What is a sacred vitex plant? You can find the answer to this question in the materials of this article. In addition, we will talk about why such grass is used, how it is harvested and used.
General information
The sacred Vitex grass has many different names. Often it is called a vitex or common thistle, as well as an Abraham tree. This plant belongs to the tree-like shrubs of the family Iasnatkovye.
Botanical Description
Vitex Sacred is a tree-like shrub that often reaches a height of 4-8 meters. Its branches are brown, tetrahedral, with a sharp aroma, and the root is well-branched, rod-shaped and with a large number of subordinate roots.
The leaves of this plant are green, large, palmate and opposite. They are located on long petioles (up to 5 cm) and consist of 5-6 sharp, narrow-lanceolate, rare-toothed leaves, which are dull on top and grayish on the bottom.
Among other things, the Holy Vitex has numerous flowers. They are two-lipped, pale lilac and collected on the tops of the branches in the form of dense, intermittent and paniculate-spike inflorescences. Cups of such colors have a tubular shape and have 4 stamens that protrude above the corolla.
The fruits of the sacred vitex are black, dry four-nested and spherical drupes 3-4 mm in diameter. This plant blooms from early June to the very end of October, and bears fruit in October or November.
Spread
The sacred Vitex, reviews of which we will present below, grows in North Africa, Southern Europe, in the subtropics of Asia, Central Asia, Iran, Afghanistan, India, China, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. This soil is undemanding to soils, and therefore can grow even on stony, loamy and sandy soil. As you know, the represented shrub grows along the banks of irrigation canals and rivers, on the coasts and forms small thickets.
Chemical composition
Holy Vitex, reviews of which are more positive, is a medicinal plant. The healing properties of this herb are due to the presence of iridoids, flavonoids, alkaloids, tannins, vitamins, trace elements and essential oils in it.
The leaves of this plant contain ascorbic acid, as well as glycoside and agnuside. Flavonoidcastin and fatty oil were found in the seeds. Fruits include organic acids, coumarins, etc.
Vitex Sacred: medicinal properties of the plant
According to experts, the plant Vitex has hormone-like activity. In this regard, it is able to affect the function of the corpus luteum (that is, the gland that regulates the menstrual cycle). In addition, it reduces the level of the hormone that stimulates the formation of milk, and thereby inhibits its separation. It should also be noted that such a plant has antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, sedative and antifungal properties.
Collection and storage
The medicinal raw material of such a plant are flowers, leaves, fruits, as well as bark and branches. In this case, the fruits are harvested after full ripening (in September-October), shoots, flowers and leaves during budding and flowering (in June), and the bark in autumn or spring. Harvested plant materials should be air dried at a temperature not exceeding 40 ° C.
Medical use
The sacred Vitex, whose properties were described above, is used to treat malaria, female diseases, as well as chronic ailments of the spleen and liver. Alcohol tincture, made from ripe fruit, is often used for deviations that are accompanied by a depressed mood, with sexual impotence and spermatorrhoea. In addition, the dry extract of the sacred Vitex is prescribed to the fairer sex during the termination of breastfeeding.
In folk medicine, a decoction made from the branches and fruits of this plant is drunk with gonorrhea, and the infusion of flowers is used to prepare baths for serious skin diseases.
Due to its hormone-like activity, preparations based on this plant are prescribed in traditional medicine to patients with various gynecological problems, namely, with premenstrual syndrome, which is accompanied by swelling, scarcity of menstruation or their complete absence, as well as with anovulatory cycles, chest pain, infertility and various disorders after the use of contraceptives.
Forms of drug release
Based on this medicinal plant, various pharmacy products are produced:
- tablets;
- liquid extract or tincture;
- dried plant or tea;
- capsules.
Thus, in the pharmacy chains you can purchase the following drugs that were produced using the leaves, fruits, and flowers of the sacred Vitex: Mastodinon, Agnukaston, Cyclodinon, and so on.
Vitex Sacred: use and dosage
Before using drugs and a medicinal plant for the treatment and prevention of certain diseases, it is imperative to consult a doctor or at least familiarize yourself with the instructions:
- With premenstrual syndrome, this drug in tablets is recommended to be taken in an amount of 20-40 mg per day.
- With cyclic mastalgia (or pain in the mammary glands), doctors prescribe 60 drops of the extract or 1 tablet per day.
In case of other deviations, you should also consult a doctor to clarify the dosage.
Application features
To obtain maximum benefit and increase absorption, experts advise taking such a drug in the morning on an empty stomach. After using Vitex for 10 days, every third woman with a painful premenstrual syndrome noted a significant improvement during the next cycle. Although the full effect of this plant appears only after 90 days. By the way, for the treatment of amenorrhea or infertility, preparations based on this herb should preferably be taken for 6 months.
Other uses
The fruits, seeds and leaves of this plant are often added to soups, meat dishes, half-smoked and boiled sausages, as well as canned fish. They combine well with other spices.
Elastic and flexible branches of this shrub are used for the production of garden furniture and baskets. In male bodybuilding, such a plant is used to control testosterone levels.
Side effects
For most people, the use of such a plant and medicines based on it rarely causes side effects. However, some patients still complain of headaches, increased menstruation, stomach irritation and the appearance of an itchy rash. That is why with such side effects, you should definitely stop taking the drug.
Warning
As mentioned above, Vitex can affect the production of hormones, in connection with which they are not recommended to use women who take hormonal drugs, including estrogen and birth control pills. Also, such a medicinal plant is contraindicated during pregnancy and during the course of in vitro fertilization.
The fact that the Holy Vitex should be used with extreme caution when taking medications for mental illnesses, including Parkinson's disease and schizophrenia, cannot be ignored.