Belladonna, or Belladonna

Deadly poisonous! Belladonna is a deadly poisonous plant from the Solanaceae family. It has popular names: mad cherry, crazy berry, sleepy cherry, damn berry, drunken bush. Parts used: leaves, sometimes the whole herb, root. Pharmacy names: belladonna leaves - Belladonnae folium, belladonna root - Belladonae radix.

Botanical description:
A perennial plant with a very long main root, from which numerous straight, obtuse-edged, highly branched shoots grow annually, reaching 1.5 m in height. The leaves are located in the upper part of the shoot in pairs (one large and one small) opposite. Between the leaves, on long stalks, sit single drooping flowers, brownish-purple on the outside, and dirty yellow on the inside with purple-red veins. Ripe fruits are glossy black juicy berries the size of a cherry. Blooms from June to August. It grows in Europe and Asia Minor on light forest edges, prefers limestone and soils rich in calcium.

Belladonna is deadly poisonous! Under no circumstances should you eat its berries; even a few pieces can be fatal.

Active ingredients: atropine, hyoscyamine, scopolamine and other related alkaloids.

Healing effect and application:
Belladonna preparations are used by doctors to treat spasms, asthma, and stomach ulcers. Pure atropine is used in eye medicine. In homeopathy it is used for spasms, neuralgia, gout.

In folk medicine, extracts were previously used for pain. However, today the use of this dangerous plant is not recommended.

Side effects:
Signs of poisoning are dry mouth, sore throat, thirst, vomiting, dizziness, hallucinations, dilated pupils. Death may occur. If poisoning is suspected, urgent medical attention is needed.