Curative properties of red bilberries were well known to our ancestors, that is why in the healthy Russian cuisine there are many recipes with this berry: from cranberries make morse, wet served to meat, add to sauces, sugars and pickles, make stuffing for pies. Unobtrusive red beads are scattered throughout the forests and marshes almost all autumn, and sometimes perfectly preserved under snow until the very spring. Let's find out what the benefits of cranberries are and why it can be used.
Its curative power of lingonberry is due to the rich composition. Berries contain a large amount of mineral substances (potassium, magnesium, iron, phosphorus, manganese, etc.), benzoic acid (a high percentage of which explains the preserving properties of cranberries and its ability to be stored for a long time), sugar (about 15%: fructose, glucose and sucrose), pectin and salicylic acid. Contained in cowberry and vitamins: A, B, C and E.
In addition to berries, young cranberries also have medicinal properties, because they are rich in vitamin C, acids (gallic, tartaric and cinchona), as well as tannins.
Why use cranberries?
- a large number of vitamins in cowberries makes it indispensable in the winter-spring period, as prevention and treatment of beriberi;
- decoction of cranberry leaves is used for cystitis, as a diuretic and antiseptic, which removes the inflammatory process. He does not like cowberry (decoction of leaves and berries), and pyelonephritis;
- recommend eating cowberries with diabetes, because it improves the metabolism. A decoction of the leaves of cranberries helps reduce blood sugar;
- in addition, the product contributes to the rapid removal of toxins and harmful salts from the body, so it is useful to take cranberries with swelling and slimming. A tonic properties of plants will help cope with apathy and loss of strength - frequent companions of slimming women;
- berries cranberries are useful for those who care about visual acuity;
- decoction of berries cranberries advised to use, as a laxative, as well as antifreezing agent;
- diluted lingonberry juice is used at a temperature;
- Our grandmothers actively used the plant not only in medical, but also for cosmetic purposes. Mask from berries of cowberry for the face helps to remove inflammation, moisturize the skin and, as a result, smooth out small wrinkles. Rinsing the head with a decoction of cranberry leaves can solve the problem of hair loss, dandruff and unpleasant itching;
- cranberry juice can lubricate places affected by eczema or scabies.
How to cook lingonberries on your own?
Going to connect the power of nature to your medicine cabinet, it is important to know when and how to harvest cowberry gifts properly.
- The leaves will have to come to the forest separately: they are collected either before or after fruiting, i.e. in the spring or late autumn. "Wrong", the summer leaves of cranberries dry up when dried and lose their medicinal properties. Dry the leaves with a thin layer, periodically turning them over. For drying, choose a well-ventilated room, where direct sunlight does not reach.
- Berries are better collected in dry weather, from mid-October to mid-November. They can be stored in a freezer or in clean water, which, incidentally, after 15 days is considered curative and used to rinse the throat with angina, and also taken internally as a remedy for joint pain. Regardless of whether you use water, it must be changed to avoid spoilage. Part of the berries can be frozen or dried, part - to put on a useful cranberry jam.
Contraindications
This graph is also found in a green pharmacy. Treatment with red whortleberry should be canceled if:
- you have low blood pressure. Both leaves and berries of cranberries contribute to its further decline;
- increased acidity of the stomach. Berries cranberries are able to irritate the mucous;
- you suffer from cholecystitis or kidney stones. Like any diuretic, cranberries should be consumed with extreme caution.
Use the forces of your native nature wisely and be healthy!