepper grows in ecologically clean conditions - away from noisy roads and industrial plants - you can harvest it yourself. This is done at the beginning of flowering. It is advisable to dry the stocked grass quickly so that it does not darken.
Suppositories "Anestezol" - perform analgesic (analgesic), antiseptic (disinfecting), astringent (protective), drying, antihemorrhoidal functions.
For its preparation, one tablespoon of dry raw materials is poured with two glasses of boiling water. Insist 6-7 hours, then filter the liquid. Take one tablespoon three times a day.
In folk medicine, this infusion is taken half a glass three times a day for various bleeding, diarrhea, gastric ulcer, dropsy, flatulence, malaria.
Contraindications
Like many other herbal preparations, water pepper is not recommended for pregnancy and lactation.
E. Valentinov
Peppercorn, or water pepper (Polygonum hydropiper L.)
(gorchak, female frog grass)
Buckwheat family - Polygonaceae.
For medicinal purposes, the herb of the plant is used.
It grows in wet, swampy meadows, near the banks of rivers, ponds and ditches, often in continuous thickets. It is widely distributed almost throughout the territory of Russia (except for the Crimea), as well as in Europe, North Africa and America.
Highlander pepper is found everywhere in Ukraine, in the steppe regions - mainly along the river valleys. Raw materials reserves are large. Industrial blanks are produced in Vinnitsa, Volyn, Ivano-Frankivsk, Odessa, Chernigov, Kherson, Khmelnitsky regions.
It grows everywhere, with the exception of the Far North, along the swampy banks of rivers, lakes, ponds, wetlands, damp meadows and groves. It is often found as a weed in settlements, in damp ditches.
Knotweed is an annual herb. Its stem is erect, branched, often, especially towards autumn, reddish, up to 70 cm high.Leaves are shiny, often with glandular dots or black, tarry spots, oblong-lanceolate in shape, narrowed to both edges, sharp or obtuse, 3-6 cm long, wavy at the edges, almost glabrous funnels, with short cilia at the edge.
Freshly picked leaves always taste bitter-burning, like pepper (hence the name: water pepper, peppermint); after drying, this pungency disappears. The flowers are small, pinkish or greenish-pink, gathered at the top of the stem and branches in long drooping, interrupted spike-shaped inflorescences.
Fruits are brown nuts, matte, triangular in shape, point-rough, strongly convex on one side. Blooms from late June to September. The herb of the plant (flowering branches, at a height of 10-15 cm from the ground) is harvested during flowering (June - July).
The grass of the mountaineer is harvested at the end of summer during flowering, the whole plant is cut off at a height of 10 cm or mowed with a scythe. Dried in the open air under a canopy or in dryers at a temperature of 30-40 ° C. Air drying is done quickly, spreading in a thin layer and turning frequently, as the grass begins to turn black during slow drying.
Ready-to-eat raw materials are green, leafy, with flowers and fruits stems of varying degrees of development, up to 45 cm long, without coarse lower parts. Rhizomes of the mountaineer are harvested immediately after flowering, before the first mowing of grasses.
The medicinal properties of the mountaineer have been known since ancient times. Traditional healers treated skin diseases with mountaineer preparations. The poultices were believed to have a softening effect, cleanse purulent wounds and soothe pain.
A sitz bath made from a decoction of mountaineer pepper was prescribed for those suffering from hemorrhoids. Baths stopped bleeding and eliminated the itching inherent in hemorrhoids.
As a hemostatic and analgesic agent, preparations from Knotweed were taken orally and for hemorrhoidal bleeding, as well as as a sedative for nervous diseases.
Description and habitats of the peppermint
Knotweed (water pepper) - Polygonum hydropiper L. Buckwheat family - Polygonaceae
Belongs to the buckwheat family. An annual herb with a knotty erect stem up to 60 cm high. The leaves are oblong-lanceolate, alternate, entire, long-pointed at the apex.
Small greenish-pink flowers are collected in long spike-shaped racemes. The whole plant has a characteristic bitter-peppery taste. Blooms in June – August. The fruit is a triangular caryopsis, ripens in August – September.
Spread
Widespread plant. It grows throughout our country in wet meadows, along the banks of rivers and lakes, like a weed.
Aboveground part of the plant.
The aerial part of the plant contains flavonoids, polygiperine glycoside, essential oil, etc.
In folk medicine, as a remedy for cleaning wounds and resolving hardenings. In the Middle Ages, Paracelsus used the water pepper herb externally as a pain reliever and irritant, replacing mustard plasters. In folk medicine, it is considered an anticancer plant.
The herb of water pepper has a strong hemostatic effect, it is used internally for uterine and hemorrhoidal bleeding. It is also used as an external agent in the form of baths, irrigations and ointments.
Highlander pepper is a good remedy for the destruction of pests of garden crops. It is prepared as follows: 1 kg of grass is poured with 2-3 liters of water, brought to a boil and insisted for several hours, covered with something warm. Then filter, add water to 10 l, mix and use for spraying plants.
Contraindications
The plant is slightly poisonous.
Preparation
For oral administration, 1 tablespoon of herbs is infused with 0.5 liters of boiling water - a daily dose.
Tags: herbalist, buckwheat, Highlander, water pepper
Knotweed (Polygonum hydropiper L.) is an annual herb of the buckwheat family (Polygonaceae), with an erect, usually reddish, branched stem 40-70 cm high.
Leaves with reddish mouths tightly covering the stem, alternate, lanceolate, pointed, with a narrow wedge-shaped base, short-ciliate and slightly wavy along the edge, the lower ones are short-petiolate, the upper ones are almost sessile.
The flowers are small, white, greenish or pink, sessile, collected in 1-3 in the axils of the bracts at the ends of the stems and form rare, intermittent racemes up to 10 cm long with a drooping apex. Fruits are dihedral, or almost triangular, black or dark brown, according to the description they look like nuts 2-3 mm long.
The habitat of the mountaineer is mainly a forest zone, but along the river valleys it enters the steppe and semi-desert zones. It grows in floodplains of rivers, in wetlands, along damp meadows, urems, swampy banks of rivers, oxbows, lakes, ponds, as well as along damp roads.
Description of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.): belongs to the family Pumpkin (Cucurbitaceae), is a herb with a long (up to 2 m) weak, creeping stem.
The leaves are large, alternate, rough, cordate, with 5 sharp uneven-toothed lobes. A plant with tendrils, with which it can grow on a support. Flowers are yellow, heterosexual.
The fruit is a multi-seeded, juicy, oblong, emerald green, pimpled pumpkin. The cucumber shares a common ancestor with the melon. Blooms from May to August. Fruiting from June to September.
Distribution: the homeland of cucumbers is East Asia. It is currently one of the most common vegetables and one of the main crops grown in fields, greenhouses and greenhouses.
The plant's name is Pepper Highlander because of the pungent taste of pepper. The first experiments on the use of this herb were undertaken at the beginning of the last century. One of the discoverers of the beneficial properties of the mountaineer was the Russian pharmacist Semyon Piotrovsky, his research was continued by the pharmacologist Nikolai Kravkov - it was through his efforts that this plant began to be used in traditional medicine.
In medicine, the aerial part is used, which is collected during flowering. The collected raw materials are dried in a dry, ventilated area, often turning over. When drying slowly, the grass turns black. It is better to dry in dryers at a temperature of 40-50 ° C.
Knotweed or water pepper is an annual herb with branched reddish stems, 30-60 cm tall, of the buckwheat family. The leaves are alternate oblong-lanceolate with reddish bell-shaped ends, often with a black spot at the base.
