Wormwood Common.

Common wormwood

A perennial herbaceous plant of the Asteraceae family, up to 70 cm high. The root is branching, with a multi-headed rhizome. The stem is erect, dirty purple, ribbed.

The leaves are alternate, pinnately divided with curved edges, green above, grayish below. The lower leaves are petiolate, the rest are sessile. Blooms in July - August.

The flowers are small, reddish, forming a long paniculate cluster. The fruit is an achene. Ripens in August - September.

Wormwood is widespread in the European part of the USSR, Western and Eastern Siberia, Central Asia and Kazakhstan. It grows in forest clearings and edges, in ravines, among thickets of bushes, in sparse birch forests, along river banks, near roads and along homes.

Young leaves collected during the budding period are used in cooking.

Crushed dry leaves (on the tip of a knife) are added to the meat 1-2 minutes before it is ready or 1 to the marinade in which it is kept before cooking. The leaves are a good spicy seasoning for fatty dishes.

Leaves and roots serve as medicinal raw materials.

The leaves are collected during the flowering of the plant, cutting off the soft, leafy tops 15-20 cm long. They are dried in the attic or in a well-ventilated area, spreading the spruce 5-7 cm apart and turning it over often. The roots are dug up in the fall.

The soft, fleshy parts are separated from the main root, washed in cold water and dried under a canopy, in a ventilated area or in a dryer at a temperature of -50. 60°C. The grass is stored in bags, the roots in a closed wooden container for no more than 3 years.

The herb contains essential oil, ascorbic acid, carotene, tannins, alkaloids, inulin, mucous and resinous substances. Essential oils, tannins, resins and sugars are found in the roots.

Preparations of wormwood have hemostatic, antipyretic, anticonvulsant, analgesic, anthelmintic, wound-healing and general strengthening effects.

They are used for poisoning, inflammation of the mucous membranes, to increase appetite, for pulmonary tuberculosis and after suffering from dysentery. Externally used to treat ulcers, non-healing wounds and pustular skin diseases.

An infusion of the herb is used in the form of lotions for headaches and headaches.

For those suffering from cervical erosion, douching with wormwood infusion diluted with boiled water in a ratio of 1:10 is useful. When taken orally, it has a positive effect in the treatment of kidney stones.

In the old days, folk medicine recommended a decoction of wormwood root as an additional remedy in the treatment of cancer of the stomach, rectum and uterus.

To prepare the infusion, pour 3 tablespoons of herbs into 1 glass of hot water, boil for 5–10 minutes, filter and squeeze. Take 1 tablespoon 3 times a day before meals.

When using a decoction, pour 2 tablespoons of raw material into 1 glass of hot water, boil for 10 minutes and filter.

Take 1 tablespoon 3 times a day before. food.

An infusion of leaves and a decoction of the roots are prescribed for douching for leucorrhoea and painful menstruation, and the specified volume is diluted with boiled water to 1 liter.

The same concentration is used as an anthelmintic to expel roundworms and pinworms. A 60 ml microenema is given overnight.