Poisonous and medicinal plants can be harvested. Poisonous plants. Pictured raven eye

POISONOUS PLANTS... When collecting plants in nature, it should be remembered that among them there are poisonous, very dangerous for humans and animals. Many of them are strong medicines, but it is necessary to know the dosage. Paracelsus, the eminent physician of the past, wisely declared: "Only the dose makes a substance a poison or a medicine."

It turns out that two-thirds of our common houseplants are poisonous. Back in the 15th century, it was known about the strongest poisonous properties of room dieffenbachia. Slaves in the West Indies were forced to eat its leaves as a punishment. After that, a person could not speak for several days: the leaves of this plant contain crystalline needles (druze) of calcium oxalate, which dig in and burn the mucous membrane of the mouth, pharynx and eyes.

I don’t know how true this is, but they say that you need to give your sick friend a pot of alocasia or dieffenbachia, milkweed, akalifa, aloe, kalanchoe, oleander, geranium ... And you will save him from serious illnesses, many ailments. You will see how he will become prettier, become stronger. Not immediately, gradually, imperceptibly, over the years, indoor poisonous plants will suck out diseases from him, feeding on his diseased cells, their biogenic stimulants will definitely get into the blood through breathing.

As you know, many plants improve the microclimate in the house, absorb toxins, acids, alkalis from the air in large quantities ... But still be careful! We advise you to keep poisonous indoor plants away from small children and pets...

List of some indoor plants considered poisonous ...

The leading position in the list of deadly indoor plants is occupied by the kutrov family. Among them, the most beloved and popular: adenium and oleander. Just one oleander leaf ingested can lead to the death of an adult. All parts of this plant, especially the milky sap, stem and seeds contain poisonous cardiac glycosides, nerioside, oleandroside and saponins.

Euphorbia - frequent inhabitants of our apartments - spurge, akalifa, codiaum (croton), poinsettia irritate the skin, their juice can even cause eczema. Those of the milkweeds that are found in our country were once called "demonic milk." All representatives of euphorbiaceae are poisonous, and in terms of the variety of toxic substances in the milky juice, they rank first among representatives of other plant families. Their juice contains alkaloids, saponins, poisonous resins, fatty acids, hydrocarbons and camphor, as well as glycosides, toxins and bitter extractives.

Aroid: aglaonema, alocasia, anthurium, dieffenbachia, zantedeschia (calla), caladium, clivia, monstera, ivy, syngonium, spathiphyllum, philodendron, epipremnum. Overshadowing the vigilance of the owners with their beauty, they have become one of the most popular plants. The poisonous juice of these plants will cause swelling of the larynx and oral mucosa, and if it gets into the eyes, conjunctivitis and irreversible changes in the cornea.

Rhododendron and indoor azalea contain alkaloids that are used to produce narcotic drugs. Perhaps poisonous and nectar collected from the flowers.

The deadly poison for humans contains amarylis, one bulb is enough for paralysis.

Luxurious gloriosa contains colchicine - a valuable medicinal substance, in large doses causes nausea, vomiting.

Even popular aloe, begonia, geranium, hydrangea, kalanchoe, monstera, primrose, ficus, cyclomen can be poisonous to some extent.

The most popular garden poisonous plants

Such delicate garden flowers are poisonous - tulip, hyacinth, narcissus, crocus, iris, lily of the valley, lily, lupine, chrysanthemum, snowdrops, delphinium, aconite, foxglove, periwinkle. Even the water in which many of these plants stand becomes so poisonous that it can kill not only an animal, but even a small child, so one must be extremely careful with these plants.

Blooming lilies exude a very strong aroma that causes dizziness, headaches, fainting and allergies. In no case should you eat lily leaves inside, as this can lead to poisoning.

Buttercup poisonous / caustic /
Belongs to the buttercup family. A poisonous herb that contains the toxic substance protoanemonin. It has a neurotoxic and local irritant effect on the human body. Symptoms of poisoning: nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain. When taking large doses of a toxic substance, the victim's blood pressure drops and convulsions occur. When ranunculus juice gets on the skin, dermatitis occurs, especially in children. First aid: Gastric lavage, inside castor oil, give any diuretics. Prepare a mash with 200 ml of 10% castor oil emulsion, add 2 grams of biomycin, 2 grams of anesthesin, 20 grams of sugar syrup, give 1 tbsp. 5-6 times a day. Enveloping agents (tannin, raw eggs...).

May lily of the valley
Perennial herbaceous plant from the lily family. It has a creeping stem, from which two basal leaves emerge, surrounding a flower arrow with a raceme of white flowers, usually 10 - 12. The fruit is a red-orange berry. Lily of the valley blooms in May, bears fruit in August-September. The active ingredients of lily of the valley are cardiac glycosides. In official medicine, lily of the valley preparations are of great use in the treatment of cardioneurosis and heart failure. In addition, preparations of lily of the valley are indispensable for those cores that do not tolerate digitalis and its preparations. Lily of the valley preparations do not accumulate in the body with prolonged use, so they are more harmless than any other glycosides. Lily of the valley cardiac glycosides regulate energy and fat metabolism in the heart muscle, improve myocardial blood supply, improve metabolic processes in the body, and have a calming effect on the central nervous system.

Lily of the valley preparations are contraindicated in diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, liver and kidneys. Lily of the valley is one of the plants that take energy. Therefore, if a bouquet of lily of the valley flowers is placed at the bedside for the night, a general malaise is noted, headaches appear.

All its parts are poisonous, especially severe poisoning develops in children after eating lily of the valley berries. There are known cases of fatal poisoning after drinking water in which there was a bouquet of lily of the valley flowers. In case of poisoning, the heart is the first to suffer. With mild poisoning, the case is limited to nausea and vomiting. It is necessary to wash the stomach, cleansing enema. Give carbolene (10-15 tablets) and small pieces of ice.

Oleander common
A beautiful lush tree with large white, pink and red flowers. The whole plant is poisonous. It is dangerous to taste the shoots and leaves, it is dangerous to breathe the fragrance of beautiful flowers. In no case should oleander sap be allowed to get into the eyes when pruning trees. Even if you held leaves and flowers in your hands, you should wash your hands well with soap and water. Symptoms of poisoning: cramps and pain throughout the abdomen, diarrhea, vomiting, dizziness, loss of skin sensitivity, convulsions. The pulse is first slowed down, then its rhythm is disturbed, the victim feels a lack of oxygen, suffocation. There is cyanosis of the skin. First aid: Create complete rest for the victim, wash the stomach with water with activated charcoal and 0.5% tannin solution., cold on the stomach, swallow pieces of ice for nausea and vomiting, be sure to hospitalize.

male fern
Perennial herbaceous plant. Found in damp, shady places. All parts of the fern plant are poisonous. Even when harvesting plants, care must be taken. Symptoms of poisoning: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, dizziness, depression of cardiac activity and respiratory center, blurred vision, convulsions. First aid: Saline laxatives and gastric lavage, introducing as much liquid as possible into the body, warm baths. It is strictly forbidden to take castor oil, as damage to the optic nerve may develop and blindness may occur.

Backache, or Sleep-grass
Belongs to the buttercup family. It occurs in deciduous or mixed forests, more often on the edges, glades, or thawed patches. All parts of the plant are covered with whitish-gray fluff. Blooms in April - May before the leaves bloom. The flowers of the plant are very beautiful, broadly bell-shaped, purple, less often white, so they are often collected for bouquets. The plant gradually becomes rare and is listed in the Red Book. IN folk medicine sleep-grass is used as an expectorant for whooping cough, bronchitis, pneumonia. It is often used as an analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and sedative. It is used in gynecology, joint diseases, epilepsy, neurotic conditions, hysteria, insomnia, sexual overexcitation. Externally used as an antifungal and antimicrobial agent.

Large celandine
Perennial poisonous herbaceous plant of the poppy family. Reaches a height of 1 m, the stem is straight, branched. All parts of the plant contain a yellowish milky sap. It grows in shady, damp places, along the banks of rivers and lakes, in neglected gardens, thinned out forest areas. Celandine grass is harvested at the beginning of flowering. Celandine is one of the most popular medicinal plants in the middle zone and south of Russia. But before using it as a remedy, you need to know that celandine is considered a strong poisonous plant and poisoning can follow in case of an overdose.

In case of poisoning, paralysis of sensitive nerve endings occurs, then - motor endings. With severe poisoning, paralysis of the heart muscle and death can occur. With local exposure, celandine preparations cause inflammation, hyperemia. Symptoms of poisoning: nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain. Sometimes cause convulsions. First aid: gastric lavage and the introduction of as many liquids into the blood as possible. Celandine preparations are contraindicated in pregnancy, epilepsy, bronchial asthma, angina pectoris. They should also not be given to children.

Digitalis
This is a biennial herbaceous plant found in Russia, Ukraine, the Caucasus, in the southern regions of the Krasnodar Territory. It grows along forest edges, small groves and forests. All parts are poisonous. Symptoms of poisoning: In case of overdose or prolonged use, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea may occur. Urination may decrease sharply, even in the presence of edema. First aid: Gastric lavage, saline laxative, inside activated charcoal 2 tablets every 1 hour, general warm baths, administration of atropine preparations, urgent hospitalization.

Poisonous plants used in folk medicine

Along with medicinal herbs that are beneficial to health, poisonous plants with dangerous properties are found in nature. According to scientists, there are more than 10,000 poisonous plants on Earth. Plants treat many serious diseases. Already, more than 160 species of poisonous plants are used in medicine, which have a number of remarkable properties. They can be used for heart disease, as a hemostatic, analgesic.

Poisoning by plants occurs mainly in the spring and summer. Most often, people who are unfamiliar with these plants are at risk, as well as children, who often grab and chew anything. Most often, when poisoning with dangerous plants, the nervous system is affected. Many plants act directly on the gastrointestinal tract, causing very severe poisoning, and can also act on the heart muscle, liver, skin, causing various allergic reactions, blisters appear, severe itching is noted. Let's look at some of them to know how to use them if necessary and what to be wary of when using them. Be careful and attentive.