The roots of the mountaineer are thick, twisted twice in the form of the Latin letter S, reddish at the break, thin adventitious roots extend from it. The flowers are small, inconspicuous, pale pink, with a violet tinge, gathered at the top of the stems in a thin, spike-shaped, intermittent, drooping inflorescence 4-6 cm long.
In the literature there are indications that water pepper is a poisonous plant. In folk practice, this is not noted.
Knotweed grows everywhere, with the exception of the Far North, along the swampy banks of rivers, lakes, ponds, in wetlands, in damp meadows and groves. It is often found as a weed in settlements, in damp ditches.
The grass of the mountaineer is harvested at the end of summer during flowering, the entire plant is cut off at a height of 10 cm or mowed with a scythe. Dried in the open air under a canopy or in dryers at a temperature of 30-40 ° C. Air drying is done quickly, spreading in a thin layer and turning frequently, as the grass begins to turn black during slow drying.
The ready-to-eat grass of the mountaineer is green, leafy, with flowers and fruits, stems of varying degrees of development, up to 45 cm long, without coarse lower parts. Rhizomes of the mountaineer are harvested immediately after flowering, before the first mowing of grasses.
They are dug up with shovels, shaken off the ground, silt, washed in cold water, cleaned of small roots and leaf scales, cut into pieces of 10 cm, laid out in one layer on bedding. Dried in a warm, well-ventilated room, in attics with an iron roof, in ovens, in good weather in the air.
The shelf life of dried rhizomes is up to 3 years. They have astringent, anti-inflammatory, diuretic, analgesic, hemostatic, wound healing, sedative effect, improve the function of the stomach and intestines.
Knotweed is an annual plant. The stem is branched from the base, erect, the height is twenty to seventy centimeters.
The flowers of the plant are small, collected in intermittent, long, spike-shaped inflorescences, two or three in bunches at the tops of branches and stems. The perianth is greenish - pink or pink, densely covered with punctate glands, 4 - 5 - separate. The fruit is a nut.
The flowering period is July - October. Forest mustard can be found in ditches, wet forests, meadows, and along river banks.
In a mixture with other medicinal plants, Knotweed is used for diarrhea, enterocolitis. External use in the form of local baths for nodular goiter, eczema, hemorrhoids, for the treatment of gangrenous and purulent wounds.
For malaria, infusion of peppermint: one tablespoon, two glasses of boiling water - the daily rate.
In case of rectal prolapse: plant grass (no norm), pour water over, boil. Insist until cooling. To make baths in a warm infusion for fifteen to twenty minutes. Improvement occurs after two or three procedures.
** For stomach ulcers, gastritis: fifteen grams of chopped herbs, one glass of vodka or 40% alcohol. Insist in a dark place for two weeks. Consume ten drops three to four times a day.
** For hemorrhoidal and gastrointestinal bleeding, infusion of herbs: one tablespoon of raw materials, two glasses of boiling water. For hemorrhoids, boil the turnip in a large amount of water and apply the decoction in the form of sitz baths.
Description, chemical composition, medicinal properties
Application and medicinal recipes
Plant composition
Pepper herb (also called water pepper) is an annual herb that is widely used in both traditional and folk medicine. It is harvested during the flowering period.
Peppermint contains flavonoids, including isorhamnetin, quercetin, kaempferol. They have antispasmodic, hemostatic and anti-inflammatory effects. The plant also contains vitamins of groups K, C, in small amounts - D, E, A, macro- and microelements - bromine, lead, strontium, selenium, potassium, copper, manganese, magnesium, chromium, boron, iodine, silver, nickel , vanadium, iron, calcium, zinc, cobalt, aluminum.
Researchers have found that the plant is a source of acetic, valeric and formic acids, paracumaric and chlorogenic phenolic acids, aldehydes, sugars, tannins and astringents.
Due to its composition, the herb is used not only as a hemostatic agent. As one of its components, it is used in the treatment of peptic ulcers, hemorrhoids, pancreatitis, migraines, and chronic diarrhea.
In many regions of the northern hemisphere, where the climate reigns, the peppermint is found. A photo of it, viewed in advance, will allow you to distinguish this plant from others without errors. This grass can reach 80 cm in height, it has a branched stem, often having a reddish tint.
The leaves of the plant are elongated, smooth, transparent dots are visible on them. Flowers of forest mustard are nondescript and small, only a few millimeters in length. They are framed with a green or reddish corolla.
Procurement rules
You can collect the ground parts of the plant from the end of June to September. It is during this period that it blooms. It is necessary to dry both the stems and the flowers. To do this, the collected plants are laid out in a thin layer in the shade and often turned over. For industrial blanks, it is best to use special units.
To prepare raw materials at home, you can use attics and awnings for drying. It is spread in a small layer, the thickness of which should not exceed 5 cm, on paper or fabric. If you dry the grass in the sun, it will turn black.
Plant action
Knotweed (water pepper is one of the names of this herb) is used as a styptic. Tincture of this plant has an astringent and anti-inflammatory effect, it is also a diuretic.
In addition, water pepper is also known to be an analgesic, sedative, antimicrobial agent. In addition to the listed properties, it is also able to increase the secretion of the stomach and gonads.
Pepper also stimulates uterine contraction. True, this ability is much weaker than that of ergot. With profuse painful menstruation, it greatly eases the condition of a woman, its effect occurs quickly enough.
Scope of use
Not everyone knows that the use of water pepper is not limited only to the need to reduce uterine bleeding. The spectrum of its action is much wider. The herb is used for various bleeding, including stomach, intestinal, and menstrual bleeding.
If we talk about a decoction of this plant, then it has a bacteriostatic effect (stops the growth of microorganisms). It is used for various rashes, scrofula, malaria, difficulty urinating. Its analgesic properties are also widely used, for this it is enough to make a tea from it.
Knotweed is also used in combination with other plants. The description of the composition of the fees makes it possible to see what concentration of this herb is necessary to improve the patient's condition. So, in the complex it is used to treat diarrhea and enterocolitis.
Water pepper is often prescribed by doctors. As a rule, they recommend using ready-made pharmaceutical preparations. So, on sale you can find liquid extract in bottles and dried water pepper in packs of 100 grams.
The water pepper extract looks like a brown-green liquid with a strong odor. It tastes quite bitter, with an astringent effect. The extract is prescribed, as a rule, as a hemostatic agent, 30 (sometimes 40) drops, it must be taken three times a day.
There are also candles for hemorrhoids "Anastezol" on sale, which include peppermint. The use of this herb in such a preparation is due to its hemostatic effect.
If you wish, you can prepare an infusion of this herb yourself. It also has a hemostatic effect. It is made from two tablespoons of raw materials and 200 ml of boiled hot water. The resulting mixture must be infused for 15 minutes in a boiling water bath.
After that, the liquid is cooled for 45 minutes and filtered. The resulting thickening must be squeezed out. After all these procedures, the volume of the infusion must be brought to 200 ml by adding boiled water to it. Three times a day, 1/3 cup, prepared in this way, is taken water pepper.
In most cases, it is the ground part of the plant that is used. But for the treatment of impotence and low acidity of the stomach, traditional medicine advises using the roots.
Contraindications
Like many herbal medicines, the herb of knotweed may not be used by everyone. So, it is contraindicated in patients with thrombophlebitis because of its blood clotting action. Also, you should not drink funds based on it and those who have inflammation of the bladder or kidneys. Pregnancy, by the way, is also a contraindication.
