Categories
Herbs & Plants (Spices)

Anemone pulsatilla

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Botanical Name: Anemone pulsatilla
Family: Ranunculaceae
Genus: Pulsatilla
Species: P. vulgaris
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Ranunculales

Synonyms: Pasque Flower. Wind Flower. Meadow Anemone. Passe Flower. Easter Flower.

Common Name: Pasque Flower

Habitat : Anemone pulsatilla is found not in woods, but in open situations. It grows wild in the dry soils of almost every Central and Northern country of Europe, but in England is rather a local plant, abounding on high chalk downs and limestone pastures, mostly in Yorkshire, Berkshire, Oxford and Suffolk, but seldom found in other situations and other districts in this country.

Description:
Anemone pulsatilla is an herbaceous perennial plant. It develops upright rhizomes, which function as food-storage organs. Its leaves and stems are long, soft, silver-grey and hairy. It grows to 15–30 cm high and when it is fruit-bearing up to 40 cm. The roots go deep into the soil (to 1 m). The finely-dissected leaves are arranged in a rosette and appear with the bell-shaped flower in early spring. The purple flowers are followed by distinctive silky seed-heads which can persist on the plant for many months.

The flower is ‘cloaked in myth’; one legend has it that Pasque flowers sprang up in places that had been soaked by the blood of Romans or Danes because they often appear on old barrows and boundary banks.

CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES : 

The whole plant, especially the bases of the foot-stalks, is covered with silky hairs. It is odourless, but possesses at first a very acrid taste, which is less conspicuous in the dried herb and gradually diminishes on keeping. The majority of the leaves develop after the flowers; they are two to three times deeply three-parted or pinnately cleft to the base, in long, linear, acute segments.

The juice of the purple sepals gives a green stain to paper and linen, but it is not permanent. It has been used to colour the Paschal eggs in some countries, whence it has been supposed the English name of the plant is derived. Gerard, however, expressly informs us that he himself was ‘moved to name’ this the Pasque Flower, or Easter Flower, because of the time of its appearance, it being in bloom from April to June. The specific name, pulsatilla, from pulsc, I beat, is given in allusion to its downy seeds being beaten about by the wind.

Part used Medicinally:
The drug Pulsatilla, which is of highly valuable modern curative use as a herbal simple, is obtained not only from the whole herb of A. pulsatilla, but also from A. pratensis, the Meadow Anemone, which is closely allied to the Pasque Flower, differing chiefly in having smaller flowers with deeper purple sepals, inflexed at the top. It grows in Denmark, Germany and Italy, but not in England. It is recommended for certain diseases of the eye, like Pulsatilla, and is used in homoeopathy, but has been considered somewhat dangerous. The whole plant has a strong acrid taste, but is eaten by both sheep and goats, though cows and horses will not touch it. The leaves when bruised and applied to the skin raise blisters. A. patens, var. Nutalliana is also used for the same purpose as A. pulsatilla.

In each case, the whole herb is collected, soon after flowering, and should be carefully preserved when dried; it deteriorates if kept longer than one year.

Constituents:
The fresh plant yields by distillation with water an acrid, oily principle, with a burning, peppery taste, Oil of Anemone. A similar oil is obtained from Ranunculus bulbosus, R. flammula and R. sceleratus, which belong to the same order of plants. Its therapeutic value is not considered great. When kept for some time,this oily substance becomes decomposed into Anemonic acid and Anemonin. Anemonin is crystalline, tasteless and odourless when pure and melts at 152ø. The action of Pulsatilla is virtually that of this crystalline substance Anemonin, which is a powerful irritant, like cantharides, in overdoses causing violent gastro-enteritis. It is volatile in water vapour and is then irritative to the eyes and mouth. The Oil acts as a vescicant when applied to the skin. Anemonicacid appears to be inert. Anemonin sometimes causes local inflammation and gangrene when subcutaneously injected, vomiting and purging when given internally. It is, however, uncertain whether these symptoms are due to Anemonin itself or to some impurity in it. The chief action of pure Anemonin is a depressant one on the circulation, respiration and spinal cord, to a certain extent resembling that of Aconite. The symptoms are slow and feeble pulse, slow respiration, coldness, paralysis and death without convulsions. In poisoning by extract of Pulsatilla, convulsions are always present. Their absence in poisoning by pure Anemonin appears to be due to its paralysing action on motor centres in the brain.

