The botanical name of common painwort is Dioscorea communis. Synonymously, it is also called Tamus communis L. The climbing plant comes from the yam family of plants (Dioscoreaceae). Despite the slight toxicity of the plant, it finds application in herbal medicine, among other things, and is used against various ailments.
Occurrence and cultivation of the common painwort.
Despite the slight toxicity of the common painwort, it finds application in herbal medicine, among other things, and is used against various ailments. The name of the plant comes from the Old High German word “smerte”, which means “sharp”. Vernacular names of common smerte are sore root, stick root, fire root, common smerte or true smerte. The plants are monocotyledonous and dioecious. They are also referred to as dioecious. Painroot has underground tubers, and the stems of the plant can grow up to four meters long. Their shape is branched and striped and they do not have any pubescence. They are glabrous. Its leaves, on the other hand, are alternate, undivided and have a long petiole. The leaves are heart-shaped and they grow up to 20 centimeters long and 16 centimeters wide. They are also pointed, with entire margins and shiny. Their color is dark green and their branching is reticulate. The inflorescences of the common painwort grow in clusters. They are axillary and tridentate. Their color is green-yellow and they grow up to six millimeters in size. The male flowers have an urn-shaped perianth with six equal spikes. The female flowers, on the other hand, have six narrow and much smaller cusps. The fruits of the common painwort are red in color. In rare cases, yellow berries are also found. Their diameter is about eleven millimeters and they contain up to six seeds. In Europe it is the only species of the Dioscoreaceae family. It is found, among other places, on the High and Upper Rhine and Lake Constance. Otherwise, the plant is found in Mediterranean countries and those of the Atlantic. It can also be found in Iran. The main habitat of the plant is hedges and bushes. But it can also be found at the edge of deciduous forests. Its preferred soil is nutrient-rich and fresh. There it can reach a height of up to three meters. Between May and June, the right-twining climber bears flowers, which can be either female or male.
Effect and application
The berries of painwort are very conspicuous in bushes because of their color. Nevertheless, they should not be eaten, because they burn strongly in the mouth and are poisonous. This is where the popularly used name fire root comes from. For this reason, painwort should only be used as a remedy in diluted form. Otherwise, it can cause severe irritation when used externally. For internal use in any case should be used at most ready-made preparations or homeopathic mixtures. It is strongly discouraged to make your own mixture with parts of painwort. In medicine, it is mainly the root that is used. The plant contains mucilage and histamine-like irritants. In addition, alkaloids and the glycosides gracillin and dioscin are detectable. In addition, the herb contains saponins, calcium oxalate, phenanthrene derivatives and diosgenin. For the above-mentioned reasons, painwort is quite tricky to use. In no case should it be used fresh and raw. The poisonous effect is manifested after eating by a burning sensation in the mouth, which is usually followed by vomiting and diarrhea. In children, as few as two berries can cause gastrointestinal inflammation. Depending on the external skin irritation, blisters may also occur. This is due to the calcium oxalates and the skin irritant mentioned above. In case of severe poisoning, a doctor should be consulted immediately. In mild cases, rinsing the mouth with water is enough the application of activated charcoal in case of irritation of the digestive system.
Health significance, treatment and prevention.
In the past, healers used the root of painwort for bruises and contusions. It was supposed to relieve the symptoms and help heal the affected areas. Fresh root slices were used to treat rheumatic inflammation. This was especially true for joints, which were rubbed with the exuding juice. However, due to the strong skin-irritating effect, this method is no longer used today.Presumably, the irritation caused the inflammation itself, after which it could be fought with other means. In addition, the pain root, similar to the yam, contains diosgenin. This is a substance similar to progesterone. This is a hormone of the female organism, which is why hellebore should also help against PMS (premenstrual syndrome) and menopausal symptoms. However, this effectiveness has not been confirmed yet and there is no mention of it in the lore. In homeopathic doses, hellebore has various healing effects. Today it is still used against constipation. The effect is due to its slight toxicity. Besides, it can be used externally for gout and rheumatism. In low doses it stimulates the circulation and irritates the skin. Depending on the complaint and disease, this effect can be utilized. In addition, painwort is diuretic and can thus flush other toxins from the body. In addition, it should be drunk a lot to compensate for or prevent possible fluid deficiency. It also has a hemolytic effect, that is, it dissolves blood. For more precise areas of application in mixed finished preparations, the package insert should be studied or experts should be consulted.
