Bearberry, the application and useful properties of which will be considered in this article, is an evergreen shrub whose stems rise up. Below, it takes root and additional roots are formed. Those stems that are below are covered with a multi-layer crust having a dark brown color. In length, shoots can reach from twenty-five to one hundred and thirty centimeters. Bearberry leaves are regular, thick, they rest on short petioles. The flowers on this plant grow pitcher, pale pink. They are always collected in small-flowered rising brushes. Its fruits are in the shape of a ball, their color is red, they are not edible. Bearberry, the use of which may be different, blooms in May-July, and begins to bear fruit in August. Externally, bearberry is very similar to lingonberry, but the difference between these plants is very large.
A lot of it can be found in dry light deciduous and pine forests, on the gravelly slopes of the mountains, in young pine plantations, as well as in clearings. You can meet her in the European part of our country, the Far East, as well as Siberia. It can also be found in the Carpathians or in the Caucasus.
People for their purposes use only bearberry leaves. In rare cases, bearberry extract is also made from flowers. Most often, the leaves are dried along with the stems, as in the future it will be easy and simple to separate them. The useful plant is dried in the attic or in a special dryer, in which the temperature can be raised to fifty to eighty degrees. The finished raw material is odorless, and its taste is bitter and astringent
Bearberry, whose use is truly multifaceted, contains methyl arbutin, arbutin glycoside, hydrolyzable tannins, formic, ellagic, quinic, and ursolic acid, gallotanin, ellagotanine, as well as various flavonoids and much more.
Bearberry: application
It contains a substance that has a diuretic, as well as an antiseptic effect. This is a glycoside attributin, which in the kidney breaks down into hydroquinonine and glucose. Hydroquinonine is a useful substance that not only kills microbes, but also eliminates inflammatory processes. Thanks to him, bearberry is an excellent tool for the treatment of the urinary tract and the bladder itself. In general, it is worth noting that the urinary tract of people who take bearberry are cleaned of products of inflammation, as well as of the bacterial flora.
With heart edema, a decoction or infusion of this herb can be used as a medicine. It is also taken with urethritis, pyelitis, with bloody urine, and kidney stones. These funds can also be used in order to prevent involuntary urination.
How to make bearberry broth
To prepare a decoction, you will need ten grams of a plant for every two hundred milliliters of water. With cystitis, it will need to be consumed up to four times a day, two or three teaspoons.
It is also recommended to use it for those people whose nerves are not in the best condition, one might say, to the limit. It will also be useful for venereal diseases. However, in this case, the recipe will be slightly different: For every three glasses of water, one tablespoon of this plant is taken (with a slide). Bearberry is added to water and then boiled until a third of the liquid evaporates. Then the broth is filtered off and drunk two glasses a day.
Bearberry: contraindications
Its use is not possible in acute kidney disease. You can not take it and those who suffer from its individual intolerance. It is prohibited for pregnant and lactating women.
An overdose of it can cause diarrhea, vomiting and other unpleasant moments.