Useful and medicinal properties of althaea medicinal, or marshmallow
Perennial herbaceous plant 1-1,5 m in height. Rhizome thick, short, with lobe of rope-shaped brown-yellow roots. Stalk erect, branchy. Leaves
regular with early falling stipules, long-deciduous, gray-green, cordate or ovoid, soft-hued, pubescent, irregularly crenate-serrate along margin, upper almost three-lobed. Flowers quite large( up to 2 cm), pale pink, are bored in the axils of the leaves. The fruit is fractional, decaying into a significant number of single-member fetuses. Blossoms from June to September. Medicinal raw materials are the roots.
Roots are harvested in autumn or early spring. The main stem lignified root is usually discarded and leaves only neodrevesnevshie, more friable and young lateral roots, as well as radical growths, the so-called lobes;the latter have a particularly effective therapeutic effect in dysentery. The root of the drug althea is tasteless, it has the feature that when chewing it or diluting the crushed root, much mucus is released by water.
The roots are excavated, cleaned from the ground, stems and rhizomes, washed quickly in cold water, air-dried for 2-3 days and dried in ovens or dryers at a temperature of no more than 40 degrees( otherwise the roots will darken).Store in a dry well ventilated room, because raw materials easily absorbs moisture, damp and moldy. Shelf life 3 years.
The althea roots contain mucous substances - up to 35%, starch - up to 37%, asparagine, detail, sucrose, pectic substances, fatty oil - up to 10%.In leaves and flowers - a solid essential oil.
Basically, due to the mucus marshmallow has anti-inflammatory, emollient and expectorant effect.
It is used most often for inflammatory diseases of the respiratory tract in the form of infusion( 1:20), prepared in a cold way, as well as in the form of finished dosage forms( dry and liquid extract) and in various charges.
In scientific medicine, althea preparations are used as an anti-inflammatory, enveloping, expectorant and emollient for inflammation of the
pathways, as well as for diarrhea, acute gastritis, enterocolitis. Due to the presence of mucus, the althaea slows the absorption of simultaneously assigned substances and thus prolongs their action.
Althea preparations are especially indicated in pediatric practice for cough, whooping cough. Biennial roots without bark are used with success with diseases of the genito-urinary organs, stomach ulcer, diarrhea.
Infusion is prepared in a cold way: 6-8 g of crushed root is poured with 200 ml of cold water for an hour, filtered through gauze, sugar or honey is added. Take 20 g every 2 hours. With inflammation of the gums, tonsils and throats are used as a hot infusion for rinsing.
The plant is recommended as a good remedy for a home medicine chest.
Decoction from roots, seeds and leaves is recommended as an expectorant, emollient for coughing, pneumonia, pleurisy, hemoptysis, stones in the bladder, difficulty urinating, and even with tumors.
In Russian folk medicine, the althea root is used for catarrh of the upper respiratory tract, gastrointestinal tract, for flu, angina, jaundice, urinary incontinence and cholera;externally - for rinsing and rinsing with inflammation and ulceration of the mucous membranes( in the mouth, nose, genitals), with influenza, angina.
Application of
Infusion: take 5 parts of crushed root per 100 parts of cold water, insist 30 minutes, then strain and drain. The resulting mucus is ready for use.
Decoction: take one teaspoon of the crushed root( 6 g) for a half-full or full glass of boiling water( 180 ml) and infuse for 10-15 minutes. Decoction to drink to adults - 1 tbsp.spoon every two hours, children - 1 teaspoon four to five times a day.
Powder: the people use pre-prepared powder from the root of the althea, 2 g of which are bred warm
with water, leading to the consistency of liquid sour cream. The resulting mucus can be taken as an unprocessed one.
Home extract: pour into the pot the broth of the althea root( 10 g per 200 ml), cover with a lid, cover it with a dough and evaporate in a Russian oven until half. Eat 2 teaspoons 3 times a day.
Homemade syrup: first make sugar syrup from 64 parts of sugar refined sugar and 35 parts of water;after this thick solution boils, 4 parts of the above extract are added to it. Eat half a cup three times a day.
It is recommended to always add 2-3 teaspoons of pure honey honey to the liquor broth.
The althea substitute is a forest mall( mallow forest), the medicinal properties of which are somewhat weaker.
Together with the althaea medicinal the Armenian mullet grows in more significant quantities. Its chemical composition and therapeutic properties are close to the first. Gosfarmakopey he is allowed to use.
On the banks of the Kuban River, there is a marshmallow Brusson-Zeelite. Its roots and rhizomes are developed and abound with mucus, as in the althaea of the medicinal.
With a medical purpose, rhizomes and roots of two years of age are used. Sometimes flowers and leaves are used.
Raw materials are harvested in early spring or autumn. The excavated root is cleaned from the ground, cut into pieces of 20 cm. After waxing, the roots are cleaned of the bark. Thicker ones are split into 2-4 parts along and dried in a well-ventilated room or in dryers at a temperature not exceeding 40 degrees.
Roots contain up to 35% of special mucus( main active ingredient), starch, pectic substances, sugar, asparagine, phosphoric and malic acids, fatty oil and some salts.
Inside the aqueous infusions of the roots in the catarrhal conditions of the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract as an emollient and soothing agent;as
enveloping - with inflammation of the mucous membrane of the stomach and intestines. The root powder is used to prepare the pill. Althaeus is also used in veterinary medicine.
The roots of the althea go for the preparation of so-called breastfeeding and Altean syrup.
Note.10 g of the crushed root of the althaea brussonezielistnogo pour a glass of water at room temperature and insist for an hour, filter and take 1 tbsp.spoon every 2 hours.