Belonging to the plant genus Mercurialis, Bingelkraut was named after the Roman god Mercury, who is said to have been the first to recognize the herb’s healing properties. In ancient times, bingel weed was known as a laxative and cough suppressant. It was used by the students of the famous physician Hippocrates to relieve women’s diseases. The herbal books of the Middle Ages also testify to its effectiveness in the treatment of various ailments. Today, the medicinal plant is rarely used.
Occurrence and cultivation of the bingel weed.
The medicinal plant is most efficient when its capsules are ripe. Eaten in excessive amounts, bingelweed can be toxic to grazing animals. The plant genus Bingelkrauter (Mercurialis) includes 8 to 10 species. Bingelweed belongs to the spurge plant family (Euphorbiaceae). Also called dogbane and wintergreen, this undemanding plant is a weed that spreads quickly and colonizes inhospitable places. Most Bingelkraut species are annual or perennial herbaceous plants that grow to an average height of 40 centimeters. Their toothed and marginally wavy stem leaves are ovate to lanceolate and are opposite on a tetragonal stem. In most bingelweeds, female and male flowers grow on separate plants. Bingelweed forms inconspicuous greenish-yellow flowers. The female ones later produce the spiny-haired fruit capsules, each containing two seeds. Bingelweed blooms in August/September. If you want to pick it, it is best to cut it off an inch above the ground and dry it immediately in a shady place. In doing so, the herb will turn a reddish-blue color. Fresh herb should never be used as a remedy, as it can cause mild symptoms of poisoning. When dried, bingel weed has an unpleasant odor. When cooked into a wild herb salad, it tastes pungent. Although the medicinal plant belongs to the spurge family, it does not contain milky sap and is not poisonous. Only the annual and the forest fescue are used as medicinal herbs. The plant is widespread throughout the Mediterranean region and some species are found only in Central Europe, Eurasia and North Africa. The robust plants love shady places with loose, nutrient-rich soil (gardens, fields, roadsides, deciduous and coniferous forests).
Effect and application
Bingel herbs contain essential oils, saponins, bitter compounds, amines, methylamine, trimethylamine, tannic acid, mucilages, glycosides, and the dye hermidine. Medically, the most effective are the saponins. To get rid of his constipation, the affected person drinks Bingelkraut tea for several days in a row. However, after three days he should stop the short cure, otherwise electrolyte deficiency may occur. For rheumatic complaints and gout, a one-week tea cure is recommended. In addition, the ancient medicinal herb still has a diuretic, expectorant and anti-inflammatory effect. Bingelkraut is used internally and externally. The most common form of administration is medicinal tea. For this purpose, the patient heats a teaspoon of the dried herb with a cup of water. He lets the tea steep for five to ten minutes and then strains it. Then he drinks one to two cups of it daily. Bingelkraut tea is also used to make poultices, washes and partial baths, which are used externally, for example, to treat eczema and skin eruptions. The healing of wounds is also promoted by ointments with Bingelkraut. It also proves its anti-inflammatory effect in eye drops: it helps with dry conjunctivitis and stimulates the flow of tears. The medicinal plant is most efficient when its capsules are ripe. Eaten in excessive amounts, bingelweed can be toxic to grazing animals. If the patient accidentally ingests too high a dose, tremors, diarrhea, profuse salivation, fluctuating body temperature, and blue coloration of the urine may occur. The pollen of the plant can cause allergies.
Health significance, treatment and prevention.
Medieval medicine valued the metabolism-boosting effects of the bingel weed. It was also used to treat “melancholy” (depressive moods) and weather sensitivity. Mixed in witches’ ointments, it was supposed to narcotize people and have an aphrodisiac effect. Its mood-lifting effect comes from the saponins. They affect the limbic system and cause the increased release of endorphins.Its expectorant effect is exploited by naturopathy, using Bingelkraut to treat coughs and bronchitis. The pathogens are coughed up and can no longer burden the body. Since the plant is also diuretic, it ensures the decongestion of edema on the feet and flushes out the burdening inflammatory pathogens in rheumatic diseases and gout. Naturopathy even uses the anti-inflammatory properties of Bingelkraut to treat inflamed nipples, which are more common among breastfeeding mothers. If breastfeeding mothers wish to wean, they can stop their milk flow by taking Bingelkraut remedies. Since the versatile healing weed also promotes appetite – this also occurs via stimulation of the limbic system – it can help anorectic patients to eat normally again. It also promotes the healing of open purulent wounds and inflamed injuries. In women, it regulates the disturbed female menstrual cycle (amenorrhea, too weak menstruation) and relieves menstrual cramps. In homeopathy it is prescribed as teep (fresh plant trituration) (one to two tablets several times a day). Teep is obtained from the fresh rootless plant of the Annual Bingelkraut, harvested at the beginning of its flowering. This and the D 2 dilution are used to treat rheumatic complaints that occur along with pericarditis and with gastrointestinal bladder problems. Mercurialis is also used in syphilis and gonorrhea therapy. The saponins it contains support arsenic and mercury cures and have a decongestant effect on lymph nodes. In addition, the active ingredients of Bingelkraut relieve the liver and help with states of exhaustion.