In the mountain forests that surround the resorts on the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus, among the dense shrubs from about the end of July to August you can see growing red, very bright berries. They hang in small clusters from stalks twisting along nearby growing bushes. These are the berries of the Adam root medicinal plant. The appearance of these fiery red fruits is very appetizing, they just ask in the mouth, and, as a rule, children cannot refuse such a temptation. But often this turns into problems, since the plant is poisonous!
Adam's root has a more competent botanical name "ordinary tamus." The plant belongs to the dioscoreian family. The name "Adam root" it received due to the local population of the Caucasus. There are other similar plant names, such as, for example, "inaccessible-root." As the name says, digging up the rhizome of a given plant is a rather difficult task. This is a vertically growing, fleshy, very thick root, which can be up to 1 meter in length. It is often located among the roots of other plants and almost always next to calcareous stones, which are found in large numbers in the local soil of foothill forests rich in humus.
The root, as already mentioned, has an oblong shape, it is very thick, has a black-brown color, and sometimes even black. Numerous roots grow over its entire surface. At the break, it is very juicy, the inside is yellowish in color, and its structure is similar to oil.
The plant itself is very similar to a vine, has several herbaceous stems reaching a length of about 4 meters. The stems twist among the trees and shrubs. The leaves of the tamus have a characteristic shape for dioscoreic plants. They have sharply distinguished venation, the plates are ovoid in shape, the base is deep-hearted, and the tip is pointed. On the stem leaves are arranged next to each other, grow on long petioles.
Adam's root in the field of medicine is quite popular, especially in the Caucasus. Its most common use is healing, it perfectly resolves bruises and bruises, is able to quickly heal some small wounds. In diseases such as sciatica, rheumatism and sciatica, many doctors prescribe Adam root. Its use in such diseases is only external. Sore spots are rubbed with the fresh root of the plant or its decoction, also tincture with vodka. With the solution, you can make various kinds of poultices and use them for massage. Thanks to the essential fatty oils that improve blood circulation, the healing effect comes quickly enough. The use of the Adam root can also be internal. Preparations from the plant have the ability to ideally restore the mucous membranes and remove all kinds of inflammatory processes.
This medicinal plant is rich in mucus, irritants and alkaloids. All of them have a very beneficial effect on human health, and therefore have a wide range of uses. He copes with diseases such as bronchitis, thrombophlebitis, hemorrhoids, varicose veins. A medicinal plant is used for diseases of the lungs and genitourinary system. Since preparations from this plant have wound healing properties, they are indicated for various internal ulcers: stomach, duodenal ulcer. In addition, it is recommended to take as an external remedy for warts, eczema, and this medicinal plant helps with sexual weakness.
In order to prepare medicines, the roots of the plant are used. They dig out in the fall, clean them, rinse them very quickly, moreover, in cold water, then dry them in a warm room, which is well ventilated.