Do you know what medicinal properties oak bark has? I am sure that many of you have already managed to make sure that it is simply priceless. Well, if suddenly you do not know about it, read this article, the information will be useful to you for getting rid of many health problems. But first, a little about the plant itself.
Oak - a fairly large, deciduous tree, up to 50 m in height, belongs to the beech family. He lives up to 500 years, and some trees - up to 2000 years, reaching a diameter of 4 meters. The oak has sprawling foliage and a powerful root, its bark is smooth, and in old oaks it is fissured, the leaves are oblong, shiny. A tree grows in oak forests and deciduous forests.
For medicinal raw materials, oak bark is mainly used, which is harvested before the leaves appear, during the sap flow (when the buds open), and it is stored only in bags. Only young trees can be used to collect bark. The shelf life of such raw materials is 5 years. There is no smell in dry bark, but if you soak it in water (especially hot), a characteristic aroma inherent in fresh bark will appear. Taste is astringent. You can procure raw materials yourself or buy in a pharmacy.
Slavs, ancient Romans and Greeks considered the tree sacred, worshiped it and attributed many miraculous properties. And now this raw material is a popular treatment for all sorts of ailments.
Oak Bark: Chemical Composition
The bark of a mighty tree contains tannins, acids, resins, flavonoids, pectins, sugars, fatty oils, ellagic acid, starch, protein substances, levulin, flobafen. Of course, all these and many of its other components did not go unnoticed. Therefore, the bark has found such widespread use in folk and official medicine.
Decoctions are made from oak bark, powder is used as powder, and tincture is used as a therapeutic and cosmetic product.
Oak bark: properties, uses and recipes
Oak bark has inherent astringent, antiseptic, wound healing and anti-inflammatory properties.
In addition, tannins (tannin) contained in the bark also determine the tanning property. So, when applying oak preparations to wounds and mucous membranes, the processes of inflammation are inhibited and pain is reduced. The same property is successfully used for indigestion, with the aim of "fixing" the intestines, and also for the treatment of the skin of the head.
Outwardly, in the form of rinses, oak bark is used for gums, mucous membranes of the pharynx, pharynx, oral cavity and larynx, coping with inflammatory ailments.
Without the help of oak bark can not do with burns of varying severity. And if you have a problem with excessive sweating, oak bark will also help you.
This remedy is used in the form of a decoction and for rickets, diseases of the spleen and liver, scrofula, gastric or intestinal bleeding, colitis, enterocolitis, dysentery, scurvy, bedsores, cholera, poisoning with copper and lead salts or mushrooms.
Oak bark is sure to come to the rescue in cases of diarrhea or heavy menstruation. They successfully use it for whites in women, and also for bad breath, pharyngitis, gingivitis, stomatitis, tonsillitis and tonsillitis.
For frostbite, sweating of the hands and feet, skin diseases and hemorrhoids, baths with the addition of a decoction of the bark are recommended. And with inflammation of the eyes, lotions are applied.
Lotions are also made on burn surfaces, due to which a film is formed on the burn areas that prevents the penetration of microbes and protects against chemical irritants, which makes the tissue regeneration process faster. Eczema, burns and leg ulcers can be treated with compresses with decoction from the bark.
And now I would like to present to your attention some recipes based on this medicinal raw material.
1. To lubricate bedsores in bedridden patients, an ointment is made: 2 parts of oak bark, part of black poplar buds, 7 parts of cow's oil. Put the ingredients in a cast-iron dish, put in a warm oven overnight, in the morning boil the mixture for half an hour over low heat, filter, squeeze and pour into a jar. After cooling, treat the affected areas with ointment.
2. When you sweat your feet, make such a bath: 50 g of oak bark is poured with a liter of boiling water, and as soon as the water cools down, lower it into it for 15-20 minutes. legs. Making daily such baths, in 10 days you will forget about this problem.
3. A decoction for combating diarrhea, gastritis, stomach or intestinal bleeding (inside), as well as for rinsing with tonsillitis, stomatitis and other problems in the oral cavity: pour 20 g of oak bark with a glass of boiled chilled water and put in a water bath for half an hour, stirring regularly. After that, remove and cool the broth, filter and take inside 100 ml in the morning, at lunchtime and in the evening (or rinse).
4. For the treatment of burns, eczema, hemorrhoids, excessive sweating of the legs and hands, various ulcers and wounds, such an decoction is used externally: pour 200 grams of water with 40 g of bark, let it boil for half an hour, then leave it to infuse for 2 hours, filter and use it bath, enemas or lotions.
5. For stomach bleeding, female diseases with heavy periods, frequent urination, kidney ailments, an English disease, the appearance of blood in the urine and diarrhea, a decoction is taken from 40 g of oak bark per liter of water.
With all this, preparations from oak bark do not have side effects or contraindications, which is a significant advantage over other medical devices and drugs. So feel free to use oak bark for the benefit of your health!