Motherwort tincture: benefits and harms, combined with valerian

Motherwort tincture has long been used in folk and Western medicine. Its benefits and harms have been studied and verified by research.

It is widely used for sedation and for: skin diseases with functional neuroses, atherosclerosis, type 2 diabetes mellitus, thyroid problems, pain in the first days of menstruation, menopause, prostatitis, prostate adenoma. Motherwort pentaloba is included in some laxative preparations.

Preparations from both motherworts (pictured below) help well in recovery from the flu, including coronaviruses, and other infectious diseases.

In medicine, 2 of the 15 types of motherworts are used - cardiac (I) and five-lobed (II)

These, by the way, perennial, herbaceous plants of the family Yasontaceae (Lamiaceae) are so popular and in demand that they have long been cultivated on an industrial scale. People often call motherwort “dog nettle.” In cardiological practice, both the cardiac or ordinary and the five-lobed species of this plant are used.

A doctor can prescribe motherwort for the heart for: cardiovascular neuroses, tachycardia, arterial hypertension I–II, angina pectoris, myocardial dystrophy, cardiosclerosis, myocarditis, and some types of heart defects.

Pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics

Motherwort is a herbaceous perennial plant, classified by botany into the Lamiaceae or Lamiaceae family. The generic scientific name of this plant translated from Latin sounds like “lion’s tail”, due to the distant similarity of the apical leaves with the tassel of a lion’s tail. Other common names are dog nettle (grass), heart grass , dead nettle, heart grass . From these names themselves, it becomes clear what motherwort helps with and for what diseases its medicinal properties will be useful.

Photo of the Motherwort plant

Motherwort herb, medicinal properties and contraindications

According to Wikipedia, in medical practice and folk recipes for the preparation of motherwort tincture, the benefits and harms of which will be discussed below, two types of this medicinal herb are used, namely: Motherwort Five-lobed (shaggy) and Motherwort Heart (ordinary), since the effects of other types of plants have been studied not good enough. The infusion is prepared from the dried upper parts of the plant, including flowers and leaves, for which the extractant can be ethanol ( ethyl alcohol ), more suitable for adult patients, or water (boiling water), which is the preferred solution base for children.

The medicinal properties and contraindications for motherwort tincture are dictated by the properties of the plant components included in the prepared raw materials. Dry motherwort herb includes alkaloids (stahydrine, leonuridine, choline , leonurine), beta-carotene , flavonoids ( quercetin , rutin , quinqueloside, cosmosin, quercimeritrin, hyperoside, etc.), leonuride, saponins , mineral salts (sulfur, potassium, sodium, calcium), approximately 5% tannins , vitamins (A, C, E), up to 0.05% essential oil, sugary and bitter ingredients, organic acids (citric, vanillic, malic, ursolic, tartaric), due to which similar effects occur valerian is sedative in nature .

Photo of motherwort grass

Motherwort is characterized by its positive effect on the functionality of the central nervous system, calming effects, potentiation of sleep (without a hypnotic effect), reduction of high nervous excitability , antagonism towards analeptics and their convulsive effects. The effectiveness of this remedy is observed in neurasthenia , psychoasthenia and neuroses occurring against the background of insomnia , a feeling of overexertion and increased reactivity. The drug is capable of correcting disorders of the nervous system of a functional nature that occur during premenopause and menopause .

Motherwort is also an effective remedy for blood pressure ( lowers blood pressure or increases blood circulation, heart rate and slows down the heart rate), is used for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular pathologies ( angina pectoris , myocarditis, cardiosclerosis , palpitations, etc.), and is used for VSD ( vegetative-vascular dystonia ) to regulate heart rate.

The use of motherwort herb is useful in the treatment of gastrointestinal ulcers , painful menstruation, epilepsy , dyspeptic symptoms, thrombosis , bronchial asthma , Graves' disease , shortness of breath , uterine bleeding, paralysis , neuralgia , cough and other painful conditions in which its positive medicinal properties are manifested. The drug has a general strengthening, diuretic, antispastic and anti-inflammatory effect. In homeopathy it is used in case of patient complaints of flatulence , cardiac dysfunction and hyperthyroidism .

However, when using this herbal preparation, it is necessary to take into account not only the beneficial properties, but also the contraindications of motherwort, because often the benefits and harms of motherwort herb depend on the dosage of the remedy, the appropriateness of its use and the correctness of use. For example, motherwort in any form is contraindicated for pregnant women due to the increased threat of miscarriage , provoked by stimulation of uterine contractile function, for hypotensive patients due to a decrease in the drug , for women with heavy, prolonged menstruation , due to the possibility of their intensification. Alcohol tincture should not be taken by people suffering from alcoholism , and an aqueous solution and other motherwort preparations should not be taken by people with allergies .