Medicinal Uses:
Nervine, antispasmodic, alterative and diaphoretic.The tincture of Pulsatilla is beneficial in disorders of the mucous membrane, of the respiratory and of the digestive passages. Doses of 2 to 3 drops in a spoonful of water will allay the spasmodic cough of asthma, whooping-cough and bronchitis.

For catarrhal affection of the eyes, as well as for catarrhal diarrhoea, the tincture is serviceable. It is also valuable as an emmenagogue, in the relief of headaches and neuralgia, and as a remedy for nerve exhaustion in women.

It is specially recommended for fair, blue-eyed women.

It has been employed in the form of extract in some cutaneous diseases with much success; it is included in the British Pharmacopoeia and was formerly included in the United States Pharmacopoeia.

In homoeopathy it is considered very efficacious and even a specific in measles. It is prescribed as a good remedy for nettlerash and also for neuralgic toothache and earache, and is administered in indigestion and bilious attacks.
Disclaimer : The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplement, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider.
Resources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulsatilla_vulgaris
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/a/anemo035.html

http://www.outsidepride.com/seed/flower-seed/anemone/pasque-flower-seed.html

Categories
Herbs & Plants

Pulsatilla nuttalliana

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Botanical Name :Pulsatilla nuttalliana
Family: Ranunculaceae
Genus: Pulsatilla
Species: P. patens
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Ranunculales

Syn.:  Anemone patens v.nuttalliana,

Common Name :Pasque Flower , Pasque Flower, Prairie Crocus, Eastern pasqueflower, prairie smoke, prairie crocus, and cutleaf anemone

Habitat:Pulsatilla nuttalliana is native to Europe, Russia, Mongolia, China, Canada and the United States.

Description:
Pulsatilla patens is a species Perennial Wildf flowering plant.The common name ‘Pasque Flower’ was given for its early blooming habits coinciding with Easter
Flowers/Fruit/Seeds:Light purplish flowers bloom in April before the appearance of the true leaves. Flowers give way to feathery seed heads which are quite showy.Leaves/Stem are erect, hairy stem grows to height of 4 to 10 inches, leaves divided, greyish green and lacy with smooth tops and hairy undersides.
Flowering Season:Spring

 

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Two subspecies have been distinguished:
Pulsatilla patens subsp. patens
Pulsatilla patens subsp. multifida (Pritz.) Zämelis — cutleaf anemone

Medicinal Uses:
Properties: * Antibacterial * Antispasmodic * Nervine

Pasque flower was listed in the U.S. Pharmacopoeia at the time Millspaugh published his “American Medical Plants” in 1882, and was prescribed by both Eclectic physicians and homeopaths1 but is not widely used today because of its high toxicity. The plant can be an effective nervine in the hands of a trained herbalist for nervous exhaustion and dysmenorrhoea.

click to see

Other Uses: We all can enjoy the early spring blooms of pasque flower in our garden as a harbinger of spring.

Disclaimer:
The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplements, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider

Resources:
http://www.anniesremedy.com/herb_detail552.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulsatilla_patens

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Categories
Herbs & Plants

Pulsatilla vulgaris

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Botanical Name : Pulsatilla vulgaris
Family:Ranunculaceae
Genus:Pulsatilla
Species:P. vulgaris
Kingdom:Plantae
Division:Magnoliophyta
Class:Magnoliopsida
Order:Ranunculales

Synonyms :  Anemone pulsatilla

Common Name :Pasque flower, Pasqueflower, Common pasque flower, Dane’s blood,European pasqueflower

Habitat:Pulsatilla vulgaris native to Europe.It is found locally on calcareous grassland.It grows in sparsely wooded pine forests or meadows, often on a sunny sloping side with calcium-rich soil. A large colony occurs on publicly accessible land in the Cotswolds, at the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust‘s Pasqueflower reserve.