Among poisonous plants there are such well-known ones as henbane, dope, belladonna, wolf's bast, cheremitsa ... But there are also many that are less known: colchicum, wrestlers, larkspur, grassy elder, euphorbia, muzzle, foxglove, corydalis, ash trees. Sometimes whole families of plants are poisonous: ranunculus, poppy. There are more dangerous plants in the southern and mountainous regions, less in the northern ones.

White acacia
It grows mainly in the southern regions of Russia. Its height can reach 15 m. It blooms in May with white fragrant clusters of flowers. Some of them love bees. Acacia flowers are used for medicinal purposes. Acacia roots and bark contain substances that are harmful to our body, can cause poisoning. Symptoms of poisoning: nausea, vomiting, cramping abdominal pain, diarrhea. There may be bloody stools, blood in the urine, acute cardiovascular failure. There may be a sharp mental disorder, convulsions, loss of consciousness. First aid: Gastric lavage 2-3 times, add 2-3 grains of potassium permanganate to the water when washing. Give activated charcoal 2 tablets every 2 hours. In case of severe poisoning, give heart remedies - valocordin, hawthorn tincture ... And be sure to call a doctor.

Aconite (root-fighter, blue buttercup, Issyk-Kul root)
A genus from the buttercup family. The poisonous properties of aconite have been known since ancient times. It occurs in forests and copses, in ravines and gardens, along the banks of rivers and lakes. The degree of danger of the plant depends on the time of year, soil and age. The tubers of the plant are the most poisonous. Yellow aconite flowers are very beautiful, but it is not recommended to collect them for a bouquet. Symptoms of poisoning: salivation, burning in the mouth, numbness of the tip of the tongue, lips, fingertips and toes, a feeling of crawling, sensation of heat and cold in the extremities, blurred vision, breathing quickens and shallow, sudden cessation of breathing may occur. Blood pressure drops sharply, cardiac activity is disturbed. First aid: Gastric lavage, saline laxatives, activated charcoal every hour, 2 tablets. With weakening of the heart and weak breathing - artificial respiration and chest compressions. Call a doctor.

Henbane black
Poisonous plant from the nightshade family. Belongs to the category of weeds. An inconspicuous plant with large flowers with a funnel-shaped off-white corolla covered with small purple veins. Blooms all summer long bad smell. The fruits appear in June-August. Seeds are located in a two-cell box, expanding towards the bottom. The top of the box is closed with a lid. The root at the age of two is turnip-shaped, up to 2.5 cm thick, gray-white inside. Distributed everywhere, grows in gardens, orchards, wastelands, fields, near housing. The plant is very dangerous. It produces up to 10,000 seeds in one season. Symptoms of poisoning: already after 30-40 minutes dry mouth, thirst, motor agitation, impaired vision, breathing, dizziness, general weakness, nervous system disorder appear. The victim is behaving violently. "Helen ate too much" - they say among the people. In severe cases, loss of consciousness, convulsions, and death may occur. First aid: urgent gastric lavage, constant monitoring, hospitalization

Belladonna (Belladonna)
Perennial poisonous herbaceous plant from the nightshade family with a thick green or purple stem. Reaches a height of 1.5-2 m. The leaves are large, ovate, entire and pointed. The lower leaves are alternate, single, the upper ones are arranged in pairs, usually one of them is larger than the other, covered with small veins. Flowers are large, solitary, tubular-bell-shaped. Flowering in June-August, fruiting in September. The belladonna is more common in the southern regions of our country - the Crimea, the Caucasus. All parts of the plant are dangerous. Children are most often poisoned, who are attracted to the shiny, cherry-like berries of belladonna. 3-5 berries are enough to cause severe poisoning in a child. Symptoms of poisoning: dry mouth, hoarseness, nausea, dizziness, fever, facial flushing, rapid pulse. In severe cases, seizures and hallucinations occur. Coma and death may occur. First aid: urgent gastric lavage, constant monitoring, hospitalization.

Hemlock
Belongs to the genus of weeds. This is a biennial poisonous plant from the umbrella family, in the early years it looks like parsley. Has a mousey smell. It grows in neglected and abandoned areas, in weedy places, along the banks of lakes and rivers. Symptoms of poisoning: there is a change in the central nervous system. The limbs become heavy and naughty, paralysis develops. Death occurs from paralysis of the respiratory center. First aid is the same as for henbane poisoning.

hogweed
A plant from the umbrella family - all parts are poisonous. In contact with the plant and when the juice gets on the skin, inflammation develops. First aid: wash the skin with water, lubricate the damaged areas with an alcohol solution of methylene blue, apply an ointment with hydrocortisone or anesthesin.

Milestone poisonous or hemlock
In swampy places you can find a tall umbrella plant up to 130 cm with the smell of parsley. This milestone is poisonous or hemlock. The whole plant is very dangerous. Almost immediately after the poison enters the human body, headache, vomiting, and abdominal pain begin. In severe cases, death.

Wolf's bast (wolfberry)
Distributed in the Caucasus, in the middle forest and forest-steppe zone of Russia, in Western and Central Siberia. This is an upright shrub that blooms in May-April with fragrant pink tubular flowers that sit on leafless stems and twigs in clusters of 2-3 inflorescences. The fruits are bright red, juicy drupes in July-August cover the stem and twigs below the leaves. The whole plant is poisonous. Symptoms of poisoning: when ingesting juice or berries, acute inflammation of the mucosa of the gastrointestinal tract is observed. The victim complains of pain in the throat, stomach, dizziness, convulsions, vomiting. First aid: Gastric lavage followed by the intake of egg white with water. Reception of activated carbon 3-5 grams 3 times within 1 hour. Deep enema with clean warm water. During the week, it is not recommended to take rough and hard food.

Crow's eye (quatrefoil)
Belongs to the lily family, perennial, bare stem, up to 35 cm tall. At the top of the stem there are 4 leaves, collected in a whorl. Blooms in May-June. The fruits are a bluish-black berry that ripens in August. The plant is very dangerous. The fruits cause vomiting, and if you eat a lot, severe poisoning occurs. In official medicine is not used. In folk medicine, they are used very carefully in the form of tincture: 1 tbsp. spoon per 1 liter of vodka, insist in a dark place for 14 days. Shake periodically. Strain. It is used for pulmonary tuberculosis, mental disorders, chronic headaches. Symptoms of poisoning: vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, dry mouth, photophobia, swallowing and speech disorders, convulsions, hallucinations, cardiac activity is inhibited. Coma and death may develop. First aid: gastric lavage followed by ingestion of activated charcoal 3-5 grams and enveloping agents (egg white, starch mucus, milk), high enema. Urgent hospitalization.

field bindweed
In total, there are more than 35 types of bindweed in the world. In Russia, the field bindweed is considered the most common. The bindweed has a long curly or creeping stem up to 1 m long. The flowers are white or pink and have a pleasant smell. Considered a weed, it grows in fields, vegetable gardens, along roads, on abandoned plots of land. The main active ingredient of the plant is convulvin, which has a strong laxative effect, especially a lot of them in the roots. In folk medicine, field bindweed is used as a laxative, diuretic and hemostatic agent. Apply in the form of powder, infusion and tincture. Powder from the roots is used for severe constipation, drink 1 gram (on the tip of a knife). Externally, the powder is used for purulent wounds in the form of powders. Tincture: Pour 2 parts of grass and field bindweed flowers with 4 parts of vodka. Infuse for 14 days in a dark place, strain. Take 10 drops 2 times a day as a hemostatic and laxative. Symptoms of poisoning: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain. When these symptoms appear, it is necessary to stop taking these bindweed preparations, cleanse the stomach and intestines by washing and enema. Bindweed preparations are contraindicated for children and pregnant women.

Datura vulgaris
This is an annual herbaceous plant with a forked-branched erect stem up to 1.5 m high. It belongs to the nightshade family. The leaves are large, alternate, on long petioles, pointed, serrated. The length of the leaves is up to 25 cm, the width is 4-6 cm. The leaves are dark green above, light green below. The flowers are white, large, solitary up to 6 cm. They are located in the forks of the stem. Datura blooms in June-August, bears fruit in September. The plant emits an unpleasant intoxicating smell. Datura grows in abandoned places, along roads and fences. Distributed in the south of Russia, in the Caucasus, in Central Asia. Datura leaves are harvested for medicinal use. They are dried in the shade, crushed. In folk medicine, dope is used for bronchial asthma, chronic bronchitis, convulsive cough, spasms, convulsions. It is used as a tincture or powder of the leaves. Symptoms of poisoning and first aid measures for dope poisoning are the same as for belladonna poisoning.

Larkspur field (spur)
Larkspur belongs to the buttercup family. It is an annual or perennial plant. It has a straight bare and branched stem up to 1 m high. The flowers are purple, less often white or pink. Blooms from June to September. Widely distributed in the southern and middle regions of the country. Refers to weeds. Some alkaloids contained in the plant are used in anesthesia during surgical operations. Traditional medicine recommends the use of larkspur in the treatment of helminthic invasions and jaundice. Outwardly, preparations from it are used in the form of compresses for fractures. It is not recommended to use the plant inside, as the plant is very poisonous. Symptoms of poisoning: violation of breathing and cardiac activity, a sharp drop in blood pressure, convulsions. First aid: gastric lavage, laxatives and emetics. In case of cardiac arrest - artificial respiration.

Indian hemp (hashish, marijuana, marijuana...)
Poisoning is possible by inhalation of tobacco smoke together with these substances, as well as by ingestion. These poisonous plants have a psychotropic effect on the body due to narcotic, hallucinogenic effects on the central nervous system. Symptoms of poisoning: in case of poisoning, psychomotor agitation occurs, pupils dilate, tinnitus, vivid visual hallucinations appear. After 2-3 hours, there is general weakness, lethargy, tearfulness and a long deep sleep. The pulse during sleep is slowed down, the body temperature is lowered. A drop in blood pressure is possible. First aid: gastric lavage, activated charcoal 2 tablets every hour, diuretics, drugs that support the heart, call a doctor.

