Araliya-Lanka

Medicinal Herbs - Where Do They Grow

For many minor ailments, there's a herb that grows, even in Germany and Switzerland: Here's an overview of the most popular medicinal herbs.

Arnica - Flower (Arnica montana)

Habitat / Origin: Minimally fertilized mountain meadows, low-lime pastures, and acidic moorland soils. Cultivated varieties are used for the production of medicinal products.
Uses: Externally, for example, as an ointment after sports injuries and accidents involving bruises, sprains, or contusions, for edema after fractures, and for muscle pain. Pure arnica tincture can cause skin irritation, so it should be well diluted. Prolonged use can lead to inflammation or eczema. Allergies to arnica are common. Caution is advised if you already have a known allergy to plants in the Asteraceae family (daisy family).
Effects: The plant has anti-inflammatory, decongestant, and antibacterial properties.

Valerian - Root (Valeriana oicinalis)

Habitat / Origin: Valerian thrives in damp forest soils, boggy meadows, and along streams or riverbanks. It can grow to almost two meters tall. Cats are often driven to distraction by its scent, and it is also said to attract fish.
Uses: In low doses, it promotes performance in cases of nervous tension or anxiety (for example, before exams). It is one of the best-known medicinal plants for mild sleep disorders, along with lemon balm, passionflower, and hops.
Effects: Valerian has a calming effect and promotes concentration. Its constituents influence the activity of certain neurotransmitters in the brain. In higher doses, it increases sleepiness in the evening.

Comfrey - Root (Symphytum oicinale)

Habitat / Origin: Comfrey prefers riparian zones or wet meadows. It is widespread throughout Switzerland.
Uses: Comfrey helps with tendonitis, joint and muscle pain, and bursitis. It promotes the resolution of bruises.
Effects: Comfrey promotes wound healing and has anti-inflammatory properties. It contains pyrrolizidine alkaloids, which are liver-damaging and potentially carcinogenic. However, ready-made comfrey products available in pharmacies and drugstores contain only traces of these toxic substances.

Ivy - Leaves (Hedera helix)

Habitat / Origin: Ivy climbs trees, rocks, and walls up to 20 meters high using its roots. The name translates to "climbing leaf." It prefers light deciduous forests and can live for 450 years.
Uses: Relieves the symptoms of chronic inflammatory bronchial diseases and acute respiratory infections. Patients with gastric irritation or ulcers should use ivy with caution; it should not be used to treat children under two years of age.
Effects: Due to its bronchodilatory, expectorant, and mucolytic effects, ivy is used as a cough remedy. Primrose root also has expectorant properties.

St. John's wort - Herb (Hypericum perforatum)

Habitat / Origin: Grows on sunny fallow land, at the edges of meadows or forests.
Uses: Externally, for example as an oil, it is said to relieve muscle and nerve pain, help with blunt injuries, and soothe inflamed, dry skin. The oil contains different active ingredients than capsules or tablets. These help with mild to moderate depression, although the effect usually only develops over the course of several weeks. The herb makes the skin more sensitive to light. It alters the blood levels of several medications.
Effects: The plant has antibacterial, antiviral, and decongestant effects. It can improve mood, relieve anxiety, and soothe nervousness.

Chamomile - Flowers (Chamomilla recutita / Matricaria recutita)

Habitat / Origin: Originally from Southern and Eastern Europe, it is now found in almost all of Europe. It grows in grain fields, fallow land, and rubble heaps. "Chamomilla" translates roughly as "low-growing apple tree."
Uses: Chamomile tea is used for bloating and as a gargle for gum and throat inflammation. For colds and coughs, inhale warm chamomile steam (be careful of scalding). Those allergic to other members of the daisy family, such as mugwort, should avoid chamomile.
Effects: Chamomile helps with inflammation. It has a decongestant, antibacterial, and antispasmodic effect in the gastrointestinal tract, and it promotes wound healing in injured skin.

Lavender - Flowers (Lavandula oicinalis)

Lavender - Flowers (Lavandula oicinalis) Habitat / Origin: Blooms on dry, sunny, warm, and sheltered slopes with calcareous soils. The name derives from the Latin "lavandula," meaning "to wash," and likely refers to lavender's use as a bath additive.
Uses: Apply oil or crushed flowers to the temples for headaches. It can also help with bloating and has antispasmodic and constipating effects in cases of diarrhea. Caution is advised when using essential oils like lavender oil on babies, young children, and asthmatics: they may experience respiratory distress.
Effects: Calming for stress, inner restlessness, and exhaustion. It has sleep-inducing and antibacterial effects, as well as antifungal properties, and repels flies and mosquitoes.

Evening Primrose - Seed Oil (Oenothera biennis)

Habitat / Origin: Native to North America, where it was used by Native Americans for bruises and contusions. Prefers railway embankments, wasteland, roadsides, and slopes. The flowers only open in the evening. Flowers, leaves, seeds, and roots are edible.
Uses: Evening primrose oil is ingested or applied topically. It can be beneficial for neurodermatitis or dry skin (effects may take up to twelve weeks to appear). It is also used for sore breasts. Caution is advised for those with epilepsy or schizophrenia: Seizures may occur, especially when combined with certain medications.
Effects: Evening primrose seeds contain the anti-inflammatory gamma-linolenic acid.

Horse chestnut - Fruits (Aesculus hippocastanum)

Habitat / Origin: Shady, damp locations up to 1200 meters above sea level. It got its name from the Ottoman campaigns, who brought chestnut seeds back as veterinary medicine. Horse chestnut flour served as a "bolus soap" for rough hands during wartime.
Uses: The extracts can alleviate symptoms of mild venous insufficiency and varicose veins, such as heaviness and swelling. Effects are often only noticeable after several weeks of use. Horse chestnut is also used for itchy or burning hemorrhoids.
Effects: The most important active ingredient group is called aescin. Aescin seals the vessel walls. This reduces edema in cases of venous damage and has a mild anti-inflammatory effect.

Hawthorn - Leaves with flowers (Crataegus monogyna / oxyacantha)

Habitat / Origin: This thorny shrub prefers warmer and drier locations in light thickets, deciduous forests, and along forest edges up to an altitude of approximately 1500 meters.
Uses: According to conventional wisdom, performance may improve in cases of heart failure after several weeks of use. The European Medicines Agency recommends its use for nervous heart complaints such as palpitations, provided serious underlying conditions have been ruled out, as well as for relieving mild stress symptoms and as a sleep aid.
Effect: Increases the heart's pumping power and ensures better blood flow to the coronary arteries and heart muscle. Arterial blood pressure also decreases.