Description:
Pulsatilla vulgaris is an herbaceous perennial plant. It develops upright rhizomes, which function as food-storage organs. Its leaves and stems are long, soft, silver-grey and hairy. It grows to 15–30 cm high and when it is fruit-bearing up to 40 cm. The roots go deep into the soil (to 1 m). The finely-dissected leaves are arranged in a rosette and appear with the bell-shaped flower in early spring. The purple flowers are followed by distinctive silky seed-heads which can persist on the plant for many months. The flower is ‘cloaked in myth’; one legend has it that Pasque flowers sprang up in places that had been soaked by the blood of Romans or Danes because they often appear on old barrows and boundary banks.
click to see the picture.>....(01)..…...(1).…...(2).…….(3).….…(4)….
This plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society‘s Award of Garden Merit.
Different varities of Pulsatilla vulgaris are available, while the main variety of Pulsatilla vulgaris has purplish flowers; variants include red (Rubra) and white (Alba) forms (see images).

Cultivation:
Requires a well-drained humus rich gritty soil in a sunny position. Lime tolerant. Prefers lime. Grows best in a well-drained chalky soil in a dry warm situation. Established plants are fairly drought tolerant. A very hardy plant, tolerating temperatures down to about -20°c. A very ornamental plant[1], there are many named varieties. The plant has become rare in its natural environment, due partly to over-collecting and partly to habitat loss. Large plants transplant badly. A greedy plant, inhibiting the growth of nearby plants, especially legumes.

Propagation :
Seed – best sown as soon as it is ripe in early summer in a cold frame. The seed usually germinates in about 2 – 3 weeks. Sow stored seed in late winter in a cold frame. Germination takes about 1 – 6 months at 15°c. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in the spring. Root cuttings, 4cm long taken in early winter, potted up in a mixture of peat and sand. They can also be taken in July/August, planted vertically in pots in a greenhouse or frame. Some care is needed since the plant resents root disturbance.

Medicinal Uses:
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, pulsatilla is used as an anti-inflammatory and is considered specific for amoebic and bacterial dysentery. Externally, it is used as a douche for trichomonas.
Western herbalists and homeopaths, on the other hand, use minute doses of pulsatilla as an important remedy for premenstrual syndrome. Curiously, mainly fair and blue-eyed women are responsive to this remedy. It is generally used as an emmenagogue and to increase blood and energy circulation for both men and women. It strengthens sexual sensitivity while lessening the tendency towards morbid preoccupation. It is a good remedy to consider for disorders of the reproductive organs and the prostate, associated with nervous and emotional problems. Characteristically, the symptoms treated are nervousness, restlessness and an active imagination or fear of impending danger or disease. For menstrual irregularity or delayed menstruation, it is used to treat simple suppression due to atropy or shock. It is also good for some cases of heart disease, again with strong mental symptoms.

Pulsatilla is used for various inflammatory conditions, but especially if accompanied by nervousness, despondency, sadness, unnatural fear, weepiness and depression. It is used also for headache, insomnia, neuralgia in the anemic, thick tongue coating with a greasy taste, stomach disorders from over-indulgence in fats and pastries, various alternating and shifting signs such as diarrhea/constipation, amenorrhea and dysmenorrhea, pain from exposure to wind, toothache and styes.
In France, it has traditionally been used for treating coughs and as a sedative for sleep difficulties. Pulsatilla is also used to treat eye problems such as cataracts.

Pasque flower is considered by herbalists to be of highly valuable modern curative use as a herbal simple. The plant contains the glycoside ranunculin, this is converted to anemonine when the plant is dried and is the medicinally active principle in the plant. The whole plant is alterative, antispasmodic, diaphoretic, diuretic, emmenagogue, expectorant, nervine and sedative. It is taken internally in the treatment of pre-menstrual syndrome, inflammations of the reproductive organs, tension headaches, neuralgia, insomnia, hyperactivity, bacterial skin infections, septicaemia, spasmodic coughs in asthma, whooping cough and bronchitis. Externally, it is used to treat eye conditions such as diseases of the retina, senile cataract and glaucoma. This remedy should be used with caution, excessive doses cause diarrhoea and vomiting. It should not be prescribed to patients with colds. See also the notes below on toxicity. The plant is harvested soon after flowering, it is more poisonous when fresh and so should be carefully preserved by drying. It should not be stored for longer than 12 months before being used. In homeopathy, the plant is considered to be specific in the treatment of measles. It is also used for treating nettle rash, toothache, earache and bilious indigestion.
Other Uses : ….Dye......A green dye is obtained from the flowers. Plants can be grown to form a ground cover, they are best spaced about 30cm apart each way.