European hoof
Another very dangerous evergreen herbaceous plant, is an adornment of our deciduous and mixed forests. The leaves are bright green, leathery, shiny. Flowers solitary, small, white on the outside, dark purple on the inside. The plant flowers in May and bears fruit in July. Symptoms of poisoning: myocardial excitation, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, increased blood pressure. With severe poisoning, there may be an acute lesion of the renal glomeruli. First aid: Gastric lavage with a solution of potassium permanganate. Inside mucous decoctions, egg white. High cleansing enema.

In official medicine, the hoof is not used. In folk medicine, it is used as a mild laxative, choleretic and diuretic. Especially widely used for inflammation of the sciatic nerve. In some regions of Russia, the plant is used as an antihelminthic and anti-febrile agent, for the treatment of neurosthenia, alcoholism, and in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. For the treatment of chronic alcoholism, European hoof root is used: 1 tsp. finely ground root, pour 1 cup boiling water, insist in a tightly sealed container for 3-4 hours, strain. Take with vodka (invisibly pour 1 tbsp into a glass of alcohol). The plant is efficient. After 3-4 single doses, most alcoholics develop a strong aversion to alcohol. As an emetic, take 1/2 g of root powder per dose. M.A. Nossal recommends taking an infusion of hoof root with budry herb and agrimony herb for the treatment of chronic bronchitis.

Almond
A low fruit tree with falling leaves. It comes in two varieties - sweet and bitter. Bitter almonds are poisonous. Children can be poisoned by 5-10 fruits. Bitter and sweet almonds are similar in appearance, but differ sharply in taste and chemical composition. The composition of bitter almonds includes hydrocyanic acid, so the symptoms of poisoning and first aid measures will be the same as for stone fruit poisoning.

Nightshade bittersweet
Poisonous berries, especially unripe, and grass. Ripe fruits are eaten. From mid-summer to September, berries hang on the plants of bittersweet and black nightshade. First they are green, then red or black. Children suffer more often by eating unripe berries. Symptoms of poisoning: dizziness, dilated pupils, unsteadiness of gait, tachycardia, diarrhea, abdominal pain, psychomotor agitation, hallucinations. First aid: Salt laxatives and gastric lavage, oral diuretics in therapeutic doses.

One of the old handwritten collections of the 16th century says the following about sleep-grass: “Sleep-grass is small by itself, grows in groves and on hills, the color is blue, it blooms about Nicholas-spring, and when it fades, all the columns are fluffy: it is good from the articular He will drive out aches and hernias, and cleans the womb, and induces sleep, but due to the negligence of acceptance, causes death. First aid: Rinse the stomach, activated charcoal and other enveloping agents (eggs, milk). With vomiting and pain in the stomach, swallow pieces of ice.

Sarep mustard cultivated, but it easily runs wild. The whole plant contains poisonous substances. Maximum of them in unripe seeds. In acute poisoning, salivation, stomach pain, nausea, and vomiting begin.

When picking berries in marshy places, you can breathe in vapors essential oil allocated wild rosemary. There is weakness, drowsiness, nausea, vomiting, in severe cases - suffocation. First of all, the poisoned person should be taken away to fresh air, if necessary, give him artificial respiration.

Plakun-ram- a small herbaceous perennial, occasionally found in our forests. The entire aerial part is poisonous. The main symptoms of poisoning: nausea, vomiting, headache, dizziness, numbness of the tongue. In severe cases - atrial fibrillation, fainting, collapse.

Common tansy- a well-known medicinal plant, sometimes used as spicy herb when cooking fatty meat and poultry. In case of an overdose, the kidneys and the central nervous system are affected.

If a person is poisoned, then it must be immediately shown to the doctor. But if help is far away, you need to rinse the stomach as soon as possible, give a laxative, absorbent substances (activated carbon), precipitated (tannins) oxidizing (1% solution of potassium permanganate), neutralizing (soda, sour drink), enveloping substances (starch mucus), egg white, milk. When vomiting, the patient should be given pieces of ice.

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Poisonous medicinal plants

Introduction

1. How to collect plants

2. Drying and storing herbs

Literature

Introduction

Almost 500 thousand species of plants are known to science, of which only about 290 plants are described in the atlas of medicinal plants, which does not mean at all that the rest of the plants are devoid of healing properties. An old legend tells how a healer sent his student into the forest with the task of bringing some completely useless plants, but the student could not complete the teacher's task, because he did not find a single useless plant. As the American philosopher R. Emerson wrote, "any weed is a medicinal plant, the merits of which have not yet been revealed." Any plant is donated to us by nature for the good, and the task of man is to correctly understand its purpose.

The researchers found that up to 21 thousand plant species were used by the peoples of the ancient world. Already on the most early stages In the development of mankind, plants were not only a source of food for people, they helped a person get rid of diseases. The oldest medical treatise that has come down to us is a tablet found during excavations of a Sumerian city (3rd millennium BC). There are 15 recipes in 145 lines in Sumerian.

The culture and knowledge of the ancient Sumerians were inherited by the Babylonians, who used medicinal purposes licorice root, dope, henbane, flaxseed, etc. The Babylonians noticed that sunlight negatively affects the healing properties of some plants, so they were dried in the shade, and some herbs were even collected at night. Plants were widely used in China, India, Tibet. Back in 3216 BC. e. Chinese emperor Shen-nong wrote a work on medicine "Ben-cao" ("Herbalist"), which mainly described herbal remedies. Chinese medicine has used over 1500 plants.

Ancient Indian medicine, set forth in Ayurveda (1st century BC), used about 800 plants, which are still used today. From the 3rd century n. e. In India, the cultivation of medicinal plants began.

Tibetan medicine arose on the basis of Indian medicine, and in the treatise on Tibetan medicine "Jud-Shi" there is a large section on the use of medicinal plants.

Avicenna's book "The Canon of Medicine" describes about 900 plants and how to use them.

In the "Papyrus of Eber", dating back to the 6th century BC, the Egyptians collected more than 900 herbal recipes for various diseases. And in Europe, herbal treatment came from ancient Greece.

The action of herbal medicines is determined by the active substances contained in various parts of the plant: alkaloids, glycosides, tannins, essential oils and others. It cannot be said that herbal preparations completely replace synthetic medicines, but in our time phytotherapy (treatment with medicinal plants) is experiencing its rebirth.

Scientific medicine began its development in ancient Greece. The founder of scientific medicine was Hippocrates (460-370 BC). In his medical practice he used about 200 medicinal plants and applied them without processing. Hippocrates believed that medicinal substances are found in nature in an optimal form, and medicinal plants in their raw form and in the form of juices have the best effect on the human body. The ancient Greek physician wrote that "medicine is the art of imitating the healing effects of nature."

IN Ancient Rome medicine developed under the strong influence of Greek medicine. Physicians still use famous recipes herbal medicines of the Roman physician Galen, and it is not without reason that pharmaceutical production using plant materials is called galenopharmaceutical. The works of Galen were of great importance not only for ancient Roman medicine, but also for the subsequent development of medicine and pharmacy. Of greatest importance are his two herbalists, in which more than 300 herbal remedies are described. Gallen, in contrast to Hippocrates, believed that plants have two principles: one of them has a healing effect on a sick organism, the other is useless or even harmful. The active principle prefers liquid to the dried plant, so it is easy to separate it from the useless one. To do this, the medicinal plant should be infused or boiled with water, wine, vinegar. Gallen introduced the technology for obtaining such dosage forms as tinctures and extracts. Extracts from medicinal plants quickly gained popularity in all European countries. Galen had his own pharmacy in Rome, where he himself prepared medicines for the sick. He described the manufacture of powders, pills, ointments, plasters, mustard plasters, fees. poisonous medicinal plant treatment

It's no secret to anyone that last years there has been a significant increase in interest in herbal preparations. Returning to the experience of traditional medicine, in this case phytotherapy, people tend to avoid many of the side effects inherent in antibiotics and other synthetic drugs in the treatment. During the existence of mankind, experience in the use of phytopreparations has been accumulated really considerable, and when used correctly, herbal preparations have a milder effect, are less toxic than synthetic ones and do not cause addiction and allergies. Moreover, plants not only do not inhibit the body's defenses, but, on the contrary, are active against many strains of microorganisms that have already acquired resistance to antibiotics, and are able to enhance human immunity, thereby helping him to cope with the disease. However, it should be noted that all this is true only with their competent and correct use.

Unfortunately, there is an opinion among the people that herbal medicine is absolutely safe and harmless, and, accordingly, it can be used without restrictions and medical supervision. If, when purchasing a chemically synthesized drug in a pharmacy, most patients are at least wary (which, in general, is correct), then the same people can take a decoction from a collection of medicinal plants on the advice of a neighbor almost without hesitation.

Meanwhile, such carelessness is dangerous, because among medicinal plants, even quite widely used, there are many poisonous ones. Yes, and sometimes it is precisely this fact of toxicity that makes them medicinal, and their beneficial or harmful effect is determined by the dosage and, moreover, quite accurate. Another thing is that in plants, unlike synthetic drugs, the active substances are in balanced complexes, and this fact, of course, softens and optimizes their action. Nevertheless, any, including a natural drug, has both its indications and contraindications, and in case of an overdose, its therapeutic effect is replaced by a toxic one.

Thus, when using medicinal herbs for treatment, it is necessary to take into account all of the above. The optimal course is treatment by a professional phytotherapeutist, which is not always possible, therefore, using prescriptions for medicinal preparations on your own, and using background information, necessary:

strictly observe the dosage indicated in the prescription when mixing medicinal raw materials;

prepare a dosage form (infusion, decoction, tincture, etc.) accurately maintaining the technology of its preparation;

observe the rules for storing the prepared form;

strictly observe the dosage when taking the finished medicine;

carefully study the contraindications of all components included in the collection and correlate them with the present diagnosis, as well as the patient's previous diseases.

Only this approach will ensure the optimal effect and safety of treatment with the use of medicinal herbs. Below is a list of the main, most potent medicinal plants, the use of which requires special care, as well as their main contraindications.

1. How to collect plants

Herb picking is great an exciting activity for the whole family, which gives a person the opportunity to observe nature, to comprehend its essence, and this already brings a person closer to nature, makes his life healthier and more harmonious. For plants to really give people healing, you need to follow a few simple rules.

