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Yarrow Achilles Healing Herb

Yarrow Achilles Healing Herb

Yarrow is a modest plant, frequently found in the mildly disturbed soil of grasslands and open forests, near the water streams and in the meadows. The herb is purported to be a diaphoretic, astringent, tonic, stimulant and mild aromatic. It contains isovaleric acid, salicylic acid, asparagin, sterols, flavonoids, bitters, alkaloids, tannins, and coumarins. In the Middle Ages, yarrow was part of a herbal mixture known as gruit used in the flavouring of beer prior to the use of hops. The flowers and leaves are used in making some liquors and bitters. Yarrow has also been used as a food, and was very popular as a vegetable in the seventeenth century. The younger leaves are said to be a pleasant leaf vegetable when cooked as spinach, or in a soup. Yarrow is sweet with a slight bitter taste. The leaves can also be dried and used as a herb in cooking (source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achillea_millefolium ).

Rituals and beliefs

In Chinese culture, the most authentic way to cast the Yi Jing is to use dried yarrow stalks because the stems are considered lucky and good for divining the future. Oriental tradition assured mountain wanderers that where the yarrow grew neither tigers nor wolves nor poisonous plants would be found.

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Coach for Happiness

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Yarrow Achilles Healing Herb

Homer wrote that the centaur Chiron, who conveyed herbal secrets to his human pupils, taught Achilles to use yarrow on the battle grounds of Troy, to stop the bleeding wounds of his soldiers. In Western European tradition, yarrow was a witching herb, used to summon the devil or drive him away. Yarrow was one of the herbs put in Saxon amulets, for protection from everything from blindness to barking dogs. A folk belief states that if you hang a bunch of dried yarrow or yarrow that had been used in wedding decorations over the bed, you can ensure a lasting love for at least seven years. Medicinal Parts Used: flowers, whole aerial part.

Health benefits
Yarrow can be used in a large number of health ailments: Hepatitis a Japanese research conducted in2006 studied the Hepatoprotective activity of fresh juice extracted from the Yarrow flowers and stems. The animals used for testing were intoxicated with deathly hepatitis causing substances; 40% of the animals treated with the fresh juice survived, whereas the animals that did not receive it died in a 100% percentage. Biliary dyskinesia A team of scientist form the University of Vienna proved that the active principles of Yarrow have an intense choleretic effect (increasing the evacuation of the gall). Colecistitis the volatile oil contained in the Yarrow flowers has an anti-inflammatory and calming effect on the gall bladder.

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Coach for Happiness

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Yarrow Achilles Healing Herb

Dyspepsia, indigestion Yarrow improves the peristaltic movement, increase the production of gastric acid and reduce the nausea. Colitis, spastic colitis many studies conducted in Germany and U.S.A. showed that certain aromatic substances and the flavonoids in the yarrow significantly reduce the inflammation of the small and large intestines, help with the healing of injured epithelial tissues, and effectively stop the digestive spasms. (especially when combined with St. Johns wort) Infections Achilleine, a substance found in the Yarrows flowers,protects against infections, by changing the resistance of the cellular membrane, which will become less permissive to the viruses and bacterias. Internal bleeding The same alkaloid, Achilleine, helps with the fast healing of the internal lesions. Acne studies conducted at the Medical Institute of Washington, U.S., show that yarrow has both antimicrobial properties and stimulating effects on the digestive apparatus; combined with the detoxifying effect on the liver and gall bladder. Open wounds fresh juice or tincture applied straight on the wound, after it was thoroughly disinfected, helps with a fast and almost miraculous healing. Cutaneous allergy Cold Yarrow infusion applied for at least two hours a day on the affected areas, reduce the itches, and the oedemas. Chemical burns Yarrow oil helps healing rapidly and without scars chemical burns, including wounds made by napalm.

Copyright 2012 www.coachforhappiness.eu/blog

Coach for Happiness

Making change possible

Yarrow Achilles Healing Herb

Cautions:
- Pregnant women should be careful not to overdose (do not exceed 5grams/day) - Persons that have certain allergy sensitivity to the products of the Asteraceae family, can develop contact dermatitis and inflammations of the respiratory tract.

Note: All information about Yarrow, about health and medical conditions, is intended for your general knowledge and is not a substitute for medical diagnosis, advice, or treatment for specific medical conditions. You should seek medical care and consult your doctor for any specific health condition that you have and before beginning any program involving herbs.

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Copyright 2012 www.coachforhappiness.eu/blog