What effect do hops have?
The essential active substances in hops are considered to be the bitter substances humulone and lupulone. They are produced in the glandular scales of hop cones and have sleep-inducing and sedative properties. Other important constituents of hop cones are flavonoids (secondary plant compounds), tannins and small amounts of essential oil.
Studies have also shown hops to have antibacterial, antifungal (anti-fungal) appetite stimulating, gastric juice stimulating, antispasmodic, and estrogen-like properties.
What hops are used for
The female inflorescences of hops (hop cones) are recommended as a traditional herbal medicine for mental ailments such as restlessness, anxiety and sleep disorders. Very often, hops are used in combination with other medicinal plants, such as valerian or lemon balm.
In addition, hops are used in folk medicine for other health problems. These include:
- Loss of appetite
- Bladder and kidney disease
However, more research is needed in these areas to prove efficacy.
Because hops contain a relatively large amount of plant estrogens (phytoestrogens), there is also discussion about whether they can help with hormonal disorders – for example, menstrual and menopausal symptoms.
For example, one study showed that daily use of hop extract improved the severity of hot flashes during menopause after six weeks of treatment. However, more evidence is needed to confirm the effectiveness of hops for this.
How are hops used?
Those who suffer from nervous restlessness or sleep disorders can drink hops tea. To make the tea, pour about 150 milliliters of boiling water over one to two teaspoons of crushed, dried hop cones.
Another application option is offered by ready-to-use preparations with hops and usually also other medicinal plants. Take the hop tablets or hop lozenges according to the instructions in the package leaflet or the recommendations of your doctor or pharmacist.
Nervous restlessness or sleep disorders also improve with full hop baths. Use about 20 grams of the plant for a full bath. To do this, prepare an extract with hot water, let it steep, strain and then add to the bath.
To calm infants and toddlers or in case of sleep disorders, restlessness or anxiety disorders, hop pillows help – that is, a cotton pillow filled with hop cones that you put in bed.
After about a week, you need to renew the filling so that the pillow continues to exert its effect. In addition to hop cones, you can also add other dried medicinal plants such as lemon balm, lavender and chamomile to the pillowcase.
What side effects can hops cause?
There are no known side effects for taking hops.
Picking hops can cause headaches, drowsiness, skin inflammation (dermatitis), and joint pain. However, hops are not poisonous.
What you should keep in mind when using hops
- It is possible that hops may impair your ability to drive. Therefore, as a precaution, do not get behind the wheel of a vehicle after taking it.
- There are no known drug interactions.
- Hops are gluten-free.
- Hop tea is also permitted during pregnancy. It is best to talk to your doctor about the appropriate dosage.
How to obtain hop products
You can obtain cut, dried hop cones and corresponding ready-to-use preparations such as hop capsules, tablets or dragées from your pharmacy and well-stocked drugstores. They are usually combined with other medicinal plants.
What is hops?
Common or true hops (Humulus lupulus) belong to the hemp family (Cannabaceae). The origin of this ancient cultivated plant is not precisely known. Today, it is cultivated in the temperate zones of Europe, Western Asia and North America – for brewing beer and for the production of medicines. It is also found in the wild, for example in bushes and hedges, on banks and forest edges.
Every year, new stems sprout from a rootstock – right-winding shoots, rough with climbing hairs. In the process, wild hops reach a height of six meters, and cultivated hops even twelve meters. On the stems grow three- to five-lobed leaves, which face each other in pairs (opposite foliation) and are very rough due to many small bristles.
Hops are dioecious, so there are male and female specimens of the plant. The small, male, greenish-white flowers are arranged in loose, drooping inflorescences.
The ovate bracts, which lie one above the other like a roof tile, contribute to the cone-like appearance. In their axils are two bracts each, at the base of which are the small, inconspicuous female flowers. On the inside of the bracts are small glandular scales (hop glands, lupuli glandula). These contain the medicinally used ingredients of the true hop.
A related hop species is Japanese hop (Humulus scandens), which is used in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).