1. You need to collect plants only in good places- this means that for medicinal purposes, plants should be collected away from industrial centers (20-25 km), away from roads (at least 100-150 m); you can not collect medicinal plants near fields treated with herbicides and pesticides; Medicinal plants should not be collected near landfills.

It is safest to collect plants in places far from human habitation (where the cock is not heard), or high in the mountains.

2. Plants must be harvested on time; this means that it is best to harvest the plants in the morning after the dew has dried. You can not collect plants after rain - when dried, they will lose their color and smell.

3. Collecting plants should be a kind person with a good mood, who wants to help people and himself. Collecting medicinal herbs is a whole ritual. Many folk healers, when collecting herbs, read prayers, apologize to the plant that they pick, and ask that it serve people with its healing power.

It is very important to know which parts of a given plant are the most healing and when it is time to collect them.

Many medicinal plants the entire greenery is used, that is, the entire above-ground part. If the word "grass" is written in the collection recipe, this means the entire aerial part: flowers, stem, leaves. In many plants, for example: wormwood, St. John's wort, motherwort, it is recommended to pluck only flowering tops - 10-15 cm.

In many medicinal plants, only flowers are collected.

Flowers and "grass" are collected at the beginning of flowering, when the plant is at the zenith of its vitality. At the end of flowering, some of these forces will already be lost. In umbrella plants, umbrellas are cut off. In some plants, only the petals break off (mullein, blue cornflower).

Sometimes only the leaves of the medicinal plant are used. Leaves must be collected before flowering or at the beginning of budding. The leaves of spring plants used fresh for salads (nettle, birch, dandelion, primrose) are best collected when they have barely blossomed soft, pale green - they already contain all the active ingredients in maximum concentration. The leaves are cut off by hand, usually developed basal, low and medium stem leaves are collected. Leaves that are faded, wilted, eaten by insects or affected by fungi should not be collected. When collecting leaves, remember that you can not pick off more than 25% of the leaves from the plant so that the remaining ones are enough for the normal life of the plant.

The roots of plants are very carefully dug up in autumn or early spring, that is, after the death of the aerial part, when the whole Vital energy plants are at the root. Rhizomes and roots are first shaken off the ground, and then washed in running water. The washed roots are laid out on a cloth and dried in the sun. The roots of galangal, serpentine, burnet are dried in the sun; Valerian roots in the sun are only ventilated, further drying is done in the shade.

Seeds and fruits are harvested when they are ripe.

The bark of trees and shrubs - oak, viburnum, buckthorn, aspen - should be collected in the spring during the period of increased sap production. At this time, the bark is easily separated from the wood. Later, when growth stops, the bark is not removed. To remove the bark, ring-shaped cuts are made on young branches with a sharp knife at a distance of 25-50 cm from one another, connected with one or two longitudinal cuts, and then removed in the form of grooves. If the bark is covered with lichen growths, then they must first be thoroughly cleaned with a knife, otherwise the raw material will be spoiled and it will not be possible to obtain a full-fledged medicine from it. In buckthorn, the bark is removed from trunks and branches, and in oak, only from young side branches. Buckthorn bark can be used as a laxative after 1 year of storage. The fresh bark is poisonous and causes vomiting. You can destroy the nauseating effect of the bark by heat treatment (heat for 1 hour at 100 ° C).

Kidneys, such as birch, pine, spruce, poplar, and currant, are also used as medicinal raw materials. The buds are harvested in early spring when they are swollen but not starting to grow, usually in March-April. Large buds (pine) are cut with a knife, small ones (birch) are threshed after drying the branches. Dry the kidneys long time and only in a cool ventilated room, because in a warm one they will start to grow. Or it is necessary to keep the kidneys for 10 days in the cold, then dry at a temperature not higher than 30-35 ° C.

A significant part of the medicinal herbs used today in medicine is bred for commercial purposes. The chemical composition of herbs and the amount of active substances differ from those of wild plants, because these properties depend on the area and natural growing conditions. As is known, plants grown in the mountains or in the harsh climate of the Urals and Siberia contain more biologically active substances, i.e., where there are significant differences in day and night temperatures, summer and winter. But commercial plant breeding with proper and reasonable agricultural practices is fully justified, because it guarantees a certain quality and protection of plants from environmental poisons, and also contributes to the conservation and breeding rare species plants, the collection of which in natural conditions can lead to their complete destruction.

When collecting plants, leave at least 30% of the plants intact, this is necessary for their normal reproduction in nature.

2. Drying and storing herbs

Proper collection of medicinal plants is not all. Subsequent drying is no less important. Almost all medicinal plants must be dried, whether they are taken to a pharmacy, processed by a pharmaceutical factory, or left by a picker for home use. Drying medicinal plants is not as easy as it might seem at first glance: drying in a damp or poorly ventilated area, as well as belated or premature harvesting of plants, can spoil the raw materials and turn out to be just a waste of time, effort, labor and money.

Before drying, vegetable raw materials are sorted, removing accidentally caught parts of other plants or parts of the same plant that are not provided for by the harvest (for example, leaves in flower raw materials), as well as browned and damaged parts and other debris.

The process of drying the harvested plants is the most significant moment in the harvesting process. There are several ways of drying vegetable raw materials: air shadow, air solar and thermal with artificial heating.

Air shadow drying is used for herbs, leaves and flowers, which, under the influence of direct sunlight, fade, turn brown, lose their natural color and proper appearance; the amount of active substances in such substandard raw materials is reduced. Such drying is carried out in well-ventilated rooms or in attics, and in good weather - in the open air, but in the shade, under a special canopy, and better in the wind; enclosed spaces can be equipped with shelving units with sliding frames covered with mesh. You can also dry raw materials on gauze hammocks, hanging them in the attic between the rafters. In hammocks, gauze is stretched over spacers so that it does not wrinkle or stray: hammocks are very convenient for drying, since in this case the raw material is ventilated not only from above, but also from below and from the sides, so drying is faster.

Air solar drying is used for root and rhizomatous raw materials containing tannins and alkaloids, as well as for juicy fruits.

With both methods of drying, the raw materials are laid out in a thin layer (from 1 to 3 cm) and turned over at least once a day; during solar drying, the raw materials are removed into the room at night, and during the shady drying, the doors and windows of the room in which the raw materials are located are closed at night.

Thermal drying with artificial heating is optimal for all types of raw materials, but temperature regime set for each type. Herbs, leaves, flowers, roots, rhizomes and bulbs are dried at a temperature of 50--60°, fruits and seeds - at 70--90°, all raw materials containing essential oils - at 35--40°C. For this, special dryers are used. In the absence of them, the raw materials are dried in (on) Russian ovens. The oven should not be very hot, otherwise the raw material will burn. To check the temperature of the furnace, you need to throw a piece of paper into it: if it does not char and turn very yellow, you can put the raw materials. In the first 1-2 hours, the pipe is not closed, the damper should be placed on two bricks and the upper edge bent so that outside air is drawn in, and warm air saturated with moisture from the raw material comes out into the pipe. Recently, drying of raw materials began to be carried out in ovens of gas and electric stoves. At the same time, the flame of the gas burner must be minimal (heating regulator of the electric oven at the “I” mark), the oven door is ajar.

Dry fruits and seeds lose moisture even before threshing and almost do not need drying. If necessary, dry them outdoors or indoors.

The buds should be dried very carefully - for a long time and in a cool room, as they quickly bloom in warmth. Large buds (pines, poplars) are cut from the shoots directly on the spot, and small ones (birches) are harvested together with shoots 50-60 cm long and threshed only after drying; threshed shoots are used to make brooms. Buds are harvested in concentrated felling areas, along the way they are collected during sanitary and thinning cuttings, as well as in plantings, but in this case - exclusively from the lower shoots.

When preparing the bark, young plants or shoots are cut down or cut down, and then the smooth bark is completely removed from them (the old cracked one contains a lot of cork and few active substances). Partial harvesting of the bark (i.e., not from the entire shoot, but only from one of its sides), which was practiced until recently, cannot now be recommended, since damaged plants become a breeding ground for phytodiseases that spread to surrounding plants; this contributes to the development of unsanitary conditions in the plant community. The harvesting of bark, as well as buds, accompanies various cuttings in forestry, but it is also possible under the forest canopy, as well as in regenerating cutting areas. For the bark, heat drying is preferable, since during the harvesting period it is still too cool and damp to dry the raw material in the air. During drying, it is necessary to ensure that the pieces of bark, bent by the grooves, do not nest into each other, otherwise they will grow moldy and rot from the inside. The bark can be stored for 3 to 5 years.

When harvesting leaves, only the lower ones should be plucked so as not to damage the flowering and fruiting of plants. Thick and juicy petioles slow down drying, contain few active ingredients, so they are removed (in tripoli, or watch, coltsfoot). When collecting nettle leaves, the plants are first mowed, and when the leaves are withered and lose their pungency, they are cut off. It is unproductive to pick off small leathery leaves (in bearberry, lingonberry) with your hands, therefore, the shoots of plants are first dried, and then the leaves are cut off from them, combing the branches, or threshed, throwing out the stem parts. The final cleaning is carried out on grates. Leaves with thin leaf blades dry unevenly: the leaf blades dry out, while the veins and petioles remain soft. Therefore, such leaves are dried until the petioles become brittle. After drying, the leaves are raked into a heap and left for several days: due to their hygroscopicity, they are slightly moistened and crumble less when packed. Leaves are stored from 1 to 3 years.

The term "herbs" in pharmacognosy refers to leafy and flower-bearing stems of herbaceous plants - either the entire aerial part, or only the tops of the stems: for some species (thyme, sweet clover), the term "grass" means a mixture of leaves, flowers and small stems, and sometimes and the whole plant along with the roots (for example, cudweed marsh). Herbs are harvested by cutting off the entire aerial part at the level of the lower leaves with a knife, sickle or secateurs. Bare stems do not touch. If the plant forms pure thickets, it is cut with a scythe, and foreign impurities are removed before drying. In plants with hard stems (wormwood, succession, sweet clover), leaves and flowering tops are collected separately. When harvesting grass, raw materials must be cut, not plucked, so as not to uproot the entire plant. At home, herbs are usually dried in thin bunches, hanging them on ropes. In general, ordinary drying is recommended for grass - shady, or thermal with artificial heating. Grass is stored for 1-2 years.

