Bloodroot_Sanguinaria_canadensis_Flower
The world of medicine is really vast and out there, regardless of the problems people will face with their health, there will most of the times be a fast cure to help with curing them.
When it comes to Bloodroot, it’s a herb that has plenty of medicinal properties and it has been used in medicine for a very long time.
The name comes from its juice, which is red in color and can stain very well. When it’s used, doctors will actually recommend small doses, mainly for severe throat infections and bronchial problems. The fact is that this root is used in creating many treatments and thus will get mixed with other compounds in order to treat migraines, dental applications (for instance it can inhibit plaque) and also heart problems.
Bloodroot can be turned into a paste through a simple process and the resulting mix can be used for tumors, warts and for skin diseases. Bloodroot can also be used as a tonic, stimulant, sedative, and anesthetic
The Constituents Of Bloodroot
In regards to the constituents of it, it seems that everything looks very promising. One of them is Berberine (which can also be found in Honeysuckle, Oregon grape, and Goldenseal) which has shown very effective results when it comes to fighting many types of cancers and also brain tumors. If used internally, people will need to be very careful, because it contains toxic opium like alkaloids, leading to mucous membrane irritation. Mothers who are lactating or pregnant should not use it, as an overdose can be fatal.
Another constituent is sanguinarine which shows great results as a: respiratory stimulant, pesticide, expectorant, emetic, diuretic, anti plaque, antiperiodontic, antioxidant, anti-neoplastic, anti-inflammatory, anti-gingivitic, anti-edemic, anti-cholinesterase, antibacterial, and as an anesthetic.
Description And Habitat
Many people have used the Bloodroot by now, yet few of them actually know that it’s a North American native perennial herb which grows in rich, moist and also shaded woodlands all across Quebec, to Florida and Kansas (to the west). In terms of height it only grows around six to seven inches tall. When the flower will bloom, the pale green, basal, lobed, palmate leaf will be wrapped around the flower, while the stem when mature, is red or orange and has a round shape.
The herb actually has one flower featuring between eighty to twelve petals with the center being yellow and bright. The root is thick and looks somewhat like a tube and if people will get its red juice on their skin, it will stain instantly. The root will only need to be gathered when the flowers are in bloom.
For later use, people can also dry the roots. One thing to mention is that Bloodroot is endangered and people should not cultivate it from the wild.
Herbal Recipes
In order to create a dye, people can mix four tablespoons of fresh Bloodroot juice in a single gallon of cold water, in which they will eventually need to add one tablespoon of alum as mordant. The result can then be used on a plethora of materials in order to get a red to orange hue and gloves must be worn when handling it.
History And Folklore
In the past, men and women from some North American tribes used the Bloodroot extensively. For them it was a war paint or a ritual skin paint, while others used it simply as a dye. The herb’s red juice was a great dye that would help with dying yarn, clothes and so forth.
Other Medicinal Uses
Most of the times people will use the Bloodroot for a personal purposes and when they will decide to do this, they will actually use the underground stem to make medicine. Some of its uses number reducing tooth pain, emptying bowels, causing vomiting, yet it’s also used to treat fever, warts, achy muscles and joints, nasal polyps, blood vessels sore throat, hoarseness, treat croup and many more.
There are some people out there who will apply it on to their skin directly, around their wounds so that dead tissue will be easily removed and thus have healing promoted. With that being said, it seems that Bloodroot is an excellent herb with a plethora of uses that can help people with treating a lot of diseases and types of pains in a very effective way.