Known Hazards  :  The plant is slightly toxic, the toxins are dissipated by heat or by drying the plant.   Repeated handling of the plant can cause skin irritation in some people.

Disclaimer : The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplement, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider

 

Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulsatilla_vulgaris
http://www.herbnet.com/Herb%20Uses_OPQ.htm

http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Pulsatilla+vulgaris

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Homeopathy

Homeopathy And Painful Periods

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The monthly menstrual cycle for many women can be a painful experience which
ranges in intensity from mild discomfort at best, to a state of complete
incapacitation for up to fifteen days of the cycle. Too many women suffer this
common but debilitating condition unnecessarily.

click & see the pictures

Dysmenorrhea (painful or difficult menstrual periods) may be attributable to a
variety of possible causes. There are many theories, and the excessive action
of a small endocrine structure within the ovarian follicle known as the corpus
luteum, which secretes progesterone is often considered to be at fault. An
excess of prostaglandins are thought to be a possible cause also.
Prostaglandins are a group of biologically active fatty acid derivatives which
are present in many tissues and which affect the cardiovascular system, smooth
muscle and stimulate the uterus to contract. Hormonal imbalance or instability
has also been considered a possible antagonist as it causes the endometrial
lining of the uterus to become thickened, later detaching from the uterus in
large pieces during the period. The associated pain is considered to result
from spasm of the uterine walls.
There is also the possibility of dysmenorrhea being the result of an emotional
factor such as depression, anxiety or some unresolved internal conflict or
stress which seems to interfere with the normal estrogen/progesterone balance.
In situations where there is an underlying emotional factor, it is obvious that
effective treatment must be targeted to include the emotional imbalance before
the dysmenorrhea will abate.

The conventional treatment of dysmenorrhea recommends warm applications and rest
together with a variety of analgesics to control pain but which may cause
stomach irritation. Antispasmodics such as atropine which relax smooth muscle
are also routinely used. To correct the hormonal imbalance the contraceptive
pill is sometimes employed to suppress ovulation so that progesterone build-up
does not occur. Anti-prostaglandin drugs such as Naprosyn, which inhibit their
build-up are also tried. Anti-inflammatory drugs may be used in an attempt to
relieve inflammation and subsequent pain.

Throughout history ill health has been viewed from two fundamentally different
perspectives. The first view-point is that illness is a malfunction of specific
components of the body and symptoms are seen as the disease itself. Treatment
is aimed at removing the symptoms through suppressive drugging or removing the
actual suffering parts surgically. Orthodox medicine works with this concept
and patterns its treatment accordingly.

The second viewpoint is that disease is a result of a deeper disturbance or
imbalance of the vital life energy affecting the person as a whole, of which
symptoms are simply the outward manifestation. In a state of health the vital
energy controls all sensations and functions of the organism and keeps
everything in harmonious balance. It causes cells to reproduce and regenerate,
organs to function, hair and nails to grow, etc. When it leaves us at death our
bodies then begin to degenerate, disintegrate and decay. Homeopathic medicine
recognizes the concept of a vital energy and focuses its treatment on resolving
the underlying imbalance of that energy so that the organism may return
naturally to healthy functioning. When the organism is rebalanced the symptoms
go away of their own accord.

Symptoms, whether physical, emotional or psychological, are expressions of the
imbalance. In homeopathy, treatment is based upon the totality of symptoms
expressed on all levels and not solely on the specific condition or disease.
The task of the homeopathic doctor is to match the total picture of symptoms and
individualizing characteristics provided by the patient with the indicated
homeopathic remedy.
The matching of remedy to patient is done via a comparison of the known curative
action of the remedy to the similar total symptom picture presented by the
patient. The result of this matching of ‘similars’ is to stimulate the vital
or life energy of the organism to return to normal functioning, thereby
ameliorating symptoms and restoring health.

With this approach to healing it follows that two people presenting with the
same disease-label, i.e. asthma, arthritis, dysmenorrhea, etc., would probably
be given quite different homeopathic remedies because they would almost surely
express their illness differently and uniquely. Their symptoms would differ
somewhat from one another. Their heredity, metabolism, personalities, likes and
dislikes, psychological and emotional states would be unique to them. These are
factors of great importance when deciding upon a homeopathic prescription for an
individual.