It is worth considering that fresh grass can have a strong irritant effect on mucous membranes and skin. When dried, these properties are lost, so you can only use a pre-prepared plant.
When applying, it is important to strictly adhere to the dosage, because non-compliance is fraught with poisoning. Their first symptoms will be a decrease in temperature, diarrhea, general weakness, deterioration of cardiac activity.
Cosmetology
It is possible to use forest mustard not only as a medicinal hemostatic agent. If your hair is falling out, water pepper can help. Tincture, the instruction to which speaks of its stimulating properties, is able to improve vascular tone. You don't have to drink it to reduce hair loss. It must be applied as a mask.
To do this, it is necessary to mix the ready-made pharmacy extract of knotweed and an oil solution of vitamin E in equal quantities. The resulting mixture must be thoroughly rubbed into the scalp and left for 20 minutes.
If you do not want to use a commercially available pharmacy extract, you can prepare an alcohol tincture yourself. To do this, 25 g of dry grass is poured with 100 grams of alcohol or vodka. The mixture is infused in a dark place for two weeks. Remember to shake it periodically.
ethnoscience
In most cases, doctors prescribe highlander pepper only as a hemostatic agent. It is usually recommended by gynecologists for painful periods and the need to reduce uterine bleeding. And traditional medicine suggests using all the possibilities of this herb.
People generally adhere to traditional methods of treatment - taking an infusion or extract of this plant inside. But it can also be used to resorb tumors. For this purpose, compresses are made from the herb.
The plant also helps with hemorrhoidal itching. To alleviate the condition, it is necessary to do sitz baths with this herb. Prepare them as follows. 400 g of herbs are boiled for 15 minutes in two liters of water.
400 g of milk is boiled separately, the same amount of roll cut into small pieces is poured into it. The herb and milk infusions are mixed and the mixture is poured into a container that you can sit in. This procedure should take 15 minutes.
The opinions of folk and traditional medicine on the advisability of using an extract or tincture of water pepper inside coincide. Both doctors and healers recognize the excellent hemostatic properties of this plant.
You can prepare infusions of decoctions of the herb pepper knotweed according to the following recipes:
- Infusion of herbs. 1 table, a spoonful of chopped raw materials, pour 1 glass of water, heat over low heat or a water bath for 15 minutes, insist until cooled, drain. Take 1/3 cup 3-4 times daily before meals. Store in a cool place for no more than 2 days.
- Cold herb infusion. 1 table, a spoonful of chopped herbs in 1 glass of cold boiled water. Insist 4 hours, take 1 / 3-1 / 2 cup 2-3 times a day before meals.
- Decoction of herbs. 10 g of herbs for 1 cup of boiling water. Prepare in the usual way. Take in the same way as cold infusion.
Used parts of the plant: fruits, whips, seeds.
By the amount of accumulated liquid (97%) it surpasses all other vegetables.
The medicinal properties of cucumbers are due to the presence of biologically active substances in the plant.
Contraindications for use
Highlander has medicinal properties, is used in folk medicine as a hemostatic, wound healing agent. Collect the herb during flowering in mid-summer. Dry the plant in an oven or electric oven. In the sun, the leaves and stems darken and lose their beneficial properties.
Tinctures from the plant relieve inflammation, stop attacks of hemorrhoids, increase hemoglobin. The herb serves as a filler for pillows, strengthens sleep, restores the nervous system.
Highlander pepper is prescribed for:
- low blood clotting;
- thinning of the walls of capillaries, blood vessels, veins;
- bleeding, diseases of the female reproductive system;
- inflammation, cuts, skin burns.
Powdered leaves treat purulent ulcers, eczema, psoriasis. Rhizomes of the herb are taken in case of digestive system disorders, diarrhea, intestinal colic.
Dried knotweed is used in cooking for the preparation of hot sauces, sauce for meat, salad dressings and side dishes. Peduncles and seeds are used in the preservation of vegetables. Leaves give a spicy taste to marinades, soups. The stems are added to teas, compotes, jelly as a tonic and sedative.
Highlander is a productive honey plant; it is planted near apiaries. Green, yellow, gold, gray paints are made from grass.
The medicinal properties of the plant make it possible to use it for medicinal purposes. However, it is worth remembering that the herb is poisonous and should be used with caution.
We also did not know what this herb is called mountaineer pepper
, or water pepper
(Persicaria hydropiper)
and belongs to the Buckwheat family. In some publications you can find the Latin name for the mountaineer as (Polygonum hydropiper)
, i.e.
It is an annual herb with a height of 30 to 70 cm. It has an erect, branched stem, green at the beginning of the growing season and gradually reddening by the time of flowering. At the ends of the shoots, greenish-pink flowers are formed, collected in spike-shaped brushes.
The leaves are lanceolate, from 0.5 to 3 cm wide and from 3 to 10 cm long. You can meet the waterweed throughout our country - both in the European part and in the Far East. This plant loves to grow in damp places.
The leaves, stems, and seeds of Knotweed have a pungent peppery flavor.
Use the aerial part of the mountaineer pepper and crushed seeds as a hot seasoning for salads, soups, sauces. The aerial part (before the fruiting phase) and seeds are of interest for the canning industry.
As a medicinal plant, mountaineer pepper was known to the ancient Greeks and Romans as an astringent, antimalarial, hemostatic agent. In modern medicine, it is used for hemorrhoids and uterine bleeding, for fibroids of the uterus, chronic endometritis and heavy menstruation. Knotweed extract is a part of Anestezol antihemorrhoidal suppositories.
Peppermint use
In folk medicine, an aqueous decoction of mountaineer pepper is used as a hemostatic, for liver disease, for healing wounds, rinsing (Nikolaeva, 1964); wounds are poured with fresh grass juice (Cholovsky, 1882). Highlander pepper is used for menstruation to stop profuse bleeding.
In medical practice, preparations of Knotweed (extract) are used as a hemostatic agent for hemorrhoids and uterine bleeding (menorrhagia, dysmenorrhea).
An admixture can be peppery-like other types of mountaineer, which, when fresh, are easily distinguished by the absence of a sharp peppery taste, characteristic only of the mountaineer, and by the inflorescence, which in the mountaineer is thin, intermittent and drooping, and in other species one of these signs is absent.
1. A plant with a thin filamentous inflorescence ... ..2
A plant with a dense cylindrical inflorescence. ... ... 3
2. The perianth bears shiny yellow glands (magnifying glass). The bell mouth is ciliate along the edge, glabrous - Peppery Highlander - Polygonum hydropiper L.
The perianth without glands, the mouth along the edge is long-ciliate and covered with long hairs - Small Highlander - Polygonum minus Huds.
3. Perianth without glands, mouth with short, hard, appressed hairs, with long cilia along the edge. The flowers are usually pink. On the leaves there is usually a black-brown spot - Pochechuy Highlander - Polygonum persicaria L.
The perianth bears yellow glands. The mouth is glabrous with short cilia along the edge. The leaves are pubescent or glabrous below, with well-visible yellow-brown shiny glands. The flowers are most often white - Scabrous Highlander - Polygonum scabrum Moench.
Application.
Pepper has long been used in folk medicine in the form of freshly squeezed juice for various diseases, suppurations, diarrhea, etc. In Bulgaria, it is used even for diarrhea, dysentery and kidney stones.
The pharmaceutical industry produces a liquid extract of water pepper, which is taken 30-40 drops 3-4 times a day. Water pepper is a part of antihemorrhoid suppositories - anesthesol.
At home, you can prepare an infusion or tea from the herb of water pepper 1:10 and take with uterine and hemorrhoidal bleeding a tablespoon 3-4 times a day (Sklyarevsky, 1970).