Flowers should be collected at the beginning of flowering plants. Untimely collected, they lose their color or are more than usual crushed when dried. The term “flowers” refers not only to individual flowers, but also to their parts (for example, only corollas are collected from a mullein) and even entire inflorescences (baskets of chamomile, marigolds or linden inflorescences along with a covering leaf, etc.) When harvesting, the flowers are cut off without pedicels , and baskets of composite plants are collected by combing during collection, after which the pedicels are cut off. When collecting chamomile, special scoop combs are used. Compositae baskets are harvested in the phase of the horizontal arrangement of reed flowers, and those plants that have only tubular flowers - at the beginning of the blooming of marginal flowers. The increased crushing of dried flowers reduces the quality of medicinal raw materials or makes them unsuitable for consumption. When collecting flowers from trees and shrubs, sticks with a hook are used to bend the branches, and for cutting, they use a pruner or delimber. Flowers are the most delicate parts of the plant, so they should not be packed tightly in a closed container. It is best to collect them in baskets and immediately dry them after collection, spreading them out in a layer of 1 cm and not turning them over so as not to fray. You can only stir baskets of Compositae - tansy, chamomile, calendula, etc. The shelf life of flower raw materials is up to 2 years.

Fruits and seeds should be harvested fully ripe, with rare exceptions. In plants with extended flowering, the fruits ripen repeatedly, and while some of the fruits are not yet ripe, the ripe ones are already crumbling - this leads to large losses. In this case, the tops of the plants are cut off at the moment when half of the fruits are ripe, then the plants are tied in bunches and hung to ripen all the fruits in a dry room. When ripe, the fruits fall off, they can be easily harvested, and dry sheaves can be threshed. Umbrella fruits (anise, fennel, cumin) should be harvested early in the morning with dew or in wet weather. All dry fruits after drying are screened from dust and impurities, and finally cleaned on winnowers.

3. Precautions for handling poisonous plants

Among even well-known medicinal plants, there are many poisonous, but successfully used for medicinal purposes. Therefore, you cannot self-medicate without an accurate diagnosis of your disease by the attending physician and without his recommendation or advice on the possibility of using folk remedies at home.

Remember that any herb, for others the most useful and harmless, can be a powerful allergen for you. Hay fever is a very serious condition caused only by the smell of herbs, but not the worst when an allergic reaction causes the airways to swell too quickly. Therefore, even an herb approved for your treatment needs to be checked to see if it is compatible with your body. Phytotherapists always warn patients that the minimum dose should be used at the first dose. And if you feel worse, if you have a rash on your face and hands, in no case do not try to be treated with this particular herb. In the arsenal of both scientific and traditional medicine there are enough other herbs of life, very similar in chemical composition for the treatment of the same diseases.

So, the first rule: "do not harm yourself!" Find out if this herb is right for you.

Rule two: you can not be treated endlessly with the same herb. Ask your doctor how many days you can take this medicine, after how many days you should resume phytotherapy. Firstly, the body becomes "addicted" and secondly, the body can become oversaturated with chemicals that were contained in the grass and helped you cope with the disease. But in large quantities, these same substances can cause irreparable harm to your body. Practitioners have noted cases when the uncontrolled and prolonged use of such wonderful plants as, for example, St.

Be sure to bring scissors and a knife to gather herbs.

When collecting plants, try not to tear poisonous herbs with your bare hands; it is impossible that their juice or dust from them get into your eyes and nose.

After harvesting, the poisonous herb should be dried in a place that is inaccessible to children and pets.

Store raw materials containing toxic and potent substances in lockable cabinets or pantries.

Be sure to label the jars and boxes of herbs with the name of the herb and when it was picked.

Notes.

1. Be sure to bring scissors and a knife to collect medicinal herbs. You will not only significantly speed up the collection and facilitate labor, but also save the life of the plant.

2. Do not put different herbs in one bag and dry them separately. Remember that a mistake can harm you.

Literature

1. Big medical encyclopedia.

2. Reference book on folk and alternative medicine. Tula: Ariel, 1996.

3. Danikov Nikolay Illarionovich Your herbalist: M.: RIPOL, 1996.

4. Home herbalist. Smolensk: Rusich, 1999.

5. Home pharmacy. M: Eksmo-Press: Lik press, 2001.

6. E.T. Mikhailenko, V.E. Radzinsky, K.A. Zakharov. Medicinal plants in obstetrics and gynecology. K .: Zdorov, I, 1984. 136 p.

7. V.E. Radzinsky, Kh.A. Anneev, O.A. Anneeva. Medicinal plants of Turkmenistan in obstetrics, gynecology and pediatrics. Ashgabat, 1994, 175 p.

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Poisonous Plants:

Poisonous plants are not necessarily guests from exotic countries, many of them grow in central Russia, they are inconspicuous and rarely pay attention to them. Leaves hemlock spotted (Conium maculatum) are very similar to parsley, it has red spots on the stem, it grows in wastelands and is considered a weed. And here cicuta(poisonous milestone) lives in wetlands, along the banks of lakes and rivers, often in water. The hemlock has dissected leaves with narrow lanceolate lobes and umbrellas of whitish small flowers.

Andrea Moro

Veh poisonous (Cicuta virosa) or hemlock - one of the most dangerous plants, all parts of which, especially the rhizome, contain cicutotoxin and other potent alkaloids. The poisonous alkaloid in hemlock is horse meat, which produces the same effect as curare poison. Signs of poisoning to these plants are convulsions, unconsciousness, paralysis, ending in respiratory arrest.

Tragedy may end home use yew berry (taxus baccata) as a medicinal plant. Young yew needles containing the alkaloid taxane can even poison animals. This alkaloid affects the central nervous system.

Since the 1990s, yew tree alkaloids have been used for the manufacture of anticancer drugs in official medicine.

naturgucker

Kleshchevin (Ricinus) is often grown as an ornamental annual. Its large seeds are shaped like a tick. They are not only a source of castor oil, but also contain a poisonous protein enzyme - ricin, which causes paralysis of the nervous system.

F. D. Richards

The smell and appearance of poisonous plants sometimes suggests, and sometimes hides the danger that threatens us upon contact with them. Pink periwinkle and purple colchicum can kill a person. in bulbs autumn colchicum (Colchicum autumnale) accumulates colchicine, which has the same effect as arsenic. Periwinkle pink, or pink catharanthus (Catharanthus roseus), or Pink Periwinkle is also poisonous, but its potent alkaloids are used in modern medicine as an antitumor agent.

Carl Lewis

IN wolf berries (Daphne mezereum), which temptingly turn red on the trunk of the plant, contains the glycoside daphne and the poisonous resin meserine, which at the initial stage causes an unbearable burning sensation in the throat, severe bitterness in the mouth, dizziness and swelling of the tongue. When you admire the lilac flowers of the wolfberry in spring, do not pluck or bite off the twig with your teeth, this is very dangerous.

kras3

bright orange berries lily of the valley (Convallaria) are also dangerous. Glycosides lily of the valley, digitalis, bought affect the rhythm of the heartbeat, the nervous system and the stomach. Even the water in the vase containing these flowers is dangerous.

Irina Durnova

At the end of summer in a coniferous forest you can meet raven eye (Paris) - a black-blue berry between large leaves. Make sure that when walking in the forest, your children do not mistake the crow's eye for blueberries or blueberries.

Be wary of plants with bright and juicy fruits unless you know exactly what kind of plants they are!

Ruud de Block

Contains alkaloids hyoscyamine, scopolamine and atropine henbane juice, which causes hallucinations, delirium, heart palpitations and confusion. A small amount of these substances was used in ancient times for pain relief during surgical operations.

Henbane black (Hyoscyamus niger), like potatoes, belongs to the nightshade family. It grows on the outskirts of fields and wastelands. The height of this poisonous plant is about 1 meter, burgundy venation appears on yellowish flowers. After flowering, pitcher-shaped white boxes with rounded seeds appear on the henbane. People who chew these seeds to pacify toothache, feel dry mouth, their speech is disturbed, and the pupils dilate, mental excitement can turn into insanity. The same symptoms appear from red berries. black nightshade And bittersweet nightshade.

Rolf Muller

Grows in dumps and wastelands dope smelly, it is better not to breathe its smell, and touching its flowers is very dangerous. The fruits of "stupid - herbs" contain the alkaloid daturin, which also contains henbane.

Other plants from the nightshade family are also dangerous: belladonna, magic mandrake, tobacco from South America and Peruvian coca.

NYSIPM

dangerous to humans and hogweed, from its poisonous stems it is impossible to make either pipes or sprinklers. The leaves of the cow parsnip secrete essential oils that burn in the sun. They also act on human skin. caucasian ash-tree And narrow-leaved ash-tree.

Poisonous and many buttercups, they produce dangerous glycosides and essential oils that irritate the nose, throat and eyes. And buttercup juice leads to sharp pains in the stomach. Among the ranunculus there are many poisonous herbs: Adonis, hellebore, catchment, lumbago, black cohosh and other plants.

Adam Gor

But poisonous plants can bring not only harm, many of them are useful. In folk medicine in Rus', about 160 species of poisonous plants were used.

tanja niggendijker

It is hard to imagine that a very tasty Indian cashew nuts the peel contains poisonous cardolum, from which abscesses can occur on human skin. In India, this substance is used to protect building materials from ants.

tropical fruit mango useful and pleasant to the taste, but the smell of its flowers can cause allergies in humans. The unripe peel, twigs, and trunk of the mango tree contain poisonous gum, which causes blisters and swelling on the skin.

You can get poisoned and poppy sleeping pills. Unripe boxes and ovary of poppy are poisoned by poisonous milky juice.

Celandine also contains milky juice, which can cause a burn on the skin. Great trouble will bring celandine juice when it enters the stomach. Currently, celandine alkaloids are being studied for use in medicine as inhibiting the growth of malignant tumors.

fifeflora

It should be understood that most poisonous plants do not pose a serious danger in case of accidental contact with them. Much depends on the dose of their application. As a rule, poisonous plants can be poisoned if you use them for self-medication, without consulting a doctor, relying on the advice of “knowledgeable people”.

