Meadowsweet or "bee grass" is a medicinal plant known since Antiquity for its analgesic and febrifuge virtues. It was during the 20th century that chemists were able to extract salicylic acid, which is none other than the famous aspirin. Discover now the benefits of meadowsweet on your health.
Qu'est-ce la reine des près ? Quels sont les bienfaits de la reine des prés ?
The meadowsweet gets its name from its elegant appearance. It is a perennial melliferous plant that grows in temperate and humid lands of Europe, Asia and America. It can reach 2m in height and is quite common in gardens and meadows. Only the flowering tops are used in natural medicine. They are collected in June-July at the beginning of the bloom.
Chemical composition of the flowering tops
Meadowsweet flowers are mainly composed of :
- phenolic acids including salicylic acid,
- flavonoids: quercetol and kaempferol heterosides,
- monoanthocyanins,
- tanins,
- mucilages,
- silicic acid.
The concentration of these chemical elements depends directly on the nature of the soil, the quality of sunlight and the drying and storage conditions.
When to use meadowsweet?
Meadowsweet is a natural remedy which allows to relieve any inflammatory pathology whose origin is an excess of acid such as :
- arthrose, arthrite,
- inflammatory flare-ups,
- tendon inflammations,
- cramps, aches and pains, lower back pain,
- gout attack,
- cellulite.
How to benefit from the advantages of meadowsweet?
It is customary to never boil meadowsweet.
- Internal use :
1 dessert spoon of cut plant in 1 cup of almost boiling water (approximately 80°C) and let infuse 10 minutes. 3 to 5 cups per day between meals.
One can also simply chew a small quantity of plant, crush it or grind it (in a coffee grinder for example) and take regularly, between meals, a pinch of the crushed or ground plant.
To relieve headaches, generally, infuse 1 to 2 tablespoons of dried flowers in 250 ml of almost boiling water, strain and drink up to 3 cups per day.
For cellulite: pour 1/4 liter of almost boiling water on 1 tablespoon of plant, let macerate overnight and drink upon awakening.
- External use:
2 handfuls of plants per liter of almost boiling water, let infuse 15 minutes. In hot applications on the rheumatisms, in compresses on the wounds and ulcers.
- Dried leaves and flowers, enclosed in small cloth bags put in the cupboards, perfume the linen and keep away the moths.
What are the main pharmacological properties of meadowsweet?
Anti-inflammatory
The queen of the meadows reduces the synthesis of prostaglandins and thromboxanes responsible for the inflammatory response. Salicylic acid is synthesized in the intestines from the salicosides present in it. Therefore, it has the same properties as aspirin without the drawbacks of the latter. It is therefore anti-inflammatory, analgesic and anti-platelet aggregation.
Antibacterial
The queen of the meadows is active against Gram (+) and Gram (-) bacteria and in particular against staphylococcus aureus and colibacillus thanks to flavonoids and salicylic acid.
Anti-collagenase
Tannins have one of the most important elastase inhibiting activities according to a 1990 study*.
Immun-modulatrice
Meadowsweet is a plant that limits the proliferation of T cells.
Anticoagulant
Meadowsweet contains a component similar to animal heparin. Thus, we can say that it has a significant anti-coagulant activity.
Action astringente
This wild plant decreases the permeability of capillaries and cell membranes. It is also anti-diarrheal. It accelerates the drying of the wounds and the ulcers.
Antioxidant
Flavonoids are antioxidants of plant origin. They allow to fight against the free radicals and their misdeeds: premature ageing of the cells.
Diuretic
The queen of the meadows activates the elimination of waste by the kidneys via the urines with excretion of sodium (natriuretic) and potassium (kaliuretic). It purifies the organism of the presence in excess of crystals.
Contraindication to the consumption of meadowsweet
The queen of the meadows is contraindicated in people who are allergic to salicylates (aspirin) or who should not take aspirin because of drug interactions.
Moreover, they are not recommended for children with fever, pregnant or breast-feeding women. Finally, in case of nephritis, it should be avoided.
Meadowsweet should never be associated with paracetamol (toxic for the kidneys) or with tetracycline or penicillin, the risk being to trigger spontaneous bleeding.
What are the side effects of eating meadowsweet?
Meadowsweet can decrease vascular permeability, trigger skin reactions, increase uterine tone, cause digestive bleeding, nausea and even vomiting. Finally, it is a plant which acidifies the urine which can cause renal irritation and/or buzzing.
To conclude
Meadowsweet has a herbaceous, slightly bitter flavor. It plays an important role in the elimination of water in the tissues, has a recognized ability to absorb toxins (causes of cellulite and rheumatism) and to soothe neuralgia and migraines, thanks to its salicylic compounds.
These last compounds have an anti-inflammatory and analgesic action that is both gentle, progressive and perfectly well tolerated, and make meadowsweet and willow considered as "plant aspirins" but with the advantages of aspirin without its disadvantages.
Sources:
* LAMAISON JL et al. [Tannin contetn and inhibiting activity of elastase inRosaceae]. Ann. Pharm Fr 1990; 48(6) 335-340