The extract of water pepper enhances the contractions of the muscles of the uterus, it is used during heavy and painful menstruation, after abortion, after childbirth, with gastric and intestinal bleeding (Turova, 1974), pulmonary bleeding, fibroids and chronic inflammatory processes in the uterus.
Sesquiterpene aldehyde was isolated from the leaves of water pepper, which in experiments on animals showed cytotoxic and antibiotic activity, which indicates the prospects for further study of this plant as a source of anticancer drugs.
In folk medicine, the plant is popular as a remedy for hemorrhoids. It is used as a diuretic, pain reliever, for bloody diarrhea, dropsy, urolithiasis, to strengthen the gums. The broth is used for stomach cancer. For hemorrhoids, sitz baths are done. For tumors and eczema, poultices are made (Minaeva, 1991).
Wounds are moistened with fresh grass juice (Ges, 1976).
In Ukraine, mountaineer pepper is used as a means to cleanse wounds and soften abscesses. Inside take for nervous diseases as a sedative. Fresh leaves are applied to the back of the head for headaches and a cold. Rinse the mouth with fresh juice for toothache (Popov, 1967).
Knotweed has a dicongestive effect on the pelvic organs and is therefore used as an adjuvant in prostatic hypertrophy. Rinse the mouth with juice during periodontal disease (Petkov, 1988).
In Karelia, a decoction of peppermint is taken as a wound-healing agent, as well as for skin diseases, liver diseases, kidney stones, stomach ulcers, tumors and bruises. A decoction of the roots is used for impotence, ginacid gastritis, and other diseases of the gastrointestinal tract (Schreter, 1975).
Knotweed is used for bloody urine, difficulty urinating, malaria, rashes, scrofula, rheumatism (Plant Resources, 1985).
Old wounds and ulcers are covered with powder from the herb of mountaineer and bedstraw in a ratio of 2: 1 (Nosal, 1960).
The herb infusion has an antiseptic and antibacterial effect (Altymyshev, 1976).
Preparations made from fresh herbs give better therapeutic results than from dry, prepared in advance (Kulikov, 1975).
Freshly ground water pepper cleanses the face of scars, destroys freckles and bruises, and resolves solid tumors (Avicenna).
In Khakassia, highlander is used for uterine fibroids and chronic endometritis (Plennyk, 1989).
In folk medicine, Knotweed was used for diseases of the thyroid gland, as an astringent, hemostatic, analgesic, wound-healing, for skin diseases, liver diseases, urolithiasis, edema, stomach ulcer, eczema, bronchial asthma.
From the mountaineer, you can get yellow, golden, golden green, gray and khaki colors.
Care should be taken to avoid overdose, as the plant has toxic properties.
Fresh leaves of Knotweed (crushed) replace the mustard plaster in folk medicine; they are applied, for example, to the back of the head with a cold or headache as a distraction; for the same purpose, they are used for toothache in the form of rinsing, diluting the juice from them in a ratio of 1: 10.
In 1912-1913, pharmacist Petrovsky, Professor Krakowsky and other researchers drew attention to the strong hemostatic property of this herb. So the mountaineer pepper was recognized by scientific medicine.
Now the plant has been introduced into the State Pharmacopoeia of Russia and the release of the drug from it, the so-called liquid extract of mountaineer, is allowed, in addition, the drug from this plant, anestezol, is included in antihemorrhoid suppositories.
Application methods. Broth: 12.0 - 200.0; one tablespoon three times a day.
Tincture: 25.0; on alcohol - 10 - 20 drops, on vodka - 30 - 40 drops, three to four times a day.
Extract: broth, condensed to half; consume one teaspoon three times a day.
Water pepper is used in folk medicine for uterine bleeding, during heavy and painful menstruation, after abortion, after childbirth. Water pepper extract enhances the contractions of the muscles of the uterus, but is inferior in activity to ergot.
It is also used for internal bleeding in patients with hemoptysis, bleeding from the bladder, with gastric and hemorrhoidal bleeding (for hemorrhoids, it is used internally and for sitting baths).
It is used as an external irritant. For headaches, freshly crushed grass is applied to the back of the head instead of a mustard plaster. The mountaineer crushed together with the seeds clears the face of scars, destroys freckles and old bruises, and the bandages from the mountaineer dissolve solid tumors.
Contraindications for use
The dried leaves of the plant are used in the treatment of gastritis, stomach and intestinal ulcers, Crohn's disease, inflammation of the mucous tissues. Decoctions of fresh herbs treat diseases of the lymphatic system, relieve asthma attacks, epilepsy.
Highlander has the following contraindications for use:
- individual intolerance;
- kidney inflammation;
- arterial hypertension;
- tendency to thrombus formation;
- chronic constipation;
- age up to 10 years.
In rare cases, nausea, dizziness, headache, hives, itching, and swelling may develop with water pepper treatment.
During pregnancy, taking medications based on water pepper is also contraindicated. The plant stimulates the contraction of the muscles of the uterus and increases its tone. This can lead to miscarriage and premature birth.
When breastfeeding, the use of water pepper is allowed, but only under the supervision of a doctor. Only a doctor can give competent instructions for taking the drug during lactation.
The plant preparations are used for uterine postpartum bleeding, after abortion, during heavy and painful menstruation, for bleeding due to uterine fibroids, inflammatory processes and hormonal dysfunctions, as well as for hemoptysis, bleeding from small vessels of the bladder, stomach, intestines, hemorrhoidal bleeding ...
In folk medicine, infusion of the herb of mountaineer pepper has been used for a long time as a hemostatic agent for various internal bleeding, diarrhea, dropsy, kidney stones and bladder.
Outwardly, the herb infusion is used as a pain reliever. The treatment of hemorrhoids with water pepper is especially popular. With this disease, along with taking an infusion or decoction, sit-down baths are made from the latter.
The herb of the pepper mountaineer has not only medicinal properties, but also contraindications. It is contraindicated to use the preparations of this plant for glomerulonephritis, as well as for inflammation of the kidneys and bladder.
Attention: pickled and pickled cucumbers do not have medicinal properties.
- In order to avoid dyspeptic symptoms after eating cucumbers, you can not drink cold, carbonated water and drinks, and people with a weak stomach - milk.
- They are not recommended for use in cases of hypertension, atherosclerosis, impaired water-salt metabolism, diseases of the liver, kidneys, cardiovascular system, gastrointestinal tract, with reduced thyroid function, as well as during pregnancy.
- Nursing mothers are advised to be careful about cucumbers, since many biologically active substances from their composition pass into breast milk and can cause diarrhea, rumbling and cramping abdominal pain in the baby. In these cases, it is necessary to give the child dill water.
- Cucumbers are contraindicated in acute and chronic nephritis, chronic renal failure, and kidney stones.
- Pickled and pickled cucumbers are not recommended for obesity and obesity.
- Also contraindications to the use of cucumbers are hepatitis, cholecystitis and biliary dyskinesia.
- Cucumbers should be discarded in case of gastrointestinal disorders, exacerbation of gastric ulcer, gastritis, enteritis and acute colitis.
- Nutritionists do not recommend adding tomatoes to salads with cucumbers, as this dramatically decreases the value of cucumbers.
- There are contraindications to the use of fresh cucumbers for nephritis with an alkaline urine reaction, and to salted ones - for nephritis and pyelonephritis.
kidney grass. Other diseases are also treated with it. A decoction of the herb is used for baths for allergic dermatoses, including eczema and psoriasis. Poultices are made for swelling of the legs, as well as for flux, rheumatism. With grass powder or fresh juice, purulent wounds heal.
