Content
The beneficial properties of the barberry bush have long been known to folk medicine. This plant can be found everywhere, as it is unpretentious and resistant to climate change. It tolerates urban environments well and is used as hedges and borders. Despite its availability and low cost, it has a unique healing effect that can sometimes replace an entire pharmacy.
Medicinal uses of barberry
Barberry is one of the most accessible and effective remedies that can restore the functionality of the pancreas lost due to pancreatitis, diabetes and other diseases. First of all, the roots of the bush are useful, in which they are found:
- alkaloids: berberine (7%), yarthroricin, columbamine, palmatine;
- aroma oils;
- tannins;
- vitamins, including C, E;
- provitamin A;
- organic carboxylic acids.
In the barberry bush, the medicinal properties are primarily due to the element berberine. In precisely adjusted dosages, the element has not only a toxic, but also a beneficial effect. The substance exhibits antimicrobial activity, produces hypotensive, choleretic properties, eliminates the symptoms of tachycardia, and is effective in oncological pathologies. When the bile ducts are blocked, berberine causes a gradual liquefaction of the secretions and cleansing of the bile ducts.
But berberine is poorly soluble in water and even in alcohol-containing liquids. The most effective and useful pharmacological form of barberry preparations is an alcohol extract. It has not yet been possible to obtain berberine under artificial conditions, so the pharmaceutical industry uses exclusively natural sources. The fruits and leaves have a slightly different chemical composition, but they are also rich in useful substances:
- acids (malic, tartaric, citric);
- vitamin C;
- sugars (glucose, fructose);
- vitamin K;
- mineral salts;
- pectin;
- tannins;
- carotenoids.
The biochemical composition of the shrub also determined its therapeutic properties. Barberry is useful to humans, as it has the following medicinal effects:
- choleretic;
- stimulating appetite;
- hemostatic;
- intestinal tonic;
- vasodilator;
- antispasmodic;
- anti-inflammatory;
- antipyretic;
- diuretic;
- slightly laxative;
- astringent;
- calming.
The shrub relieves pain in cholelithiasis and biliary dyskinesia, being at the same time a choleretic agent. Barberry also helps in more complex cases, for example, with diabetes and cancer.Its drugs help strengthen the heart muscle and immunity.
The use of barberry in medical practice in other countries
In Azerbaijan, shrubs are used to treat arterial hypertension that accompanies the development of atherosclerosis. Here this remedy is considered the most effective and safe against age-related wear and tear of the body. It is used to treat bone fractures, muscle sprains, ligaments and tendons, joint dislocations, burns, lacerations, sprains, and joint pain.
In Italy, doctors use berberine for enlarged liver and spleen due to parasites or infections. And the Indian aesculapians adopted the drug for the treatment of skin diseases caused by mosquito vectors. In Bulgarian medicine, the shrub is used for pain caused by radiculitis, to block uterine bleeding. And in the medical practice of Polish doctors - for ulcerative lesions of the digestive tract. In France, this well-known antihypertensive drug is used for colds and bronchitis.
In China, lotions made from a decoction of the bark restore and maintain visual function, and the roots are used for cancer, to ease breathing. A decoction of young branches is used for pathologies of the musculoskeletal system - fractures and dislocations. In Germany, tincture from the roots is recommended by doctors for problems with the digestive tube, mucous membranes of the mouth, throat, and inflammatory processes in the respiratory organs, including asthma and tuberculosis.
What are the benefits of barberry for the human body?
The use of the properties of medicinal shrubs in medicine is unlimited. Barberry is useful for both men and women.
Beneficial properties of barberry for men
Alcohol tinctures of fresh or dried barberry fruits are used for prostatitis, to enhance the sexual function of men. When preparing hot extracts in the form of infusions (tea, compote), the raw materials of the bush can be combined with rose hips and lemongrass in one composition. It is good to use barberry daily as a seasoning. Dried fruits must be ground into powder and added little by little to food. Fresh berries will be available all year round if you prepare them for future use by freezing them.
Beneficial properties of barberry for women
In addition to using barberry in gynecology to relieve uterine hemorrhages, the plant is widely used in cosmetology. To do this, prepare hot extracts of fruits or other parts of the bush. The resulting solutions are used to wipe the surface of the face and the entire body, which gives the skin freshness, elasticity, and removes minor defects and wrinkles. Masks based on the fruits of the bush are also useful.
You should find out in advance about the beneficial properties of barberry berries and contraindications.
Use of barberry
Barberry is used not only in medicine. The fruits have a pleasant sweet and sour taste. This combination is suitable for use in cooking - for drinks, desserts, as a seasoning. The richness of the vitamin composition allows the fruits to be used in cosmetology for skin care and nutrition. But most of all, the shrub has found its application in the medical field.
How to use barberry berries
The fruits of the bush can only be used when ripe; when unripe, they are poisonous. Ripe barberry berries (see photo) remove toxins from the body, remarkably improve immunity, and can also be used for nausea. From the fruits of the bush they make jam for the winter, as well as compotes, fruit drinks and other drinks.
There are a few recipes worth considering.
- Pour boiling water (200 g per 1.5 l) over dry berries, keep on low heat until softened, filter. Add a sweetener, such as stevia or honey, and vanilla (1 g).
- Pour a teaspoon of fruit, sugar into a cup, add boiling water. Leave for 10 minutes. The fruits can be added instead of lemon and to regular tea. The drink is a good remedy for cardiovascular pathologies.
- Boil fresh fruits, squeeze out the juice, and sterilize in bottles. The drink improves appetite, acts as a mild laxative, and relieves constipation. It has an antimicrobial and antipyretic effect, stops natural aging.
