What are the effects of meadowsweet?
Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria or, in Switzerland, moor goat’s beard) has various medicinal effects: The medicinal plant has an anti-inflammatory, astringent effect on mucous membranes and reduces fever. It also has diaphoretic and weak antimicrobial properties (directed against microorganisms). This makes meadowsweet suitable for the supportive treatment of colds.
Effective ingredients in meadowsweet are salicylic acid compounds, tannins and flavonoids.
Overall, however, there are only a few scientific studies that prove this effectiveness.
There is also debate as to whether meadowsweet is suitable for treating skin inflammation, redness or acne. However, there are currently no studies that confirm that the medicinal plant is actually effective for skin problems.
In folk medicine, the medicinal plant is also used to treat gout, bladder and kidney problems in order to increase urination. It is also used to treat headaches and migraines. However, its efficacy has not been scientifically proven here either.
How is meadowsweet used?
Whether as a tea, syrup or tincture, there are various ways to take meadowsweet.
Meadowsweet as a home remedy
Pour a cup of boiling water over a tablespoon of the chopped plant parts and leave the infusion to infuse for 10 to 20 minutes before straining.
You can drink a cup of meadowsweet tea several times a day – preferably hot, as this supports the diaphoretic effect. The daily dose for adults is 2.5 to 3.5 grams of flowers or four to five grams of herb.
The flower panicles can also be used to make a syrup.
When making tea, it makes sense to combine meadowsweet with other medicinal plants that can also help with colds. For example, you can add the flowers of lime and elderberry.
Home remedies based on medicinal plants have their limits. If your symptoms persist over a longer period of time and do not improve or even get worse despite treatment, you should always consult a doctor.
Ready-made preparations with meadowsweet
You can buy ready-made tea preparations containing meadowsweet from the pharmacy. These are usually mixtures of meadowsweet with other medicinal plants, for example as a cold tea.
What side effects can meadowsweet cause?
If used correctly in the recommended dosage, there are no known side effects. An overdose can cause stomach complaints and nausea.
What you should bear in mind when using meadowsweet
Due to insufficient evidence, pregnant women and nursing mothers should not use meadowsweet. Ask your doctor or pharmacist before using meadowsweet on children.
How to obtain meadowsweet products
You can obtain the flowers and herb of Filipendula ulmaria as well as tea bags and tea blends containing the medicinal plant from your pharmacy.
Consult your doctor, pharmacist or the relevant package leaflet for information on the correct method of use.
What is meadowsweet?
Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria) belongs to the rose family (Rosaceae). It is widespread throughout the temperate zone of the northern hemisphere, where it likes to grow in wet, nutrient-rich soil – for example along ditches, stream banks and on boggy meadows.
The plant used to be called Spiraea ulmaria (German: Spierstrauch) before it was recognized as a separate genus (Filipendula).
The meadowsweet reaches a height of 50 to 150 centimeters. The leaves have long stalks and are pinnate. At flowering time, the plant bears numerous small, creamy white and sweetly scented flowers in multi-rayed umbels.
If you rub the flowers, leaves or stems of the plant, the sweet scent changes to a more “synthetic” smell. This is due to a specific ingredient – a salicylic acid compound.
However, it also has strong stomach-irritating properties. This is why it has been chemically developed into the more stomach-friendly acetylsalicylic acid (ASA).
Incidentally, the German name “Mädesüß” does not, as one might assume, have anything to do with “sweet girls”. Rather, it is probably based on the frequent occurrence of the plant in meadows (mowing) and the strikingly sweet scent of the flowers.