When using water pepper, one must always remember that it increases blood clotting.
Water pepper is contraindicated in kidney diseases such as nephritis, glomerulonephritis. You can not use it for inflammation of the bladder.
Water pepper increases the tone of the uterus and is contraindicated in pregnancy. It should be remembered that it constricts blood vessels and is not recommended for long-term use in hypertension, coronary heart disease.
The water pepper plant is considered poisonous, although I have never observed cases of poisoning with it. You just need to carefully follow the rules for its use and remember about contraindications.
Knotweed (or bird highlander) is an extremely unpretentious herb. You have probably met her, even if you are very rarely in nature. Knotweed grows on trampled paths, unkempt football pitches and other less fertile places.
The bird's mountaineer can creep along the ground, or grow in the form of a low bush. You can walk and even run on it - the stems of the plant are penetrated with elastic fibers that prevent the twigs from breaking.
In folk medicine, the beneficial properties of knotweed are most widely used to treat urolithiasis. Its infusion helps to crush large stones, and is also a good preventive measure.
3 tbsp. Place spoons of herbs in an enamel bowl and pour a glass of boiling water, cover and heat for 15 minutes in a water bath. Then let the infusion cool for 45 minutes, strain and squeeze out the remainder. Bring the resulting volume to 200 ml with boiled water.
Take a third of a glass 3 times a day before meals for 3 weeks.
Keep in mind that knotweed has contraindications (read below)!
Knotweed can also be used to heal the digestive system. It is able to protect the mucous membrane from gastric juice, therefore it is used for ulcers and gastritis.
It is necessary to mix knotweed juice with honey and beetroot juice, add oat flour to this mixture and apply the resulting dough for two days on the cleaned ulcer.
Knotweed improves blood clotting, so it is used for bleeding. And for the treatment of anemia, the people use remedies from the infusion of knotweed and beetroot juice.
In equal proportions, the powder of bird highlander, crushed dried skin of black radish and buckwheat honey are mixed. The mixture is infused for 4 days, then consumed in a teaspoon every 6 hours along with goat's milk.
One should not hope that such a serious illness will go away only thanks to this recipe, but you can try it as an aid.
And here is another interesting property of knotweed. It turns out that it was used for the bites of snakes and rabid animals. For this, the simplest decoction was used: 2 tbsp. spoons in a glass of water.
In addition to all the listed properties, the grass of the bird highlander is also simply rich in vitamins. In terms of vitamin C content, knotweed in some sources is compared with rose hips. It also contains vitamins E and K in large quantities, provitamin A (carotene).
Firstly, some people have a hypersensitivity to infusions and decoctions based on bird knotweed. If you are on this list, then you are guaranteed approximately the following consequences - skin rashes, suffocation, itching.
The next group of people who have contraindications to the use of knotweed are pregnant and lactating women.
If stones larger than 6 mm are found in your urinary tract, then you cannot use knotweed either.
Since the herb has the property of increasing blood clotting, the increased aggregation of platelets is also a contraindication.
Some heart diseases also require caution: angina pectoris, stroke or heart attack.
Official medicine also adds age up to 12 years to the list of contraindications.
Best regards, Bataev Pavel
September 7th, 2014 ZdravAdmin
Today we will add another useful medicinal herb - knotweed (Another popular name for it - bird highlander) to the "Plants-healers" heading. And we will tell you about its beneficial properties and contraindications for use in the framework of alternative treatment.
There are several types of knotweed in nature: grass that is close to the ground and one whose stems grow upward. The flowers are similar in shape to greenish or pinkish-red funnels. Flowering lasts from May to June and ends with the formation of fruits.
Knotweed herb grows on various soils, propagates by seeds, therefore it can be seen throughout the CIS (found near houses, roads, on vacant lots and pastures). It is possible to harvest knotweed for treatment with folk methods without changing the collection site, because the more it is mowed, the better it grows. Mow the grass with a sickle, dry in a dark, warm and dry place.
This grass, which many consider a weed due to its almost ubiquitous distribution, is very fond of animals, apparently intuitively understanding that it will be useful for them.
An annual for life expectancy, knotweed contains a lot of substances useful for people. Preparations in which knotweed is present can normalize the state of the whole organism.
The herb contains a lot of vitamin C, there is easily digestible carotene and vitamins of youth (K, E), flavonoids, coumarins (several types). It contains essential oils, tannins, phenolcarboxylic acids. There are resins and silicic acid, and anthraquinones are present in the roots of the plant.
- an annual plant with a straight, usually reddish stem, 30-60 cm high. The leaves are alternate, oblong-lanceolate. The flowers are small, inconspicuous, collected in spike-shaped brushes. The fruit is a black elliptical nut with a fine-grained surface. Blooms from June to autumn.
Aerial organs contain rutin, quercetin, glycosides, tannins, acetylcholine, essential oil, ascorbic acid.
The extract of the aerial part of the plant is used to stop bleeding, usually uterine.
It is used for pulmonary tuberculosis, pneumonia, bronchitis, acute respiratory diseases. It has sokogonny, salivary and choleretic properties. Helps in the treatment of dysfunction of the sex glands and a decrease in potency. The plant has antibacterial activity.
Chemical composition
Knotweed contains flavonoids (isorhamnetin, quercetin and their glycosides), vitamins A, D, E, K, tannins, ascorbic, formic, acetic, valeric, as well as phenolic acids, choline, essential oil, phytosterol, aldehyde, ash, a number macro- and microelements (including potassium, calcium, copper, zinc, iron, silver, bismuth, chromium, cobalt). The rhizome contains anthraglycosides.
Useful and medicinal properties
Knotweed has excellent hemostatic properties. Its essential oils slightly lower blood pressure, and flavonoids strengthen the walls of capillaries, increase vascular tone, and the plant also has a weak diuretic effect. But, it should be remembered that peppermint belongs to the category of poisonous plants.
Application and healing recipes
The ground part of the mountaineer, together with crushed seeds, is used in the chemical industry (it gives yellowish-golden, golden-green, protective and gray colors) and cooking, as a hot seasoning, but this plant is better known in medicine. So, it was already familiar to the Romans and Greeks, who used it as an astringent, antimalarial and hemostatic agent.
Modern medicine uses the herbaceous part of the mountaineer, which is used in the form of infusion and extract in the treatmenthemorrhoids, chronic endometritis , fibroids, as well as with strong and with an abundant and prolonged menstrual cycle.
Homeopathy and traditional medicine recommend the use of peppermint for diseases of the endocrine system, liver diseases, etc. The plant has proven itself well in the practice of treating (as an astringent), eczema (as a wound healing and analgesic drug).
Also, the mountaineer is an excellent honey plant, so it is often planted along the sides of the fields.
Collection and procurement
Traditional medicine uses a herb harvested during flowering. It is cut at a height of 10-15 centimeters, then dried in the open air (laid out in one layer and constantly turned over, otherwise the highlander will turn black). When the stem does not bend, but breaks, drying ends. Dried Knotweed loses its peppery taste and can be used for medicinal purposes for 2 years.
Folk recipes
Gastritis, stomach ulcer
First of all, pour 15 g of chopped knotweed herb with 1 cup of 40 percent alcohol or vodka. Then infuse for two weeks in a dark place. Subsequently, take 10 drops 3-4 times a day.
.
Normalization of the menstrual cycle
First of all 1 tbsp. dried water pepper is brewed with a glass of boiling water. Next, the broth is infused for 20 minutes and filtered. Subsequently, it must be drunk at 1/3 tbsp. three times a day for 2-3 menstrual cycles.