The beneficial properties of barberry honey are well known. The shrub is a good honey plant and bees collect nectar from it in quite large quantities. The honey is a beautiful amber color and has a great taste. Daily use of it as a food additive improves the condition of metabolic processes and the heart muscle. Nectar is useful for diseases of the digestive tract, inflammation and infections of the genitourinary system. The beneficial properties of barberry fruits are transferred almost completely into honey, which is why the product is considered medicinal and highly valued.
How to use barberry leaves
The leaves of the bush are used fresh, frozen or dry. In addition to the traditional use in the form of hot or alcoholic extracts, it is possible to add the herb to green cocktails. The medicinal properties of barberry leaves are similar to those present in the berries and other parts of the bush.
Leaf decoction
Brew 1 tablespoon of barberry with a cup of boiled water, leave in a water bath for 1/4 hours. Pass the solution through a cleaning filter, add to the original volume. Take to stop uterine bleeding, improve heart function and for jaundice.Dosage – one tablespoon 3-4 times a day.
Leaf infusion
Steam a tablespoon of bush greens with a cup of water for about an hour. Drink up to 5 times a day as a hemostatic for uterine bleeding, a remedy for cholelithiasis and kidney stones, digestive disorders, as well as gout and rheumatism. One-time dose – one tablespoon.
Leaf tincture
Infuse 20 g of barberry in 100 ml of vodka for two weeks until the solution acquires a slightly sour taste and dark yellow color. Take several times a day (30 drops) for atonic bleeding and uterine subinvolution.
Tincture of barberry greens has a hemostatic effect, speeds up the rhythm and increases the amplitude of heart contractions, slightly lowers blood pressure, causes contraction of the smooth muscles of the uterus, narrowing of the lumens of blood vessels and bile secretion, and also exhibits some other beneficial properties.
Green smoothie
Place an apple or banana in a blender bowl, a little honey, and add green barberry leaves. Add a little water to give the mixture a liquid consistency. Turn on the blender and blend until smooth and green. If you squeeze the resulting pulp from the leaves of a bush through several layers of fabric, you can get green juice.
How to use barberry bark
An infusion from the bark of the shrub has long been useful for disinfecting the oral cavity for gum disease and many other diseases.Barberry preparations are widely used in the presence of pancreatitis, cholecystitis, stomach cramps and diarrhea. The healing properties of barberry bark help strengthen the heart muscle, restore liver health, and eliminate inflammation in the kidneys and urinary tract.
Bark decoction
Mix the barberry raw material, crushed to powder, with half a liter of water and cook for ten minutes. After cooling, pass the solution through a gauze filter. Take 150 ml of barberry preparations before each main meal, three times throughout the day. Relieves the condition of stomach cramps, stool disorders, dysentery, as well as rheumatism and edema. Hot extracts of barberry stabilize cardiac activity, lower blood pressure, and in the form of lotions eliminate inflammation of the eyelids and gums.
Infusion (tincture) of bark
Pour one tablespoon of powdered barberry bark into a cup of just boiled water (a glass of vodka). Infuse and drink 50 ml hot one hour before meals. Alcohol tincture of barberry is prepared in the same proportions, but it needs to be infused much longer, at least 2-4 weeks.
How to use barberry root
To prepare the medicine in the fall (spring), prepare the roots of the bush. Clean the raw materials well and chop them finely, although this is quite difficult to do. Add 90 g of shrub roots to one liter of water and boil: 40 minutes in a water bath or 20 minutes over very low heat. Leave overnight, strain in the morning. Drink a tablespoon three times a day on an empty stomach. At the same time, lubricate the sore spots on the skin with the same solution obtained from the bark of the bush, if there are pathologies.
Contraindications to barberry
Like any medicine, the shrub and its derivatives are not suitable for everyone.Not only the beneficial properties of barberry are known, but also contraindications to it. Since the roots of the shrub contain many toxic compounds, preparations should be used with caution. There are dangerous substances in unripe fruits, as well as leaves and bark of barberry. There are a number of contraindications to taking shrub preparations:
- childhood;
- tendency to allergic manifestations;
- pregnancy, lactation;
- stones in the bile ducts;
- cirrhosis of the liver.
Individual intolerance to the components of the shrub is possible; in this case, the use of barberry berries and other parts of the plant is contraindicated for oral administration.
Rules for procurement of raw materials
Common barberry has found wide application in the medical practice of both official and alternative medicine. In the pharmacy chain you can purchase an alcohol tincture, as well as all parts of the bush in the form of dry extracts. Barberry is also included in dietary supplements and homeopathic compositions. There is a ready-made preparation from barberry roots - Berberine sulfate in tablets of 0.005 g. You can also do your own preparation and preparation of barberry medications. All parts of the bush are collected for medicinal purposes:
- bark – immediately after the end of winter, in early spring;
- roots – throughout spring or autumn (after flowering is completed);
- fruit - with final and sufficient maturation.
The medicinal properties of the young bark and young spring leaves of barberry are especially valued. The roots of the bush are dug in April or October-November. Those who decide to do this themselves need to remember a few simple collection rules:
- To prevent the bush from dying, the roots can be taken only from one side, about a quarter of their total volume, without cutting 10-15 cm from the trunk;
- For every 10 square meters of barberry thicket area, be sure to leave at least one untouched bush.
Precautionary measures
All parts of barberry contain alkaloids to varying degrees, and therefore have toxic properties. Therefore, you need to be very careful when treating with bush preparations. It is necessary to follow the dosage of barberry preparations indicated by the doctor. Otherwise, side effects may occur:
- dizziness;
- nausea;
- convulsions;
- swelling of the skin, eyes;
- bleeding from the nose.
Conclusion
The benefits of barberry for the human body are undeniable. However, you should not self-treat with shrub preparations due to its toxic properties. You should follow your doctor's orders or prescriptions and dosages obtained from reliable, healthy sources.