So, women presenting with dysmenorrhea may be prescribed one of several possible
remedies depending on the total symptom picture (psychological, emotional and
physical) of that person.
For example, Pulsatilla may be indicated if the person’s nature is shy, gentle,
easy-going but sad and moody with a tendency to cry easily. They have a need
for consolation. Their moods are changeable as are their physical symptoms. In
fact, everything is variable in the Pulsatilla patient. Their periods may stop
and start or be different every time. Shivering often accompanies the pain and
there is usually a lack of thirst. They are aggravated by heat and hot, stuffy
rooms and are improved by being outside in the open air and moving around. If
these signs are present and the specific symptoms of the case indicate
Pulsatilla, it can produce a remarkable amelioration of the condition.

Women who are very irritable during periods which are often late, scanty, and
last a few hours with cramps extending down the thighs may benefit from
Viburnum. They have bearing-down pains before the period and the ovarian region
feels heavy and congested. They may also have spasmodic or membranous
dysmenorrhea with aching in the sacrum and pubic region with a sensation of
feeling faint.

Magnesia phosphorica may be appropriate for sudden, intolerable spasmodic pains
which make the patient cry out. They may lament about their terrible pains and
may be unable to think clearly. The pains begin and end suddenly and tend to be
erratic and cramp-like. They are improved by exposure to heat and by leaning
forward and doubling-up, and are aggravated by exposure to cold. The pains are
predominantly right-sided.

Colocynthis is another remedy with similar symptoms but the pains are
predominantly left-sided.

Another possible remedy is Platina. There is colic, together with a cramping
pain in the left ovarian region, associated with extreme vaginal
hypersensitivity and constipation. Periods are early, heavy and often dark with
clots. The overall mood is one of restless agitation, suspicion and haughty
authority, with underlying anxiety and an inability to relax.

A couple of case examples will illustrate the variety of symptomatology
experienced in cases such as these.

A woman aged 34, had painful periods with pressing down pains in the lower
abdomen as if every thing would pass out from her vagina. She would sit with
her legs crossed which made her feel somewhat more secure and relieved the awful
bearing-down sensation she was experiencing. The pain during menses increased
up to the third day and she could not move from the bed. She was irritable and
depressed because of this and would often lash out verbally at her partner with
little provocation. She also had abdominal distension and pain. Her menstrual
flow was scanty with colicky pain in abdomen for the first few days of her
period. Sepia cured her troubles quickly.

A 17 year old girl always had painful menstruation with backache as soon as it
started. During her period she would pass dark pieces of clotted blood. This
was because the endometrium or mucosa was also inflamed and received a greater
supply of blood but it shed into large or small pieces, or clots, during her
periods. She was quite depressed and gloomy during her periods which alternated
with loquacity. She would talk non-stop about anything and everything at these
times.
She also had cramping, or griping pains in the lower abdomen with inflammation
of the ovaries with neuralgic pains which were worse in her right ovary.
Magnesia phosphorica partially relieved her symptoms, and this was followed by
Cimicifuga which cured of the dysmenorrhoea.

There are many different possible remedies which may be appropriate for any
given case. The ultimate choice is made after considering all the possible
factors, signs and symptoms. A remedy is chosen that is most similar to the
total symptom picture expressed by the woman concerned. It often requires
considerable skill and precision in order to make the appropriate choice and it
is wise to consult an experienced homeopath to assist you.

Homeopathy is a centuries-old system of natural medicine that was extremely
popular in Canada and the United States during the latter part of the 19th and
early 20th century. It was so popular in fact that homeopathic hospitals were
present in major Canadian cities including Toronto and Montreal, and Canada’s
first female physician, Emily Stowe, was a homeopathic doctor.

It declined in popularity, partly due to the advent of the so-called
‘wonder-drugs’ in the 1940s and 1950s, but is now making a distinct comeback as
more and more people are disillusioned with the mechanistic and impersonal
nature of modern medicine. Also the fact that homeopathy has a documented
history of over two hundred years of cured cases to its credit, as well as an
untarnished record of safety and gentleness of action, has provided the impetus
for many to rediscover what this amazing system of natural medicine can
accomplish.

Treating painful periods usually requires professional homeopathic treatment to
improve this condition substantially. It is recommend that you consult with a
well-qualified homeopath if you want to be pain free in your monthly cycle.
Source:info@homeopathycanada.com

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