Contraindications and possible side effects
Since the plant has a strong blood-clotting effect, patients with thrombophlebitis should not take it. Contraindicated in inflammation of the kidneys and bladder. The use of water pepper without the advice of your doctor is undesirable.
Poisoning of highlander pepper horses is observed. Symptoms: general weakness, diarrhea, ataxia, fever, weakness of the heart. First aid consists in the appointment of laxatives, coating agents, and for diarrhea - astringents. With general depression, caffeine, camphor and other drugs are administered.
Syn .: water pepper.
A herb with a pungent peppery taste, used for medicinal purposes as a hemostatic (hemostatic) agent of plant origin.
Ask the experts
Flower formula
The formula of a flower of a mountaineer pepper: * О (4,5) Т6-8П (3).In medicine
Knotweed preparations are used in obstetric and gynecological practice for uterine postpartum hemorrhages, for subinvolution of the uterus, prolonged and heavy menstruation, for non-abundant bleeding in the postcoagulation period, for treatment of cervical erosion, for bleeding from small vessels and capillaries of the stomach, intestines, as well as for non-abundant hemorrhoids bleeding. Usually, preparations of mountaineer are used in complex therapy.
In dermatology, the plant is used internally and externally for vasculitis, externally - for resorption of hardenings, powder from the herb cleans wounds from necrotic tissues.
In cooking
Due to its pungent peppery taste, the dried aerial parts of the mountaineer, namely seeds, leaves and stems, are used in cooking as a hot seasoning for sauces, salads, soups. Also, dried herb of knotweed can be used in the preservation of vegetables. Knotweed is used as a hot spice for food in China.
Classification
Highlander pepper or Water pepper (Latin Polygonum hydropiper L.) belongs to the Buckwheat family (Latin Polygonaceae). The highlander genus has about 300 species of plants that are widespread throughout the globe.
Botanical description
Knotweed is an annual herb with a creeping rhizome. The stem is erect, branched in the upper part, knotty, hollow, reddish, 30-60 cm high. The leaves are alternate, oblong-lanceolate, wavy, along the edges with stalk-enveloping bells. The sockets are brownish, short ciliate along the margin. The lower leaves are short petiolate, the upper ones are almost sessile. The flowers are small, inconspicuous, greenish-pink, collected at the tops of branches and stems in a long, intermittent, spike-shaped, drooping inflorescence. The plant blooms from June to September. The formula of a flower of a mountaineer is * O (4.5) T6-8P (3). The fruit is a nut 2-3 mm long. A distinctive feature of the plant is its burning, bitter-peppery taste, which distinguishes the mountaineer from other types of mountaineers.
Attention! Fresh leaves have a pungent taste that disappears when dried.
Spread
It grows like a weed plant almost everywhere: in wet meadows, fields, along the banks of ponds, streams, rivers, lakes, ditches, roadsides. Distributed almost throughout the European part of Russia, Ukraine, the Caucasus, Belarus, Siberia, the Far East, Central Asia.
Distribution regions on the map of Russia.
Procurement of raw materials
Pepper grass (Polygoni hydropiperis herba) is used as a medicinal raw material, which is harvested during the flowering period of the plant, until the stems redden. The grass is cut with scissors or sickles, at a height of 10-20 cm from the soil surface. The raw materials, cleaned from impurities, are dried in the shade or in well-ventilated rooms, laid out in a 3-5 cm layer on paper or cloth, or in a dryer at a temperature of 40-50 ° C. The dried plant has no peppery taste.
Raw materials are procured mainly in Ukraine, in the Voronezh and Rostov regions. Ready-to-eat raw materials are green, leafy, with flowers and fruits, stems of varying degrees of development, up to 45 cm long, without coarse lower parts.
Chemical composition
Knotweed herb contains flavonoids (2-2.5%): rutin, isorhamnetin, quercitrin, isoquercitrin, quercitin, hyperoside kaempferol, luteolin, hyperin, peicarin, rhamnosine; sesquiterpene compounds (isotadenboal, confertifoline, polydial); essential oil containing pellandrene, β-pinene, η-cymene, 1,4-cineole; organic acids (malic, valeric, formic, acetic); phenol carboxylic acids (ellagic, gallic); glycoside polygopiperine; vitamins C, D, E, K; tannins (up to 4%), sitosterol, sugars (glucose, fructose); macro- and microelements.
Pharmacological properties
Knotweed herb has a hemostatic (hemostatic), anti-inflammatory, astringent and antiseptic effect.
The hemostatic compound in the herb of the plant has not yet been identified, it is only known that this property increases with the action of tannins and some polyphenolic compounds that exhibit P-vitamin activity. They interact with plasma proteins, clog damaged small vessels and capillaries in the gastrointestinal tract and inhibit bleeding, as well as slightly increase blood clotting. Vitamin K is also involved in the hemostatic action, and the plant glycoside stimulates uterine contraction.
For the first time, pharmacological studies of water pepper were carried out by N.P. Kravkov at the suggestion of the pharmacist A.O. Piotrovsky. In 1912 N.P. Kravkov discovered that water pepper has hemostatic properties and is superior in activity to imported preparations of yellow root extract (Hydrastis canadensis). Hemostatic properties are manifested only in the conditions of the whole organism. According to Rovel, it accelerates blood clotting, while its viscosity increases inconsistently. The hemostatic effect of the mountaineer is combined with the ability to stimulate the contractions of the muscles of the uterus like ergot, but these properties are much weaker in the mountaineer.
According to Professor N.P. Kravkova water pepper does not have a vasoconstrictor effect and its hemostatic activity rather depends on changes under its influence in the viscosity or blood clotting. Observations of M.K. Petrova and E.M. Uskova from the Peter and Paul Hospital in St. Petersburg, who, with the help of a special device of Dr. Lichkovsky, studied blood coagulability before and after the introduction into the body of an extract of mountaineer, also indicates that its hemostatic effect is based on increasing blood clotting.
The haemostatic effect of the liquid extract of the aerial parts of the mountaineer, which has a rather pleasant odor and a slightly astringent, bitter taste, was tested in the obstetric and gynecological clinic of Professor D.D. Popov and the therapeutic clinic of Professor A.P. Favitsky in St. Petersburg. Observations on the action of this remedy gave quite favorable results and showed that the plant is a very effective hemostatic agent. The liquid extract of Knotweed was used for heavy menstrual bleeding, for bleeding from the bladder, as well as for tuberculous, gastric, hemorrhoidal and renal bleeding.
Volatile essential oil lowers blood pressure slightly. In addition, the herbal preparations of Knotweed have some diuretic properties.
Since the plant has a strong blood-clotting effect, patients with thrombophlebitis should not take it. Contraindicated in inflammation of the kidneys and bladder. The burning-sharp substances of the plant (especially fresh grass) strongly irritate the skin, often causing more damage to mucous membranes than beneficial.
Application in traditional medicine
Knotweed (water pepper) got its name because the mature seeds of the plant were used in ancient times instead of black pepper. As a medicinal plant, mountaineer was known to the ancient Greeks and Romans, who used it as a wound healing agent, as a mustard plasters. Highlander pepper was also appreciated by alchemists. They used the plant for medicinal purposes, attributing magical properties to it.
In folk medicine, the herb of Knotweed has long been used as a hemostatic agent, usually for hemorrhoidal and uterine bleeding, for diseases of the bladder, to stop bleeding and for poorly healing wounds. Knotweed extract is used for internal bleeding in patients with hemoptysis, bleeding from the bladder, with gastric and hemorrhoidal bleeding.