What amazing powers
The earth has invested in stones and flowers!
There is no such fiber in the world,
That she wouldn't be proud of
How can you not find such a basis,
Where there would be nothing wrong.
Everything that is useful, by the way, and not on time -
All blessings turn into vice.
For example, vessels of this flower:
One of them is good, the other is bad.
In its flowers - a healing aroma,
And in the leaves and roots - the strongest poison.
So they split our souls in two
The spirit of kindness and evil self-will.
However, in those where evil wins,
The black hollow of death gapes

Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare.
Translation by Boris Pasternak.

The ancient Greeks, explaining the action of medicinal plants, sometimes endowed them with supernatural power. In ancient Greek, the word "pharmakon" means both poison, and medicine, and witchcraft. From the same word, the science of medicinal plants is now called, about medicines in general -, and those who make medicines in pharmacies are called pharmacists.

At different times and different countries potions were made from poisonous plants for criminal purposes. "Insidious", "harmful", "enemy plants" - as soon as these plants are not called! Many of them have also been known since ancient times to have wonderful healing properties when taken in small doses. Ancient doctors said that poison, skillfully applied, can serve as a medicine. Only Russian medicine used more than 160 species of poisonous plants. There are many of them in the medicine of India, Tibet, China, Africa, America.

For the most part, poisons are curable, if you only know how and in what quantity to apply them. Small doses of poison contain painkillers, sedatives, healing medicines, medicines for infections, diseases of the heart, liver, kidneys.

In the plant kingdom, scientists count 10 thousand species of poisonous plants. This is a lot.

True, most of them are not always dangerous, but only at certain periods of their development.

It happens that the same plant is poisonous in different ways depending on the conditions in which it grows. A plant grown in the shade is more poisonous. There are more poisons in it in the morning than in the evening or at night. It also depends on the composition, its temperature, humidity.

Celery that grows in marshy places tastes disgusting and poisonous, but grown in a garden bed is pleasant, nutritious and medicinal.

Poisonous substances are distributed differently in different parts of plants. In some, the bark is also poisonous, in others - flowers and leaves, in others, almost the entire set of poisons is concentrated in the roots. Everything about the potato is poisonous, except for the tubers. A poisonous substance, solanine, accumulates in sprouted or green tubers. True, it is partially destroyed during cooking. Tomatoes (and fruits and seeds) are not poisonous, but leaves, stems, roots are poisonous. Sometimes the whole plant is poisonous.

There is no single sign that would help distinguish a poisonous plant from a non-poisonous one.

There are still cases of poisoning by poisonous plants - the result of the fact that people, especially children, carelessly handle unfamiliar herbs. They don’t know that there are some among them that you can’t even touch, much less take in. To avoid trouble, poisonous plants that you can meet in the forest, in the field and even in your flower garden, you need to know.

Introduction…………………………………………………………………………...3

1. Medicinal plants………………………………………………..4

1.1 Dandelion officinalis…………………………………………….…9

1.2 Yarrow……………………………………………………………………13

2. Poisonous plants…………………………………………………..……16

2.1 Hemlock spotted or speckled……………………………….16

2.2 Hellebore……………………………………………………..………..19

Conclusion…………...…………………………………………………………..25

Literature………..…………………………………………………………..….26

Introduction

For thousands of years, herbs have served man. On their own experience, primitive people comprehended their healing properties and passed on the accumulated knowledge from generation to generation. Since ancient times, healing has been a sacrament, so healers chose their students very meticulously. The collection, manufacture of medicines and treatment were accompanied by magical techniques and spells.

Already an outstanding ancient Greek physician and thinker Hippocrates (about 460 - about 370 BC) described 236 plants that were used in medicine of that time. Among them are henbane, elderberry, mustard, iris, almonds, mint. In Russia, herbal treatment has been known and popular for a long time: even the princes were interested in the cultivation and use of medicinal plants. At the beginning of the 18th century, under Alexei Mikhailovich, the Pharmaceutical Order was created, supplying the court and the army with medicinal herbs, and Peter I ordered the creation of pharmaceutical schools and pharmaceutical gardens - the first plantations of medicinal plants in Russia. Much has changed since then, but interest in medicinal herbs has not faded - on the contrary, now it is especially great. Thus, the share of preparations from plants accounts for more than 40 % all medicines, the rest 60 % - artificially synthesized substances.

The golden fund of wild medicinal plants, alas, is exhausted. Many medicinal plants are listed in the Red Book of Endangered Species. To preserve the possibility of obtaining valuable drugs based on medicinal plants, special plantations are created. All plants with medicinal properties are comprehensively studied by pharmacists - specialists in the creation of drugs: they determine their chemical composition, identify biologically active substances, and conduct drug tests. And only after that the plant receives a medicinal "passport": it is included in the official list - the State Pharmacopoeia.

Even the Roman physician Claudius Galen, who lived in the 2nd century, emphasized that the effect of medicinal plants can be both healing and harmful.

1. medicinal plants

In terms of chemical composition, medicinal plants are not similar to each other, and their practical application is very diverse. Some plants are used as vitamin carriers, others as a remedy, and others as a source of nutrition.

Before describing individual plants, I would like to introduce the reader a little to the main chemicals that make up plants and determine their beneficial or medicinal effect.

All useful plants are valued primarily for the presence of biologically active substances in them, which have a certain therapeutic effect on individual organs or the entire human or animal body. These substances in the plant, as a rule, are few, but they often have a strong effect.

The composition of plants, in addition to a large amount of water, up to 90 percent, includes various organic and mineral substances. Among the organic substances mentioned in plant descriptions, the most important biologically active substances are alkaloids. In their composition, these are complex nitrogen-containing compounds of alkaline origin, found mainly in flowering plants. Approximately 10 percent of the world flora are considered to be alkaloid carriers, and the number of alkaloids isolated from plants has reached five thousand names. In its pure form, alkaloids are a crystalline substance of a bitter taste without color and odor. By the way, the toxicity of plants is most often due to the presence of alkaloids. Their content in the plant varies depending on the vegetation phase, season, climate, growing zone, soil, etc., usually it is insignificant - from traces to three percent of dry weight. Wherein the largest number alkaloids is observed in the plant at the stage of budding and flowering.

Glycosides depending on the binding beginning of the two main parts - a sugar derivative and aglycone, which has pharmacological activity, they are divided into several groups. Among them is a large group of flavonoids, which received its name for its yellow color. This group of substances is endowed with a bactericidal, choleretic effect, the ability to reduce the permeability and fragility of capillaries, remove radioactive substances from the body, it is used as a cardiac, expectorant; there is evidence of its antitumor activity.

Tannins (tannins)- these are complex nitrogen-free non-toxic compounds that have a yellowish color and darken when in contact with light, that is, they are oxidized in air. Their content in plants ranges from traces to 35 percent of dry matter. For medicinal purposes, tannins are used as anti-inflammatory, astringent, antiseptic, hemostatic agents due to their ability to coagulate protein and form a protective film on the mucous membranes. Tanides precipitate not only proteins, but also alkaloids, glycosides, heavy metals and are used in practice for poisoning with these substances.

Essential oils- Aromatic, highly volatile, water-insoluble substances that give the plant a specific smell. Currently, more than 2500 species of fragrant plants are known for which essential oils are protective or attractive. Their content in plants ranges from traces to 20 percent. Plants containing esters or preparations from them are widely used in the perfumery and food industries, some are used for medicinal purposes as sedatives, expectorants, analgesics, antimicrobials and antihelminths.

Resins and balms close to essential oils in chemical composition and are often found in the same plants. In appearance, they are usually semi-liquid, sticky, with a specific odor, as a rule, insoluble in water. Balms are resins that do not dry out for a long time. Resins and balms have bactericidal and antiseptic properties, they are used as a diuretic and laxative in medicine, are used in cosmetics, and also for the production of varnishes, plastics, paper, paints, etc.

organic acids are an indispensable component of all plants along with proteins and carbohydrates. The most common are malic, citric, acetic, oxalic, formic, and benzoic acids. They give taste, and sometimes smell to the plant, are in it in a free state or in the form of salts. All organic acids are widely used in medicine, food and perfume industries and other industries.

vitamins- These are effective medicines necessary to maintain the life of humans and animals. Violation of their balance in the body can lead to severe diseases. In composition, they are very complex and diverse compounds, which are united only by their biological role and physiological effects on the body. Some of them are soluble in water, others in fats. Each vitamin has its own role and purpose in the body.

enzymes, or biocatalysts, are substances that accelerate biochemical processes in plants and animals.

Carbohydrates. Among this group of organic compounds found in plants, the simplest are monosaccharides (glucose, fructose, etc.). Connecting with each other, they create more complex connections. - disaccharides (sucrose, maltose, etc.), tri- and tetra-saccharides, polysaccharides, which include starch, inulin, pectin substances, gums, mucus, fiber, etc. All of them are widely used primarily in medicine, as well as in other branches of the national economy.

A very significant pharmacological role in plants is played by minerals. They include a very large group macronutrients(iron, potassium, phosphorus, silicon, magnesium, etc.) and trace elements(copper, manganese, cobalt, arsenic, nickel, molybdenum, zinc, etc.). And although the content of mineral substances in plants is negligible, their role in the life of the human and animal organism is undeniable, and the lack of one or another element can lead to serious diseases and disorders of body functions.

In addition to a description of each plant and its distinctive features, information about the places of growth and chemical composition, the reader will also find here information about how the plant was used or is used now, how, when and what parts of it to collect, how to properly dry and store.

Speaking about the use of medicinal plants in scientific and folk medicine, the author by no means recommends using them as a means of treating a specific disease - this is the business of physicians. General information on the appointment of a particular plant are gleaned from the special literature listed at the end of the book. And this information will be useful to those who are interested in medicinal plants both for the purpose of collecting them in order to help medical institutions in their preparation, and for their own use on the advice of a doctor. The recipes given in some cases for the preparation of preparations from the most famous medicinal plants are taken from the same special literature, which has gone through more than one edition. In this regard, we also present methods for preparing simple preparations from medicinal plants at home.

