Wild mallow is a mucilage drug that has an anti-irritant and anti-inflammatory effect due to its active ingredients. In folk medicine, mallow has been very popular since ancient times and can be easily prepared at home.
Occurrence and cultivation of the mallow
When the mallow begins to bloom, the leaves lose their deep green color and the plant as a whole loses lushness. Malva sylvestris or Malva negleita is a biennial plant that can usually grow a meter tall, or up to 3 meters tall under suitable growing conditions. The rough-haired stems of the mallow bear long-stalked velvety heart– or kidney-shaped leaves that are alternate. The herb blooms between May and August with delicate but showy purple to violet flowers interspersed with darker veins. Each flower consists of five deeply fringed petals. Wild mallow now grows along field margins, hedgerows, and in fallow areas not only in Europe but also the United States, Canada, or Mexico. The seeds of the mallow look like slices of cheese, which is why the wild mallow is also called cheese flower in some regions. When the mallow begins to bloom, the leaves lose their deep green color and the plant as a whole loses lushness.
Application and use
The main active ingredients of mallow are the abundant plant mucilage and tannins, which have proanthocyanins, rosmarinic acid and anthocyanins. The mucilage is composed of a compound of carbohydrates that gives mallow its soothing properties. Clinical studies have now shown that this carbohydrate compound can affect the immune system of the human body, which is why it has become a greater focus of medical research. The flavonol contained in the flowers includes glycosides with a gossypine-3-sulfate, kaempferol, hypolaetin, methylhypolaetin as well as lsoscutellarein. The vibrant color of the flowers is based on anthocyanin (malvin), a water-soluble pigment. The harvest of leaves and flowers takes place in the period from June to September. The dried drugs Malvae Polium and Malvao Flos are used as tea or tincture. To prepare an extract, two teaspoons of dried or fresh mallow leaves are poured over a quart of lukewarm water and left to infuse for 5-10 hours. A decoction for compresses is made for 10 – 15 minutes in the same mixing ratio. In ancient times, mallow was considered an effective aphrodisiac and was used as a pregnancy test. If a plant wetted with the urine of the woman in question bloomed, pregnancy seemed certain. As an ornament, the mallow was pinned to doors and wound into garlands or wreaths. In the Middle Ages, the seeds of wild mallow were cooked into a nutritious porridge to nurse weak children. The young leaves are sometimes prepared as a wild vegetable, and sometimes the boiled roots are used as a protein substitute. Today, the invigorating properties of the active ingredients are used in natural cosmetics. Low-irritant cosmetic products for children and strengthening hair shampoos in particular contain mallow extracts. Recent product developments for special mattresses for decubitus patients or allergy sufferers also contain soothing extracts of mallow.
Importance for health, treatment and prevention
Pliny already recommended the use of wild mallow to eliminate nausea. During the 16th century, the mallow took a place as “omnimorbia” – panacea, of which today its use as an anti-inflammatory agent has proven particularly useful. All parts of the mallow plant also have astringent, laxative, diuretic and expectorant properties. The soothing properties of flavonoids make mallow a suitable remedy recommended by the BGA to relieve irritation, swelling and minor inflammation. Usually, the drug is used as a tea or solution for gargling in the treatment of gingivitis, gastritis and gastric ulcers, laryngitis and pharyngitis, catarrh of the upper respiratory tract or bronchitis, because the mucilage contained in the mallow lies like a protective layer on the inflamed mucous membranes. Especially in tea mixtures with eucalyptus or cowslip root, the active ingredients are particularly well developed. Mallow extracts can also be added to bath water to heal skin diseases and promote radiant skin.As a compress, the drug is used to heal abscesses, simple burns, and reduce swelling due to insect bites by detoxifying the affected areas.