The roots of the plant are also used as a means of strengthening and improving male sexual functions. In the past, the plant was used for malaria. Outwardly crushed grass is applied for dislocations, bruises, sometimes for rheumatism and gout.
In folk medicine of Karachay-Cherkessia, the herb infusion is taken for stomach ulcers. Outwardly, Knotweed is used for various skin diseases (rashes, abscesses), wounds, tumors, goiter and as a pain reliever.
Literature
1. State Pharmacopoeia of the USSR. Eleventh edition. Issue 1 (1987), Issue 2 (1990).
2. State Register of Medicines. Moscow 2004.
3. Medicinal plants of the State Pharmacopoeia. Pharmacognosy. (Ed. By I.A. Samylina, V.A. Severtsev). - M., "AMNI", 1999.
4. Mashkovsky M.D. "Medicines". In 2 volumes - M., New Wave Publishing House, 2000.
5. "Phytotherapy with the basics of clinical pharmacology" ed. V.G. Kukesa. - M.: Medicine, 1999.
6.P.S. Chikov. "Medicinal plants" M .: Medicine, 2002.
7. Sokolov S.Ya., Zamotaev I.P. Handbook of medicinal plants (herbal medicine). - M .: VITA, 1993.
8. Mannfrid Palov. "Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants". Ed. Cand. biol. Sciences I.A. Gubanov. Moscow, "Mir", 1998.
9. Turova A.D. "Medicinal plants of the USSR and their application." Moscow. "Medicine". 1974.
10. Lesiovskaya E.E., Pastushenkov L.V. "Pharmacotherapy with the basics of herbal medicine." Tutorial. - M .: GEOTAR-MED, 2003.
11. Medicinal plants: A reference guide. / N.I. Grinkevich, I.A. Balandin, V.A. Ermakova and others; Ed. N.I. Grinkevich - M .: Higher school, 1991 .-- 398 p.
12. Plants for us. Reference manual / Ed. G.P. Yakovleva, K.F. Blinova. - Publishing house "Educational book", 1996. - 654 p.
13. Nosov A. M. Medicinal plants. - M .: EKSMO-Press, 2000 .-- 350 p.
14. Healthy skin and herbal remedies / Author-comp .: I. Pustyrsky, V. Prokhorov. - M. Makhaon; Minsk: Book House, 200 .-- 192 p.
15. N. P. Arzhanov. The price of blood. / Magazine "Pharmacist", 2002, No. 16
Knotweed herb is a well-known remedy in folk medicine used to cleanse suppurations, stop bleeding in hemorrhoids, in diseases of the nervous system, and is also used as a seasoning for various dishes.
Description
In another way, the mountaineer is also called water pepper, female grass, bitterness and frog grass. The plant got its botanical name for the characteristic bitter-burning taste of fresh leaves. If the leaves are dried, the pungency disappears.
According to the description, the mountaineer has an erect, branched stem with shiny oblong lanceolate leaves 3-6 cm long. On the surface of the leaves, glandular dots or black spots are often found.
Water pepper blooms with small pinkish or green-pink flowers, collected in spike-shaped inflorescences, from late June to mid-September.
The fruits resemble matte triangular nuts, convex on one side and rough to the touch. In size they reach 2-3 mm.
For medicinal purposes, grass and flowering branches are used above 15 cm from the ground. It is necessary to harvest during the flowering period.
You can meet the Pepper Mountaineer everywhere in humid places: on flooded meadows, along the banks of ponds, rivers and streams.
Chemical composition
Knotweed herb contains:
- Rutin.
- Quercitin.
- Luteolin.
- Peacharin.
- isoramnetin.
- Flavonoids.
- Ash.
- Choline.
- Hyperozide kaempferol.
- Ramnosine.
- Hyperin.
- Isoquercetin.
- Sesquiterpenes.
- Essential oil.
- Malic, acetic, valeric, formic acid.
- Gallic and ellagic acids.
- Tannins.
- Fructose.
- Glucose.
- Polygopyperine glycoside.
- Sitosterol.
- Vitamins A, C, D, E, K.
- Copper.
- Silver.
- Potassium.
- Bismuth.
- Calcium.
- Cobalt.
- Zinc.
- Chromium.
Useful and medicinal properties
The main property of the mountaineer is to stop bleeding and heal wounds. The essential oil obtained from the herb has the ability to slightly lower blood pressure, flavonoids strengthen the walls of small vessels and increase their tone. The plant is used for coughs and colds, has a diuretic effect.
Knotweed in medicine is used as an anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, analgesic, sedative, diuretic, antimalarial, astringent, antineoplastic, hemostatic, wound healing and fixing agent.
Contraindications
The use of water pepper inside requires strict adherence to the dosage, since peppermint is poisonous.
You can not use it for the following disorders in the body:
- Increased blood clotting.
- Thrombophlebitis.
- Nephritis and glomerulonephritis.
- Increased tone of the uterus.
- Pregnancy.
- Inflammation of the bladder.
- Arterial hypertension.
- Ischemia of the heart due to the danger of vasoconstriction.
Before use, it is better to consult a doctor to avoid undesirable consequences.
The use of highlander in cooking
The pungent peppery flavor makes it possible to use dried leaves, seeds and stems of water chili peppers as a condiment to various dishes. It can be added to soups, sauces, salads, as well as marinades for preserving cucumbers, tomatoes, eggplant, zucchini, peppers.
Application in medicine
Highlander pepper is indicated for use in the following situations:
- Uterine and hemorrhoidal bleeding.
- Profuse menses.
- Fibroids.
- Atony of the uterus.
- Endometrial hyperplasia.
- Tumors.
- Stomach ulcer.
- Wounds and purulent skin rashes.
- Malaria.
- Diseases of the urinary tract.
- Pains of various origins.
- Hair loss.
You can use dried or fresh herb, from which a tincture or decoction is prepared. Also, in each pharmacy, ready-made alcoholic tincture of peppermint is sold.
A gruel of finely chopped fresh leaves of grass, applied to the temples and the back of the head, helps to cope with a headache. Scars and scars on the body, age spots and freckles are treated in the same way.
Peppermint tincture fights hair loss, seborrhea, acne and pimples, on its basis make masks for cellulite.
In gynecology, the plant tincture is used:
- When the cycle is broken.
- Restoration of the normal size of the uterus after childbirth.
- Profuse bleeding from the uterus.
You can also make a tincture at home. To do this, pour 15 g of raw materials with 1 glass of 40 ° alcohol, close tightly and remove to a dark place. You need to insist for two weeks, shaking the contents once a day. Then the tincture is filtered through cheesecloth and cotton wool.
Inside take 10 drops in half a glass of water three times a day before meals. With the help of tincture, you can delay the onset of menstruation by taking 45 drops three times a day. Moreover, the first time the tincture is drunk in the morning on an empty stomach, and then 30 minutes before meals.
For an aqueous infusion, you also need to take 15 g of the herb, and the alcohol is replaced with distilled water. The dry grass of the mountaineer is poured with boiling water and heated in a water bath for 15 minutes, after which it is removed from the heat, insisted for about an hour and filtered. You can drink 1 tbsp. spoon three times a day before meals.
The alcoholic extract of the plant is used for hemorrhoids to relieve inflammation and reduce bleeding. The extract is made from knotweed pepper and rubbing alcohol (70 °) in a 1: 1 ratio. Dry grass should be ground in a coffee grinder, filled with alcohol in a glass jar and insisted for 7 days in the dark. Filter. Take 30-40 drops with water three times daily before meals.
