Melilotus officinalis pall.

Family (Legumes) - Fabaceae (Leguminosae)

Донник лекарственный Донник лекарственный

Botanical characteristics. A biennial herbaceous plant. Root stem penetrates deep into 1.5 m. Stalk is straight, branchy, up to 2 m high, pubescent in upper part. Leaves are alternate, petiolate, triple. The flowers are yellow, collected in axillary brushes. Fetus is an ovoid bean with a subulate spout. Blossoms in June - August, seeds ripen in October. Seeds are yellowish-green, oval-elongated. There are several species. All kinds are externally similar to each other, close in chemical composition, can be used similarly in medicine and are medicinal.

Spread. It is widely distributed in the forest and forest-steppe regions of our country. It grows on vacant lots, along roads, like a weed in the fields and meadows.

Used parts of the plant. Medicinal raw materials are grass sweet clover. Collect shoots up to 15 cm during flowering and dry in dryers or in shade in bunches. The plant has a pleasant aroma. Store in closed banks.

As a medicinal plant, the clover is known for a long time. The above-ground part is included in the domestic pharmacopoeia of the 1-13th editions, is officinal in Germany, Austria, Poland, Romania, the Netherlands.

Chemical composition. The aboveground part of the clover contains flavonoids, tannins, coumarins (melilotozide, coumarin and its derivatives), organic acids (coumaric, melilot, etc.), carbohydrates, vitamins, essential oil.

Application. Has spasmolytic, wound healing, resorption, analgesic, anticonvulsant, emollient, expectorant and lactogenic action.

In medical practice, preparations of clover are prescribed as anticonvulsant, with stenocardia and occlusion of coronary vessels, are included in charges for the treatment of rheumatism.

In folk medicine used as an emollient, expectorant, analgesic for respiratory diseases, menopausal ailments, with pain in the bladder and kidneys, migraine, purulent inflammation of the middle ear, headache, hypertension, atherosclerosis, psychoses; Externally - with furuncles, mastitis, articular rheumatism, malignant tumors, as antibacterial.

In Bulgaria, preparations of clover are used as anticoagulants and fibrinolytic agents, hypotensive; In Poland - with insomnia, neurasthenia, heart disease; In France - as an antispasmodic and astringent; In Tibetan medicine is part of the complex formulations used for various gynecological diseases and upper respiratory tract; In Chinese medicine - with encephalitis; In Indian medicine - as hemostatic, with flatulence.

Drug preparation "Meliozin" is proposed for use as a biostimulating agent, the effect of which is twice higher than the extract of aloe.

Recently, there is evidence that the preparations of the clover reduce the number of leukocytes in the blood in patients with radiation sickness, and in combination with grass, mother-and-stepmother used for inflammation of the ovaries, mammary glands, have antitumor effect.

Homeopathy. Widely used in homeopathy Melilotus 3, 3, 6. Homeopathic anticoagulant: causes a gradual and persistent decrease in the prothrombin index, side effects are not observed. Assign with ischemic heart disease, hypertension, atherosclerosis, for the prevention of thromboembolism and thrombosis. It is also indicated for severe headaches accompanied by a rush of blood to the face and to the head; With spasms, convulsions, epilepsy. Typical symptoms for the appointment of the drug are: deterioration in the wet weather, from physical stress, at 16 o'clock in the afternoon.

Preparation

  • To prepare the infusion, take 6 g of crushed leaves and flowers, pour 180 ml of boiling water, insist on a water-boiling bath for 15 minutes, cool for 45 minutes, filter, bring to the desired volume with water, squeezing out the remainder. Take 2 tbsp. Spoons 2-3 times a day after meals.
  • Often, preparations of sweet clover are used for varicose veins. To do this, it is better to prepare the ointment as follows: 2 tbsp. Spoons of herbs brew a glass of boiling water, boil on low heat until evaporation of half the original volume, drain. For 1 part of the prepared decoction take 2 parts of Vaseline and 2 parts of lanolin, or replace with another fat base or cream. For this purpose, you can use fresh juice of a flowering plant, which rubs painful places from the bottom up.

Contraindications. Poisonous plant. In case of an overdose, there may be a headache, nausea, bleeding of the mucous membranes. It is advisable to use clover only in collections together with other medicinal herbs.

The spicy-aromatic properties of the clover are caused by the content of coumarin in it, which lowers coagulability of the blood, so the grass of the sweet clover should be used with caution to people with reduced blood coagulability, under the supervision of a doctor.