How does motherwort affect the heart and other body systems?

Positive effects of motherwort on the body:

• sedative, antispasmodic and anticonvulsant effects;
• improved digestion;
• promoting the normalization of carbohydrate-lipid metabolism by, albeit slightly, reducing blood glucose levels, removing lactic acid, cholesterol and triglycerides;
• maintaining normal levels of protein metabolism;
• improving the quality and duration of sleep;
• reducing the severity of headaches;
• maintaining immunity;
• moderate choleretic and laxative effects.

In addition to this motherwort tincture, the physical properties of this dosage form give it antimicrobial, fungicidal and antitumor effects, both internally and externally.

Table - Motherwort: benefits and harm for the heart and the body as a whole:

Attention. The use of any of the Motherwort Cardiac drugs is prohibited for pregnant women in the first trimester and breastfeeding, children under 12 years of age, with stomach and/or duodenal ulcers, hypotension, bradycardia.

Children from 12 to 18 years old and those who have problems with the liver and/or alcohol, have epileptic attacks or have other brain pathologies accompanied by a lowered seizure threshold, as well as pregnant women in the 2nd–3rd trimester, can be treated with tincture of “dog nettle”. only after a doctor's prescription.

All dosage forms with motherwort enhance the effect of cardiac glycosides

The instructions for drugs containing “dog nettle” rarely contain instructions on the exact dosage regimen. The effective dose is selected individually, gradually and under the supervision of the treating specialist.

Motherwort + valerian

Motherwort and valerian together are recommended for use in cases where by themselves, even in significant doses, they provide little calming effect.

Combination preparations of motherwort (valerian, hawthorn, glycine) popular in the Russian Federation

You can drink preparations of these herbs in the proportion that the doctor will select, but for most, a ready-made combination of “dog nettle” and valerian in a ratio of 2 to 1 gives a sedative and hypnotic effect. This gives excellent results for sedation and the heart in combination with glycine.

By the way, here is advice for those who have stopped helping hawthorn. Pay attention to its combination with “dog nettle”. Due to the presence of significant amounts of rutin, quercetin, quercetin-7-glucoside, isoquercetin, as well as quinqueloside, cosmosin and hyperoside, it has a more pronounced antioxidant effect, reducing the permeability and fragility of capillaries.

In conclusion, we suggest watching the video in this article on the topic: Motherwort (herb). Benefits and harms of regular use.

Indications for use

Indications for use of Motherwort tincture include:

• arterial hypertension in the initial stage;
• neurotic and asthenoneurotic painful conditions occurring with sleep disturbances ;
• neurocirculatory dystonia;
• feeling of irritability;
• neurasthenia;
• manifestations of vegetative-vascular dystonia ;
• tachycardia and increased excitability observed with hyperthyroidism ;
• neuroses of cardiovascular origin;
• vegetative neuroses during premenopause, accompanied by cardialgia , tachycardia and elevated blood pressure;
• mild sleep disturbances
• emotional excitement.

Contraindications

Contraindications to taking Motherwort tincture are:

• personal hypersensitivity ;
• pregnancy / lactation ;
• alcoholism (for alcohol tincture);
• ulcerative pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract during exacerbation;
• heavy/prolonged menstrual bleeding ;
• severe phase of arterial hypotension ;
• age up to 12 years.

You should take this medication with caution when:

• liver diseases;
• traumatic brain injuries;
• brain pathologies;
• in childhood (after 12 years).

Side effects

When taking Motherwort medicinal tincture, the following side effects may be observed:

• local allergic manifestations , most often expressed by redness , swelling of the skin and/or skin rash / itching (in case of personal hypersensitivity);
• feeling dizzy ;
• phenomena of dyspepsia ;
• fast fatiguability;
• daytime decrease in physical/mental performance;
• drowsiness.

Motherwort tincture, instructions for use

It should be remembered that you should not self-prescribe any sedative medications , which include motherwort herb. Before taking Motherwort tincture, you need to consult with your doctor, who, after conducting all the necessary research and the advisability of using this tincture, will recommend how to take it in drops and how many drops an adult patient or child should take. Also, if a patient is diagnosed with painful conditions associated with emotional arousal , the doctor can advise how to drink it to calm down.

