Naturopathy

artichoke

Synonyms in a broader sense

Vegetable synonyms: The artichoke belongs to the composites (Compositae or Asteriacea) and is also called French artichoke, green artichoke and ball artichoke.

Latin name: Cynara scolymus

English: artichoke

Also read:

Effect of the artichoke

Explanation / definition

The medicinal plant artichoke is a perennial, thistle-like, strong plant with one to two meter high stems. She is one of the Daisy family - plants as the chamomile, of the Sun hat or the Marigold.

The sturdy rhizome initially forms a leaf rosette in the first year, from which a sturdy 1.50 m to 2 m high stalk overgrown with prickly leaves grows the next year. The prickly leaves on the artichoke are large, pinnate, thistle-like on the upper side, gray-green and on the underside, slightly lighter, softly prickly. They sit right on the stem with no style. Form at the top of the stem spherical, prickly, purple-green flower headsthat are harvested before they bloom. In the Mediterranean countries, the fleshy flower base or the calyx cups of the artichoke serve as delicacies. The dried and fresh leaf rosette leaves and roots of the medicinal plant artichoke, which is native to the Mediterranean and South America, are used for medicinal purposes. The plant blooms blue-purple in summer and autumn.

Summary

The Medicinal plant artichoke, which belongs to the composites, is a vigorous plant with an equally vigorous rhizome. Known in ancient times, the artichoke is now cultivated as a crop in Italy, France, Spain, Greece and Morocco. She loves a mild climate and clay soils. The medicinal properties of the leaves and roots of the artichoke were already described in the Middle Ages. The fresh or dried basal leaves or the roots of the artichoke, which have a high level of bitter substances like that, are used medicinally today Cynarin to have. This active ingredient is crucial for bile production and thus for the Fat digestion and Lowering cholesterol.

history

The artichoke is an ancient crop from the Mediterranean region. It was used by the Egyptians as early as 500 BC. It was later brought to Europe by the Arabs. Its Arabic name "al-harsuf" means thistle-like plant. In Christian Rome, the garden artichoke was considered a valuable vegetable and medicinal plant. In the 15th century the plant came from France to England and was very popular with the nobility. In the 16th and 17th centuries It has already been described as a medicinal plant for liver and kidney diseases, and the artichoke was also praised by Goethe as an aphrodisiac.

Manufacturing

A high-dose extract from large, annual rosette basal leaves of the artichoke is used for medicinal purposes. Artichoke leaves contain caffeic acid derivatives, flavonoids and sesquiterpene lactones as the most important pharmacologically active ingredients. In addition, the cynarin was discovered in 1952. Scientific studies have found that only the entire complex of ingredients in the artichoke has an effect. In the trade you can find dry extracts, fresh plant juices or alcoholic tinctures that contain artichoke leaves as ready-made preparations.

Dosage form / dose

The medicinal plant artichoke is used in ready-made preparations. These consist of aqueous dry extracts.

In the pharmacy you can get:

Dragees
Capsules
Tablets
drops

A pressed juice made from the fresh artichoke leaves is also suitable for medical applications.
The artichoke as a vegetable has no medicinal effect. To achieve a therapeutic effect, a daily dose of 6 g of dried leaves is recommended (30 g of fresh leaves or 30 ml of pressed juice) the amount is divided into two to three servings before meals. To make tea, take a teaspoon of chopped artichoke leaves and pour 150 ml of hot water over them. Let it steep for 10 minutes and drink one cup before each meal.
Artichokes can also be served in delicious drinks.