Few people do not know about such a medicinal plant as mother-and-stepmother. And the majority still remember the teacher's stories from the school bench about what a flower called for because of the leaves - one side is velvety and warm (mother), and the other is smooth and cold (stepmother). But now we are more interested in the useful properties of mother-and-stepmother and the use for medicinal purposes.
Mother-and-stepmother: useful properties and application
To begin with, it is worth giving a description of the plant so that in the spring the mother-and-stepmother could be recognized. Flowers in March-April appear first, even before the leaves seem. Stem length of 20-25 cm, flowering shoots are covered with small scales. The flowers are yellow, very reminiscent of dandelions. Leaves rounded, cordate, top of leaf smooth, bottom covered with white hairs.
Leaves and flowers of mother-and-stepmother have thinning sputum, expectorant and anti-inflammatory effect. Thanks to these medicinal properties, decoctions and infusions of mother-and-stepmothers are used in the treatment of bronchitis, sore throat, pharyngitis, stomatitis, inflammation and pulmonary tuberculosis. Also, the mother-and-stepmother has some diaphoretic effects, so it is used in the treatment of acute respiratory infections and influenza.
Leaves and flowers of mother-and-stepmother can also be used as an antispasmodic agent for diseases of the bile duct and liver, gastrointestinal tract, kidneys and urinary tract.
At the initial stages of hypertension, mother-and-stepmother is used as an easy means for lowering blood pressure. In addition, it is believed that the plant has an antisclerotic effect, so mother-and-stepmother is recommended to use in atherosclerosis, ischemic heart disease to improve metabolic processes and prevent the deposition of atherosclerotic plaques in the vessels.
With various skin lesions, use decoctions and infusions of mother-and-stepmother. For example, with burns, boils, purulent wounds, pustular rash, it is recommended that tissues soaked in the broth or infusion of this plant are applied to the affected areas of the skin.
How to cook broths and tinctures from mother-and-stepmother?
To prepare the infusion from the mother-and-stepmother, you need to put a tablespoon of the ground grass in an enamel saucepan and pour a glass of boiled hot water. Next, the dishes should be closed with a lid and heated for a quarter of an hour in a water bath. All this time you need to stir the compound from time to time. The infusion is then cooled at room temperature for 45 minutes and filtered. The remaining leaves are squeezed and added with infusion of boiled water to a volume of 200 ml. The finished medicine can be stored no more than 2 days in a cool place. Take as an expectorant infusion of ½ cup for 1 hour before meals twice a day.
To get a decoction of mother-and-stepmothers need a tablespoon of leaves of the plant to pour a glass of boiling water and put on fire. Boil it for 10 minutes, then let it sit for 15 minutes at room temperature and drain. The broth is taken on a tablespoon three times a day.
Sometimes it is required to use the juice of mother-and-stepmother, it must be prepared from the May-June leaves of the plant. For this, the leaves need to be scalded, passed through a meat grinder and wrung out. The resulting juice should be diluted with the same amount of water. With a cold, 2-3 drops are instilled into each nostril.
Mother-and-stepmother: contraindications
Having learned about the useful properties of plants, many will want to undergo treatment, but it is worth remembering the presence of contraindications. Mother-and-stepmother contains alkaloids, which have a negative effect on the liver, so long-term use of decoctions is undesirable. Also, mother-and-stepmother can not be used with delays in menstruation, pregnant and lactating women.
Mother-and-Stepmother for Hair
To improve their hair, they are advised to rinse with decoction of mother-and-stepmother and nettles. To do this, take nettles and mother-and-stepmother in equal proportions, pour water and boil in a water bath for 20 minutes. The resulting broth should be rinsed after washing.