Motherwort tincture drops are indicated for oral administration only, which is best taken approximately 30 minutes before meals. Patients of the adult age category (after 18 years) are recommended to take 30-50 drops of infusion 3-4 times every 24 hours. For children over 12 years of age, the dosage is calculated based on the ratio of 1 drop of alcohol solution per 1 year of life. The tincture can be taken either in pure form or diluted with water (¼ cup).

The duration of the therapeutic course is determined by the doctor individually, taking into account the degree and nature of the severity of the disease state, the characteristics of the pathological process, the patient’s personal response to the treatment and therapeutic effectiveness.

Motherwort cordial: description and pharmacognosy

Motherwort can be bought in pharmacies in the form of dry crushed raw materials, including those packaged in tea filter bags, as well as in the form of tincture (drops), liquid extract, syrup, food gel, tablets, both in “pure” form and and in combination with other plant materials, for example, valerian, hawthorn, glycine.

Motherwort cardiac extract VIS in capsules is especially popular. The price of all dosage forms of “dog nettle” is affordable to the general population.

Dosage forms of preparations with motherwort: dry crushed raw materials, tincture, liquid extract, tablets, capsules

For medicinal purposes, the upper 40 cm of the stem, along with leaves, buds, flowers and young fruits, is cut off at the beginning of flowering (in July) and quickly dried in direct sunlight.

For your information. Other uses of this plant are also widespread. It is sown as a honey plant and cultivated for the production of ECO fabric and ECO green dye. The seeds are used to make a waterproof varnish for impregnating fabric and paper.

The basis of the medicinal use of “dog nettle”:

• the presence of a large amount of choline, saponins, flavonoids and iridoids;
• tannins and marubin bitterness;
• multicomponent essential oil;
• significant (0.4%), but not prohibitive content of such valuable alkaloids as: leonurine, leonuridine, stachidrine.

Raw materials, preparations and tincture of motherwort for the heart are valued for the fact that they contain caffeic acid glycoside, steroidal glycosides, triterpenes, and diterpenoids.

Analogs

Analogs of Motherwort tincture include medicinal preparations similar to it in their sedative and cardiotonic effects:

• Valerian (tincture, raw materials, tablets);
• Alora;
• Peony tincture;
• Bioson;
• Melissa (tincture, raw material);
• Antistress;
• Belisa;
• Hawthorn (tincture, raw material);
• Corvalol;
• Valemidin;
• Sonafit;
• Valdispert;
• Corvaldin;
• Dormiplant;
• Barboval;
• Sungmil;
• Valocormid;
• Tricardin;
• Karvelis;
• Menovalen;
• Korvaltab;
• Sedasen;
• Novo-Passit;
• Quiet;
• Persen;
• Sedavit;
• Phytosed;
• Donormil;
• Florised , etc.

Which is better – motherwort or valerian?

There is no clear answer to the question of which is better - motherwort or valerian . These medicinal plants are very similar in their main action and, by and large, differ only in some contraindications and the degree of their effectiveness. When choosing one of these therapeutic agents, the doctor, first of all, must be guided by the characteristics of the disease diagnosed in the patient and his individual response to the treatment, according to which a personal therapeutic regimen is selected.

In turn, both of these drugs are often mixed and recommended to be used together in different combinations of sedative medications, both factory-made and home-made. The most common folk recipe that receives positive reviews is the VKPBP , which includes five tinctures: peony

,
valerian , motherwort , corvalol , hawthorn .

Tincture of peony, hawthorn, motherwort, valerian, corvalol

Before taking motherwort , valerian , hawthorn , peony , Corvalol , you need to purchase these tinctures at the pharmacy and mix them in a dark glass vessel in equal proportions, for example, 25 ml each (in this case, you can limit yourself to 15 ml Corvalol ), after which take 10-15 drops orally every day (allowed with ¼ glass of water). In case of insufficient positive effect and in the absence of allergic manifestations, you can increase the daily dosage to 25 drops.

Reviews of a mixture of tinctures of valerian , motherwort , hawthorn , peony , Corvalol indicate a significantly greater sedative and cardiotonic effectiveness of this mixture, but also warn patients against its uncontrolled and excessive use, since such soothing drops not only multiply the positive properties of plants, but also potentiate their side effects.

Motherwort tincture during pregnancy (and lactation)

The question of whether pregnant women can take motherwort, and whether this drug can be taken while breastfeeding , certainly worries many women, since the state of their nervous system during these periods is not in the best condition and often requires external support. The answer to the question of whether it is possible to drink motherwort tincture during pregnancy and during breastfeeding (breastfeeding) can be found in the official instructions, in which these stages in a woman’s life are listed as contraindications to the use of the drug due to the inclusion of ethyl alcohol . However, as practice shows, not everything is so simple and for pregnant and lactating women there is a way out of this situation, which consists in taking an aqueous solution of motherwort or tablets based on it, reviews of which are positive even in these cases.

