Celandine big

Chelidonium majus L.

Botanical characteristics. Family poppy. A perennial herbaceous plant up to 1 m high. The root is rooted, branched, sometimes furry. When notched, the entire plant produces yellowish milky juice. Stem bristly, branched. Leaves odd-pinned, regular. The flowers are small, golden yellow, collected in simple umbrellas. Blooms from June to early August. Fruit is a pod-shaped capsule, ripens in August-September.

Spread. It grows in the European part of Russia (except the Far North), the Urals, Siberia, the Caucasus. It grows on forest edges, like a weed in kitchen gardens, near stone walls, on stony slopes and forest edges.

Used parts of the plant. Grass, roots and fresh plant juice.
In the grass of the celandine there are alkaloids chelidonin, homochelidonin, chelerythrine, methoxyhelidonin, oxyhelidonin, sanguinarine, protopin,? -allocriptonin,? -allocriptonin, spartein, etc. In addition to alkaloids, essential oils, vitamins (ascorbic acid and carotene), flavonoids, Saponins and acids (citric, malic, amber and chelidonic).
The alkaloids of the celandine have been studied. In an animal experiment, chelidonin has an effect similar to morphine: it causes oppression and paralysis of the central nervous system; Homochelidonin acts as a convulsive poison; Sanguinarin stimulates the secretion of the salivary glands and enhances the intestinal peristalsis, has a narcotic effect, protopin tones the smooth muscles of the uterus and reduces the threshold of excitability of the autonomic nervous system.

Application. Has choleretic, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antitumor and diuretic effect. It is prescribed for hepatitis, cholecystitis, cholangitis, pancreatitis, peptic ulcer of stomach and duodenum, polyposis of stomach and intestine, ulcerative nonspecific colitis. It has an easy laxative effect.
In folk medicine, grass, roots and fresh celandine juice are used for various skin diseases (both inside and outside), sluggishly healing wounds, neoplasms, in the treatment of calluses and scabies.
The purifier has a calming effect on the nervous system, has hypotensive and spasmolytic effects, can be useful in the treatment of neuroses, neurocirculatory dystonia in cardiac and hypertonic type, thyrotoxicosis and epilepsy.

Contraindications. Due to the purity of the celandine, treatment should be carried out under the supervision of a doctor, starting with small doses or applying it in collections in a mixture with other plants.

Preparation. Infusion: 2 teaspoons of herbs for 1 cup of boiling water - daily intake for oral administration. Infusion for external use: 2 tablespoons of herbs for 500 ml of water.
Homeopathic Chelidonium 3x, 3, 6 is most often used in liver diseases. Characteristic symptoms: deterioration in damp and cold weather, improvement in a warm room, aversion to cold drink and to meat,
Attraction to hot coffee, right-sided means. Sometimes it is advisable to appoint Chelidonium for pneumonia and pleurisy, gout, headaches with dizziness and weakness, cancer of the stomach and liver.