For the treatment of skin diseases and hemorrhoids, you can externally take baths with a decoction of peppermint. 2 tbsp. spoons of herbs are poured with 2 liters of boiling water and insisted for 10 minutes. Then filtered and cooled. The broth is poured into a basin or cup and sit down so that the inflamed area is completely in water. It is enough to sit in such a bath for 15 minutes.
On the basis of the mountaineer, an ointment for hemorrhoids is made. You will need 50 g of grass and 100 g of petroleum jelly (pork fat). The herb crushed into gruel is mixed well with the base and stored in the refrigerator with a tightly closed lid. Ointment needs to be lubricated with hemorrhoids every day.
To help with baldness and accelerate hair growth, you can use a mask with extract of knotweed. Mix 1 tablespoon of castor oil, water pepper extract and any hair balm. The mask is applied to the roots before washing the hair and gently rub the composition into the skin.
The mask should not be applied to the entire length of the hair!
After that, the head must be wrapped in a film and a scarf and kept for 1 hour. A burning sensation may appear, then the mask can be removed earlier - just rinse off with cool water, and then wash your hair with regular shampoo. Warm water with lemon juice will help remove fat from castor oil.
Use in homeopathy
In homeopathy, Knotweed pepper is used to treat carbuncles, boils, various rashes and ulcers, burns, bites of cockroaches, rats and other animals. Its effectiveness is noted for gangrene, including those caused by diabetes. There are cases of cure with a remedy for anal and vaginal fistula. Practicing homeopathic doctors use the plant for endocrine disorders, diarrhea, ascites, stomach ulcers, urolithiasis, dysentery, dropsy, liver diseases, eczema, cough, bronchial asthma, congestion in the ears and nose.
Collection and procurement
Raw materials are harvested in July-August during the flowering period. In some areas, they continue to collect until September. The roots are dug up in late autumn, cleaned of the earth and washed.
After collection, you need to separate the damaged and yellowed leaves. You can dry in the oven at a temperature not exceeding 40 ° C. If the weather is sunny and hot, then a shaded ventilated room is suitable for drying. Also, the raw material is dried under awnings, spreading evenly over the fabric or hanging at the top in bundles. Make sure that the grass does not dry too slowly, otherwise it may turn black. You can store dried raw materials for up to 2 years.
Good to know
Ready-made pharmacy tincture of water pepper should be diluted with cooled boiled water before use. The extract is even more concentrated. It also needs to be pre-diluted with clean water.
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We also did not know what this herb is called highlander pepper, or water pepper (Persicaria hydropiper) and belongs to the Buckwheat family. In some publications you can find the Latin name of the mountaineer as (Polygonum hydropiper), i.e. it used to be referred to the Highlander family. People also call him buckwheat pepper, frog, wild mustard, forest mustard, turnip.
It is an annual herb with a height of 30 to 70 cm. It has an erect, branched stem, green at the beginning of the growing season and gradually reddening by the time of flowering. At the ends of the shoots, greenish-pink flowers are formed, collected in spike-shaped brushes. The leaves are lanceolate, from 0.5 to 3 cm wide and from 3 to 10 cm long. You can meet the waterweed throughout our country - both in the European part and in the Far East. This plant loves to grow in damp places. You can meet him on the outskirts of swamps, on the banks of rivers, lakes, ponds and ditches, on damp meadows, along fields and in vegetable gardens, as well as along roadsides. In some places it forms rugged thickets.
Medicinal properties of peppermint
Even the ancient Greeks and Romans noticed healing properties herbs of this plant and used them as an astringent, antimalarial and hemostatic agent.
In modern medicine, water pepper is used - in the form of an infusion and liquid extract, also as a hemostatic agent for hemorrhoids and uterine bleeding, for fibroids of the uterus, chronic endometritis and heavy menstruation. Pepper is also included in the composition of antihemorrhoid suppositories. This plant also has antibacterial activity.
In folk medicine and homeopathy, the range of uses of this herb is much wider. It is used in diseases of the thyroid gland, as an astringent, hemostatic, analgesic, wound healing agent, as well as in skin diseases and liver diseases, urolithiasis, edema, gastric ulcer, eczema, bronchial asthma.
These medicinal properties are attributed to the rich chemical composition of the plant. Knotweed herb contains flavonoids (biologically active substances) - hyperoside, quercitrin, quercetin, kaempferol, rutin, rhamnazine, isorhamnetin, as well as tannins, vitamins A, D, E, K, ascorbic acid, organic acids - formic, acetic, and also glycoside polytopinerine.
Galenic preparations (medicines obtained from plant materials by extraction (extraction) are tinctures (alcoholic or aqueous-alcoholic extracts) or extracts) of peppermint have hemostatic properties. The flavonoid compounds contained in it reduce the permeability of the vascular wall of the arteries and capillaries.
The volatile essential oil of water pepper slightly lowers blood pressure. Herbal preparations of this plant also have some cardiotonic and diuretic properties and to some extent increase the tone of peripheral vessels.
On the basis of these properties, galenic preparations of Knotweed are actively used in obstetric and gynecological practice.
Also, infusions and extracts of the plant are prescribed for bleeding from small vessels and capillaries of the stomach, intestines, as well as for abundant hemorrhoidal bleeding.
Knotweed herb is sometimes used for diarrhea and enterocolitis in combination with other medicinal plants. In complex collections, this herb is prescribed for patients with chronic colitis, accompanied by erosive and ulcerative lesions of the mucous membrane, as well as in the treatment of hemorrhoids. It is also used as part of a collection of medicinal plants for the preparation of trays for the external treatment of hemorrhoids.
In official medicine, several dosage forms of water pepper are used. This is an extract of water pepper liquid, an infusion of herbs of water pepper, antihemorrhoid suppositories "Anestezol".
Water pepper extract liquid
It is a transparent green-brown aromatic liquid with a bitter astringent taste. This extract is prescribed as a hemostatic agent - 30-40 drops three times a day.Water pepper herb decoction
To obtain it, two tablespoons of raw materials (20 g) are placed in an enamel bowl, filled with a glass of hot boiled water (200 ml) and placed in a water bath for 15 minutes. Then it is cooled at room temperature for 45 minutes, filtered, and the remaining raw material is wrung out. The volume of the resulting infusion is brought to the original (200 ml). Store the infusion in a cool place for no more than two days.
Apply the infusion as a hemostatic agent, one third of a glass three times a day before meals.
Knotweed herb is sold dried in pharmacies, packaged in packs of 50 g.
In places where water pepper grows in ecologically clean conditions - away from noisy roads and industrial plants - you can harvest it yourself. This is done at the beginning of flowering. It is advisable to dry the stocked grass quickly so that it does not darken. It is better to do this in a dryer at a temperature not exceeding 50 ° C or under a canopy with good ventilation, spreading it out in a thin layer. The stored raw materials can be stored for up to two years.
Suppositories "Anestezol" - perform analgesic (analgesic), antiseptic (disinfecting), astringent (protective), drying, antihemorrhoidal functions.
Infusion of water pepper herb
For its preparation, one tablespoon of dry raw materials is poured with two glasses of boiling water. Insist 6-7 hours, then filter the liquid. Take one tablespoon three times a day.
In folk medicine, this infusion is taken half a glass three times a day for various bleeding, diarrhea, gastric ulcer, dropsy, flatulence, malaria.
Contraindications
Like many other herbal preparations, water pepper is not recommended for pregnancy and lactation.
E. Valentinov