Infusion and decoction are extracts from medicinal plants. Infusions are prepared from loose parts of plants - leaves, flowers, stems, as well as from coarse parts - woody stems, bark, roots and rhizomes, if rapidly volatile substances (essential oils) or easily decomposing under the influence of high temperature(glycosides). Decoctions are prepared from the coarse parts of plants that do not contain volatile and decompose active substances during prolonged heating.

Raw materials are pre-crushed: leaves, stems, flowers to a particle size of not more than 5 millimeters, roots, bark -3, fruits and seeds up to 0.5 millimeters. The crushed raw materials are weighed or measured and placed in an enameled or porcelain dish, poured with boiled water at room temperature, closed with a lid and placed in a boiling water bath. The infusion is heated for 15, and the decoction for 30 minutes with frequent stirring. After that, the infusions are cooled for at least 45, and the decoctions are 10 minutes at room temperature, filtered, the residue is squeezed out, and water is added to the finished extract to the desired volume.

Decoctions and infusions are prepared, as a rule, in a ratio of 1:10, that is, 10 parts of infusion or decoction are obtained from one part of the raw material, but other ratios are not excluded. Due to the fact that infusions and decoctions deteriorate quickly, they are stored in a cool place for no more than 3-4 days.

Often at home, infusions and decoctions are prepared without boiling, pouring boiling water over raw materials. In this case, it is necessary to insist at least 4-8 hours, and use the drug within one day.

For external use of infusions and decoctions for the treatment of skin diseases, mucous membranes, gargling, for baths, lotions, compresses, etc., you can use a more concentrated preparation - 1: 5, which is prepared as described above.

Powders are the simplest means of using medicinal raw materials prepared from dried flowers, leaves, stems, roots and seeds of plants. After separating the rough stems, the plants are passed through a coffee grinder or thoroughly crushed in a mortar, then sifted through a sieve. Store powders in closed glass jars. Also prepare dry seasonings from food plants.

Ointments for external use consist of medicinal substances evenly distributed on the base. They are prepared from powders of dried plants, extracts, tinctures and fresh juice. Vaseline, unsalted lard and cow butter are most often used as the basis. Ointments prepared with lard and cow's butter are more effective, but deteriorate quickly.

Often, for medicinal purposes, fresh plant juice is used both externally and internally. Finely chopped parts of fresh plants are passed through a meat grinder or juicer. The resulting slurry is squeezed out, a small amount of water is added to the residue and squeezed again. You can prepare vegetable juice for the future by adding at least 20 percent alcohol.

Collections and teas are mixtures of dried and crushed medicinal plants, sometimes with the addition of mineral medicinal substances. Fees are intended for home preparation of infusions, decoctions, rinses and poultices, as well as therapeutic baths. In pharmacies, packages of fees always indicate in what proportions they need to be prepared.

1.1 Dandelion officinalis

It is a perennial herbaceous plant with golden-yellow reed flowers collected in baskets. It blooms in April - June. The fruits ripen in May - June. Propagated by seeds. Dandelion roots are used. They are collected by digging up during the period of wilting of the leaves (from August). The roots are washed in cold water, dried in air until the milky juice ceases to stand out from the incised root. They are dried in the shade under a canopy, in ovens or dryers at a temperature of 40 - 50 °.

Shelf life is 5 years. Preparations (decoctions, extracts and pills) are used to stimulate appetite and improve the activity of the digestive tract. Dandelion officinalis grows almost throughout Russia, except for the Arctic, Eastern Siberia and the desert regions of the Far East. It usually grows in meadows, on roadsides, in parks, gardens and orchards, on forest edges and glades.

Dandelion is a perennial herbaceous plant of the Compositae family. Only in our country there are about 200 of its species. It is so widespread and ubiquitous that it is known to everyone from young to old in the city and in the countryside. It scatters like millions of little suns (following the flowers of the coltsfoot) in green meadows, roadsides, gardens, orchards - in a word, wherever there is a lot of sun and no dampness. The dandelion lives and blooms according to its own law: at sunrise the yellow disks of flowers open, at sunset they close for the night, as if following their giant brother. It is interesting to watch the meadow with dandelions - in the daytime it is covered with a yellow veil, and in the evening someone invisible rolls up this veil. In hot weather, the flowers close during the day. In our conditions, this is a rare occurrence among wild plants.

Dandelion begins to bloom early and blooms until late autumn, changing generations. A flower in the form of a yellow basket, standing on a hollow, leafless tube of a peduncle, rises above the leaves with pinnately incised edges, which form a basal rosette. The length of the leaves can reach 15, even 25 centimeters in length and 5 in width. The root of a dandelion is taproot, thick, sometimes penetrating to a depth of up to 60 centimeters.

Dandelion leaves contain ascorbic acid, vitamins A and B, manganese, boron, strontium, copper and other trace elements are found in the pollen of the plant. The root is extremely rich (dried contains up to 40 percent) inulin. Inulin is a starch substitute that turns into fruit sugar when the roots are roasted. The dried root contains up to 20 percent of sugars, up to 15 percent of proteins, a large number of macro- and microelements, and many other foamy substances for the body.

In a dandelion, like no other plant, everything - from a flower bud to the roots, is suitable for writing. Salads, all kinds of seasonings for meat and fish dishes are prepared from the early leaves, cabbage soup and soups are cooked. Flower buds are pickled and then added as seasonings to vinaigrettes, saltworts and game dishes. Amber-colored jam is brewed from the flowers themselves. Fried basal rosettes are a delicacy dish. Fruit sugar is obtained from the roots (it is twice as sweet as usual), and if the dried roots are roasted and ground in a coffee grinder or crushed in field conditions, you will get good coffee. The ground root can be added to flour. This is a great food reserve for expeditions, tourists and people who often visit nature.

Unfortunately, all parts of the dandelion contain a bitter milky juice and need to be pre-treated before being eaten. To eliminate bitterness from leaves and flower buds, they are soaked in salted (3-5-1 trots) cold water for 30 minutes. Basal rosettes are boiled in a 5% saline solution for 5-10 minutes before frying. Rosettes are usually harvested in early spring, when the leaves are just beginning to break through, they are cut from the root 2-3 centimeters below the leaves. The bitterness in the roots is destroyed by roasting.

For medicinal purposes, the root, sometimes dandelion leaves, are most often used as bitterness to stimulate appetite, as a choleretic and diuretic, as a mild laxative.

To prepare a decoction, pour 3 tablespoons of crushed roots with 2 cups of boiling water, boil for 15 minutes, filter and drink a glass twice a day for half an hour before meals.

The healing properties of dandelion have been known since antiquity. Theophrastus and Avicenna, for example, dandelion juice was recommended for the destruction of freckles and icteric spots on the skin, for the treatment of dropsy and the removal of eyesores.

In Russian folk medicine, dandelion is called the elixir of life. It is used in the treatment of skin diseases - rashes, acne, eczema and others. The juice of fresh roots is included in the composition of ointments, they are lubricated with warts, calluses. Powders from dried dandelion roots have a beneficial effect in atherosclerosis - they help to remove cholesterol from the body. Dandelion is used as an expectorant, sedative, wound healing agent.

By the way, it will probably be said here (and not only in relation to dandelion) that even the most famous and tested folk remedy for the same ailment can be effective for some people, less or completely ineffective for others, and even completely for others. contraindicated. Therefore, to get carried away with any plant and consider it the only salvation from any disease is a deep delusion.

Dandelion roots for medicinal purposes are harvested in September - October, during the withering of the leaves. They dig up the plant, cut off small roots and the aerial part, wash it with cold water, dry it for several days in the air under a canopy and then dry it in a dry, well-ventilated room or dryer at a temperature of 60-70 degrees.

When using dandelion in writing, it must be remembered that in urban conditions it is able to absorb and accumulate lead and other harmful substances from exhaust gases. It is best to collect the plant in meadows, forest clearings, near rivers, where it is extremely abundant, and in terms of weight it is more impressive under these conditions.

In many foreign countries, dandelion is cultivated in vegetable gardens, which is very convenient from an economic point of view - it can be harvested at any time without much difficulty.

In our region, dandelions grow everywhere, but they are used in food or for medicinal purposes extremely rarely. Although there is evidence, in some places sweet lovers make jam from dandelion flowers.

1.2 Yarrow (cut grass, bloodwort, trees, mother liquor, whitehead )

This unpretentious plant from the Asteraceae family is found everywhere on dry forest edges, borders, along roads, paths, near fences, in yards and gardens. In spring, rather large lanceolate leaves on high petioles grow from a perennial creeping rhizome with thin adventitious roots. They, like openwork lace, consist of many small, repeatedly pinnate narrow slices. Also, a straight stem appears from the rhizome, up to half a meter high, with small sessile leaves. At the top of the stem, several branches grow, which are covered with small flowers of white or pale pink color. The flowers are very small, collected in small baskets, forming many corymbs. The yarrow blooms from June to October, when it proudly rises above the dry grass that has long since drooped.

Yarrow leaves and flowers contain essential oil - thanks to it, the plant emits a specific tart but pleasant smell, resins, bitterness, a fairly large amount of vitamin K, vitamin C, tannins, glycosides, flavonoids, organic acids and other substances.

In folk medicine, yarrow has been known since the time of Dioscorides as a means of stopping bleeding and healing wounds. In addition, infusion and decoctions of yarrow herb are drunk for diseases of the kidneys and bladder, nephrolithiasis, dysentery, for pain and cramps in the stomach, internal bleeding, especially uterine and hemorrhoidal, for headaches and even with a lack of milk in nursing mothers. Infusions and decoctions are used as an expectorant for colds, as a gargle for toothache and halitosis. In kits with other herbs, yarrow is used to treat tuberculosis. Fresh juice of the plant with honey is very effective in the treatment of liver, gallstone disease and metabolic diseases. Compresses from the infusion of flowers and taking it inside help get rid of acne, boils and rashes on the skin of the face.

