By: Ivana Dragica |
The most healing plants in the world - horsetail |
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A powerful drug, elixir of beauty and cleansing product.
It all applies to a seemingly ordinary and easily available plant which many wrongly consider a harmful weed.
Horsetail (Latin name Equisetum arvense) may be better known as snake grass or puzzlegrass.
Centuries-old tradition has discovered its many medicinal applications, which vary from nation to nation, depending on the area in which it grows.
It is not only a natural remedy, but it is also used for washing dishes, sanding and polishing, and is used also for cleaning archaeological exhibits.
This property is due to its little needles coated with silicates.
Horsetail is one of those fabulous plants that cure almost any disease.
It can be used from head to toe, inside and out, for both beauty and health.
Strenghtens bones, hair, skin and nails
Horsetail contains highly valuable silicon compounds, manganese, calcium, iron, flavonoids, phytosterols, glycosides, phenolic acids and aconitic acids.
Horsetail is able to absorb the unique minerals from the soil, such as silicon dioxide, which is not easily found in other plants.
Due to the large share of minerals and other nutrients horsetail is considered a plant that re-mineralizes the organism.
It is recommended for renewal of bone tissue after trauma or physical decalcification.
An Italian study found that women with osteoporosis who took 270 mg of horsetail extract during one year improved their bone density.
Other studies suggest that silicon compounds from horsetail help calcium absorption, improve bone flexibility and healing of bone fractures.
Horsetail helps with sprained ligaments and joints by strengthening the connective tissue and cartilage.
Due to the anti-inflammatory activity it is also useful against rheumatoid arthritis.
For this purpose, a Swiss herbalist Abbe Küenzi recommended a daily cup of horsetail tea during one year.
Thanks to this tea, the pain caused by rheumatism and gout will disappear.
In order to treat those problems, SIPF horsetail extract in combination with calcium and B – complex is also recommended.
Rids the body of excess water
Horsetail is considered to be one of the strongest herbal diuretics, since it can enhance the elimination of water from the body by up to 30 percent.
Germany's Commission E has approved its use as a natural diuretic for edema.
It is also an astringent plant, so it is excellent for the health of the urinary tract.
It helps against inflammation, hemorrhage, cystic ulceration, infections and cystitis.
Horsetail is considered to be particularly effective in the case of inflammation or benign enlargement of the prostate.
It is also used for melting, shrinking and removing kidney stones.
It is recommended as an aid in weight loss and in fighting cellulite. For the purpose of weight loss, horsetail is used in a form of tea.
Stops bleeding and accelerates healing
The latest studies confirm what people have long known - that coagulation and hemostatic activity of horsetail helps reduce internal and external bleeding and heavy menstrual bleeding.
Horsetail is used in the case of bleeding from the mouth, nose, intestines and uterus.
It helps with diarrhea, slowly healing wounds, frostbites and conjunctivitis.
Anti-inflammatory compounds found in horsetail help reduce inflammation and discomfort caused by inflamed wounds, injuries or menstrual cramps.
In order to cure bleeding, drink horsetail tea and put wraps made of fresh of dried plant.
The people also used horsetail against:
- memory loss
- hemorrhoids
- menopause
- gingivitis and tonsillitis
- diabetes
- respiratory infections
- anemia
- bone cancer, bladder, kidney and prostate
Natural remedy for better appearance
Horsetail embellishes and rejuvenates the skin, heals stubborn skin conditions and strengthens nails.
It is one of the better-known herbs for skin and scalp treatment. It strengthens the hair roots, eliminates dandruff, promotes hair growth and helps against alopecia (hair loss).
For exterior hair care, mix four drops of horsetail tincture with two tablespoons of olive oil and massage your head for 10 minutes. Repeat the process four times a week.
Application and dosage
Tea
Cook a teaspoon of horsetail for five minutes in 2.5 dl of water, then strain the mixture and drink in small sips. Drink 2-4 cups a day.
Tincture
Soak 10 g of fresh horsetail soak in brandy or ethyl alcohol.
Leave in the sun or in a warm place for fourteen days. Shake the mixture every day.
After 14 days, strain the tincture. Take 1-4 ml of tincture diluted in 100 ml of water three times a day.
Anti-wrinkle tonic
Boil a tablespoon of dried horsetail in 1.5 dl water for 10 minutes and strain the mixture. Use tonic at night before applying face cream.
Horsetail is used in the form of baths and wraps for many diseases, even cancer.
You can purchase horsetail products in pharmacies, from herbalists and in health food stores.
In addition to taking preparations of horsetail, drink plenty of fluids.
It is forbidden to take horsetail if you suffer from kidney inflammation.
Harvesting horsetail
Horsetail looks like a small tree, and grows up to 30 cm in height.
Its habitats are on sandy fields and meadows, but one must be cautious during harvest, because of similarly looking toxic herbs. Also, do not pick it on contaminated areas.
In March and April only infertile green stems are harvested by cutting the plant near the ground and then drying them in the shade. After drying, the plant must retain the green color.
Ecological horsetail product for gardens
Horsetail is used against fungal diseases such as mildew and rust and against various types of mites and the red spider.
Soak one kilogram of fresh horsetail (or 150 grams of dried herb) in ten liters of water and let it sit for twelve hours.
The next day remove the plant and cook it in a smaller part of the water in which it has been soaking and slowly boil it for 30 minutes.
Leave the lid on, let the mixture cool and then add the remaining water in which the plant was soaking.
Dilute one liter of this mixture in five liters of water. Use that mixture to regularly spray the plants in your garden.
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