Tablets or water tincture of motherwort during pregnancy in the early stages, or in later periods, as well as during lactation , can be taken by women, and sometimes even recommended for use, in order to bring their nervous system into a proper positive state, contributing to the normal overcoming of this difficult time.

Motherwort: medicinal properties and contraindications

Due to the content of a large number of essential oils, which have a relaxing effect on the central nervous system, motherwort is very calming. This medicinal plant is mainly used as a sedative.

The medicinal properties of motherwort are similar to the medicinal effects of valerian officinalis and are mainly aimed at obtaining certain effects in order to heal the human body with various kinds of neurasthenic diseases.

Why motherwort is useful:

• It has positive results in eliminating hysterical attacks.
• Increases stress resistance.
• Reduces irritability.
• Relieves attacks of neurasthenia, increased nervous excitability and emotional tension.
• Strengthens and calms sleep, eliminates insomnia and gradually brings the onset of natural sleep to a normal state.
• Reduces muscle spasms.
• Calms the nervous system as a whole.
• Eliminates the general state of anxiety, fear, tension.

But these are not all the healing properties that motherwort has. Thanks to its rich composition, which includes essential oils, vitamin A, organic acids, glycosides and much more, this healing plant is successfully and effectively used to obtain other results important for human health.

Additional benefits that motherwort has on the body:

• It has a beneficial effect on the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, relieves spasms of the smooth muscles of the gastrointestinal tract, and improves the digestion process.
• Gently relieves gastrointestinal disorders and inflammation of the large intestine.
• Relieves flatulence and facilitates the removal of gases from the intestines.
• Gently normalizes high blood pressure.
• Has a mild diuretic effect.
• Relieves cramps from headaches and menstrual pain.
• It has an antibacterial, anti-inflammatory effect, which helps restore the integrity of the skin, heal burns, cuts, wounds and ulcers, and relieves skin inflammation.
• Stops the development of vegetative-vascular dystonia.
• Reduces rushes of blood to the head in women during menopause.
• Relieves coughing attacks, shortness of breath due to bronchitis, asthma.
• Stimulates the functioning of the immune system.
• Improves coronary blood supply to the myocardium, which prevents the manifestation of coronary heart disease.
• Eliminates spasms and functional disorders of the cardiovascular system, normalizing the functioning of the heart as a whole, normalizes rapid heartbeat, and increases the strength of heart contractions.
• Effective when used for diseases of the thyroid gland.

Reviews of Motherwort tincture

sedative herbal preparations are quite often discussed on the Internet , which, naturally, includes motherwort tincture, reviews of which in the vast majority of cases are completely positive. People who use this tincture, or the mixtures in which it is included, to maintain their nervous system in adequate condition, as well as to treat various heart disorders, note the high effectiveness of this remedy and the almost complete absence of negative side effects. Among the negative qualities, the most often mentioned are the bitter taste ethanol content .

It is precisely because of the alcohol base of motherwort tincture that most women are afraid of using it during pregnancy and breastfeeding , however, there are those who practice taking small doses of this drug and do not see this as a significant problem.

Composition of the tincture

The perennial herbaceous plant has about 15 varieties, each of which has pronounced medicinal properties. This is ensured by the high content of nutrients in the roots, leaves and stems of motherwort:

• Essential oils. They have a positive effect on the nervous system, which is the basis of the calming effect.
• Alkaloids, in particular leotine. Dilates blood vessels, stabilizes heart rhythm, and enhances the contractile functions of the heart. This leads to a reduction in high blood pressure and overall health of the body.
• Flavonoids. Biological substances of increased activity that can relieve spasms and inflammation, eliminate swelling, and calm the nervous system. Thanks to them, motherwort tincture protects human tissues from the harmful effects of the environment due to its antioxidant effects.
• Tannins. Natural antiseptics that can inhibit inflammatory processes.
• Carbohydrates, mineral salts, vitamins, pigments. They are contained in motherwort in a volume sufficient to trigger a number of biochemical reactions. These phenomena lead to a general strengthening of the body.

For medicinal purposes, a medicine is usually used, which contains extracts of motherwort cordial and motherwort five-lobed, 70% ethanol. The liquid should be greenish-brown in color; sediment may be present. The mixture should be shaken before each use.