Quassia, also called Quassia amara or bitterwood, is a tree known for its medicinal properties. Medicinal uses include leaves, wood and bark.
Occurrence and cultivation of the Quassia
Quassia amara is a rather small tree. It does not grow much taller than six meters. The quassia tree is a member of the bitter ash family (Simaroubaceae) and is native primarily to South and Central America, the West Indies, the southern parts of Mexico, and the southern tip of Florida. This growing range is also referred to as the Neotropics in biogeography. Quassia amara is a rather small tree. It does not grow much taller than six feet. The bark is grayish in color and smooth. Alternate stalked and pinnate leaves sit on the branches. The flowers of the quassia tree are red or flesh-colored and arranged in racemose inflorescences. The tree produces fruits that resemble olives in shape. When these red drupes are ripe, they contain black seeds.
Effect and use
Leaves, wood and bark can be used medicinally. However, in most cases, the dried wood is used. Main active substances of the tree are its bitter substances. Here, quassin and neoquassin are particularly noteworthy. Furthermore, quassia wood contains quassinol, amarolides, salts and minerals and, in small concentrations, essential oils. Thus, the quassia tree belongs primarily to the medicinal group of bitter remedies. However, quassia is also used as a roborans, that is, as a tonic and strengthening agent, as well as a gastrointestinal, pancreatic and hepatic remedy. The main indication for administration of Quassia is gastrointestinal weakness, also called atony. Gastrointestinal weakness can manifest itself in the form of loss of appetite and indigestion. Here, the quassia tree helps with its appetite stimulating effect. The bitter substances it contains stimulate the liver and pancreas, thus promoting the secretion of digestive juices and digestive enzymes. The gallbladder is also stimulated to secrete bile acids. In general, bitter substances have a rather stimulating effect, so that quassia can also be used in general states of weakness and sensitive nervous weakness (neurasthenia). As already mentioned, quassia belongs to the roborants due to its strengthening and invigorating effects. That is why quassia bark and quassia wood are often used in convalescence after debilitating illnesses. Quassia bark is also said to be helpful in the case of a tendency to sweat due to weakness. Quassia amara is also used in liver diseases, especially in liver cirrhosis. The administration of five drops of Quassia mother tincture three times a day has proven to be effective here. Quassia has also proven to be a good anthelmintic, i.e. worming agent, for pinworms (oxyurans). Traditionally, suppositories containing Quassia were used for deworming. This is rather uncommon today. Due to its extremely bitter taste, Quassia is also used to wean nail biting. For this purpose, the mother tincture is simply applied to the nails. Especially children do not like the bitter taste at all and therefore refrain from biting their nails when the tincture is applied. Quassia bark can be used in various forms of administration. Quassia tea is preferably prepared cold, because the extract content is higher in cold extraction. One teaspoonful of quassia bark is added to a glass of cold water for cold preparation. The mixture should steep for about two hours and can then be strained and drunk. There are numerous ready-made medicines with quassia available on the market in the form of mono- or combination preparations. Homeopathic dilutions and tablets are also available for purchase. The homeopathic remedy Quassia, like the gross variant, is used for digestive weakness and is also a typical liver remedy in homeopathy. Leading symptoms of the homeopathic Quassia remedy are an unusual throbbing in the abdomen, digestive weakness, an internal feeling of coldness, and the painful sensation as if the stomach were filled with hot water. Characteristically, the discomfort, especially the pain, worsens with deep inhalation. The common potencies are D2, D3, D4 and D6. Quassia is also a component of some spagyric medicines. Quassia is contraindicated during pregnancy, lactation, and ulcers in the gastrointestinal tract.
Importance for health, treatment and prevention.
The bark and wood of the quassia tree have been used for many centuries by the indigenous people of Brazil as an appetite and digestion stimulant. Quassia was first mentioned in writing by the Frenchman Labat. He reported in 1696 about a bitterwood that grows on the island of Martinique. A good twenty years later, the physician Philipp Fermin discovered that quassia flowers also have a positive effect on stomach disorders. In Europe, the quassia bark became known as a remedy mainly through Linné. Linné named the tree after a slave named Qassi. In 1788, the bark, wood, and root were included in the London Pharmacopoeia. Further mentions in European pharmacopoeias followed. Quassia bark received its positive reputation as a liver remedy primarily through Rademacher and his empirical medicine. Today, quassia is rarely used in orthodox medicine, but in naturopathy, here preferably in the homeopathic dosage form, the traditional use of the bitter drug is continued. The indications are still similar to those of the past. Quassia is still used for gastrointestinal disorders, liver disorders, and debility. However, medical studies show that Quassia is also effective outside these areas of application. Some studies have shown that Quassia is even effective against Plasmodium falciparum, the causative agent of malaria. However, the tree bark is not currently used as an antimalarial. Since an overdose of Quassia can cause nausea and vomiting, Quassia should only be taken in consultation with a physician or alternative practitioner.
