Mistletoe: Health Benefits, Medicinal Uses, Side Effects

Mistletoe is native to Europe and Asia, where it is found on a great many deciduous and coniferous trees. The drug material is imported from Turkey, Russia and the Balkan countries.

In herbal medicine, people use the fresh or dried herb of mistletoe (visci herba), that is, twigs and leaves collected before fruiting.

Mistletoe: characteristics of the plant

Mistletoe is a small, spherical, evergreen semishrub that prefers to settle on and benefit from trees (hemiparasitic). The leaves are elongated, leathery, with entire margins and yellowish green color.

In the branch axils are the inconspicuous, yellow-green flowers, which form white, sticky berry fruits.

Two types of mistletoe

Different types of mistletoe are distinguished, depending on the type of tree on which the mistletoe grows. In Germany, two types of mistletoe grow primarily:

  • One that grows only on fir and pine trees (Viscum laxum), and.
  • One that grows only on deciduous trees, except beech (Viscum album).

Where does mistletoe get its name?

The German name “Mistel” is derived from the Old High German “mistil”, which in turn is related to the word “dung”.

This comes from the fact that the seed of the plant spreads on trees through bird droppings: The ripe fruits are eaten by thrushes or other birds. The seeds contained in the fruits are indigestible and pass from the birds’ intestines to the branches of the host trees, where they germinate.

Mistletoe as a medicine

Mistletoe consists of yellow-green twigs about 2-4 mm thick and sessile, entire, yellow-green leaves 2-6 cm long. Less commonly found are the inconspicuous, yellowish-green flowers, as these usually fall off first. The pea-sized, shriveled berry fruits also occur only occasionally.