Successfully uses the beneficial properties of yarrow and scientific medicine. Due to the presence in the leaves and flowers of the alkaloid achillein and vitamin. Yarrow is used as a hemostatic agent for local bleeding - nasal, dental, from small wounds, with pulmonary, uterine and hemorrhoidal bleeding. Proazulene, which is part of the essential oil of yarrow, has a beneficial effect in the treatment of inflammatory and allergic diseases. Yarrow preparations treat diseases of the gastrointestinal tract - chronic colitis, gastritis, stomach and duodenal ulcers. Treatment with infusions of gastritis with low acidity is especially effective. Infusion and decoction are taken as bitterness to stimulate appetite. They have astringent, diuretic, antimicrobial, insecticidal, sedative and anticonvulsant effects. Yarrow herb is a part of gastric, appetizing and other fees, teas.

Yarrow infusion is prepared as follows. A tablespoon of chopped herbs is poured into a glass of water at room temperature, boiled for 15 minutes, insisted for at least 45 minutes, filtered. The infusion can be stored in a cool place for no more than 3-4 days. Take a tablespoon 3-4 times a day after meals.

Collection with an unstable stool with diarrhea: yarrow 30 grams, wild rose 50, St. John's wort 30, oak bark 30 grams, sugar syrup to taste, water 1 liter.

Yarrow essential oil has found use in the perfume industry in the manufacture of some lotions and creams to nourish the skin, and the flower tops are used in alcoholic beverages and dairy production.

In veterinary medicine, yarrow infusion is used to treat gastrointestinal diseases in young animals; in crop production, it is used as an insecticide to control certain pests of cultivated plants.

For the future, the yarrow harvests the apical part with leaves and flowers, tearing or cutting with a sickle, scissors. Dry in bunches in the open air, protecting from direct sunlight. The healing properties of dried herbs are preserved for at least two years. When brewing and infusions, it is crushed.

In our region, despite its wide distribution, yarrow is harvested in small quantities only by pharmacies. The reason for this neglect of the plant is most likely in ignorance of its value.

Contraindications. Pregnancy. Prolonged use and taking large doses causes dizziness and skin rashes.

2. Poisonous plants

2.1 Spotted or speckled hemlock - Conium maculatum (L.)

Umbelliferae - UMBELLIFERAE. A biennial bare herbaceous plant (from 90 to 200 cm high), forming in the first year a rosette of basal leaves, in the second - a strongly branched furrowed stem up to 2 m tall. The stem is bare, with a bluish bloom and dark red spots in the lower part, which is why the plant got its name. The leaves are bare, thrice pinnate, with ovate-oval pinnate leaves on long petioles (carrot-like), reminiscent of parsley leaves, when rubbed, there is a sharp smell reminiscent of the smell of cat urine. Stem in thin furrows, with a bluish tint, hollow inside, in the lower part with clearly visible dark red spots, not quite faceted, with powdery coating. Flowers small white flowers arranged in complex umbels with 10-15 main rays; the fruit is a two-seed. The fruit is a two-seeded, the fruits are small, grayish-green, ovate-spherical, laterally flattened. It blooms from the end of June and all July. Seeds ripen in August-September.

The plant is very heat-loving, weedy, finds optimal conditions in thickets of burdock, on littered forest edges. Belongs to the number of the most poisonous plants, especially fruits and leaves.

It is used to prepare drugs that reduce pain. It is taken only under the prescription of a doctor.

The whole plant is poisonous. Contains toxic alkaloids coniine, conhydrin, pseudoconhydrin. Koniin has a nicotine-like effect, in small doses it causes muscle contraction, in toxic paralysis. In ancient times it was used as a deadly poison.

Poisoning occurs when stems enter the mouth, mistakenly taken by children for angelica, from which whistles are made, when eating seeds similar to dill, when clogging ridges with vegetable crops. Causes contact damage to the skin and mucous membranes, proceeding according to the type of severe allergic reactions. There are known cases of poisoning of starving cattle. Poisoning occurs when horses eat 2-3 kg of fresh grass, cattle - 4-5 kg, ducks - 50-70 g. Not the best plant for prevention, official medicine does not recommend it, folk medicine uses it.

The plant is official in many countries of the world, however, the use of Hemlock spotted for medical purposes is prohibited in Russia.

Chemical composition. The plant is very poisonous, and all its parts are toxic, especially immature seeds. The active substances are represented by alkaloids, the most poisonous of them is coniine, which, like nicotine and curare, paralyzes the endings of the motor nerves.

The most poisonous rhizome of the plant, especially in late autumn and early spring. Contain cytotoxin. Neurotoxic (anticholinergic, convulsive) action. The lethal dose is about 50 mg of the plant per 1 kg of body weight.

Tannins were also found in the juice, essential and fatty oils in the fruits, flavonoids (quercetin and kaempferol), vitamin C and carotene in the leaves.

They are poisoned by hemlock when mistakenly using its herb and roots instead of parsley and carrots.

Spotted hemlock (Conium maculatum) looks very similar to wild carrot (Daucus carota): both plants belong to the umbrella family and have a fleshy tap root. All parts of the hemlock contain an alkaloid that paralyzes the respiratory muscles.

It was the juice of this plant, and not hemlock (i.e. milestone), as is usually believed, that Socrates was poisoned.

Signs of poisoning.

With a mild form of poisoning, vomiting, diarrhea, nausea appear.

Signs of poisoning: in the mouth, behind the sternum, in the epigastric region, itching occurs, partial numbness of the skin occurs, dizziness, headache, visual and hearing impairment. Pupil dilation. Paleness of the face, salivation, vomiting. Shortness of breath with difficulty exhaling, rapid heartbeat, abnormal pulse. Twitching of individual muscle groups.

The poison is rapidly absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. The initial symptoms of poisoning appear after 1.5 - 2 hours, sometimes after 20 - 30 minutes. Salivation, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, dilated pupils, tachycardia, tonic-clonic convulsions, respiratory depression. Loss of consciousness, collapse. Most often, poisoning develops in children, who usually eat rhizomes, mistaking them for carrots.

In severe cases, muscle weakness increases, turning into muscle paralysis (starting from the legs). Loss of consciousness. Death can occur due to respiratory arrest due to paralysis of the muscles of the chest (paralysis of the respiratory center). Unripe green seeds contain the largest amount of the main beginning - horse-nine (up to 0.4%). (pronounced nicotine-like action). Koniin, gamma-Konisein - a lethal dose of 0.15 g.

Nicotine is a tobacco alkaloid. The lethal dose is 0.05 g. Symptoms: itching in the mouth, behind the sternum, numbness of skin areas, dizziness, headache, visual and hearing impairment, dilated pupils, salivation, repeated vomiting, shortness of breath, palpitations, abnormal pulse, convulsions (during that increase blood pressure). Death occurs from respiratory arrest (paralysis of the respiratory center and respiratory muscles).

In case of hemlock poisoning, rinse the stomach with a 0.1% solution of potassium permanganate. Drink an aqueous suspension of activated charcoal, saline laxative, vaseline oil through a probe. The main attention is the fight against respiratory failure: inhalation of oxygen, apaleptics in normal doses. When breathing stops - artificial, for accelerated removal of poison - osmotic diuretics, furosemide.

Apply antidote treatment. Symptomatic therapy includes:
intramuscularly 25% solution of magnesium sulfate - 10 ml; with convulsions - diazepam 5 - 10 mg intravenously; artificial apparatus respiration; with a heart rhythm disorder - 10 ml of a 10% solution of novocainamide intravenously.

Tardieu gave an excellent description of the poisoning of a person with hemlock, which we reproduce here - “About an hour after taking the hemlock inside, there is some confusion of thought, dizziness, darkening of consciousness and very sharp headaches. The poisoned subject staggers as if drunk, his legs giving way. Sometimes, but by no means always, they feel a painful tightness in the pit of the stomach and severe stomach pains. The throat dries up, there is a burning thirst, and meanwhile, it becomes impossible to swallow. Sometimes there is a slight vomiting, but without consequences. The face is very pale, its features are greatly distorted, but the consciousness remains full. Patients retain hearing, although they are deprived of the opportunity to speak; their gaze is motionless, the pupils are dilated, their vision is unclear and sometimes they see nothing. Convulsive movements, titanic twitchings in the limbs alternate with fainting, with a decline in strength, which are repeated at certain intervals; then a kind of stupor seizes the patient, and only hoarse breathing reveals the presence of life. The body becomes cold, the head swells, and the swelling sometimes spreads to other parts of the body; the eyes protrude, and the skin becomes purple-bluish. In some cases, violent delirium and epileptic convulsions are found. Death always comes very quickly; no more than three, four or six hours later, hemlock poisoning ends fatally. No specific antidote is known for it."

Hemlock grass in small doses is used in folk medicine as an analgesic, anticonvulsant and anti-inflammatory agent in the treatment of rheumatism and gout, as well as tumors. The essence of fresh grass hemlock spotted is used in the form of simple dilutions and is part of many complex preparations, including injections.

A tincture of flowers is used in small doses in folk medicine as an "anti-cancer". In ancient Russian folk medicine and in England, hemlock was considered an anticancer agent. Due to its toxicity, this plant can be used as an insecticide.

It is necessary to exercise extreme caution when meeting with a hemlock: do not use it for self-treatment, wash your hands thoroughly after handling it.

2.2 Hellebore VERATRUM

The lily family. The genus includes 25 species distributed in Europe, Asia and North America. Rhizome perennials with tall, straight, leafy stems, often bulbous thickened at the base. The leaves are broadly oval, amplexicaul, the lower ones are broadly elliptical, the upper ones are linear-lanceolate.
The flowers are whitish, reddish or greenish, collected in paniculate, rarely racemose inflorescences. The fruit is a three-celled capsule. Seeds numerous, flat, winged. All parts of the plant are poisonous and do not lose their properties even when dried and ensiled.

Hellebore Lobel (common) - Veratrum lobelianum Bernh.

Lily family Liliaceae. Powerful plant up to 1.5 m tall with a shortened vertical rhizome and numerous adventitious cord-like roots. The leaf arrangement is alternate. The leaves are oval and lanceolate, pointed, folded, with long sheaths. Panicled inflorescence. Flowers on short stalks. Perianth yellowish-green, 2.5 cm in diameter, with elliptical rounded leaflets. Fruits - up to the middle 3-separate boxes. Blooms in mid-summer. The inflorescence in the bud is already formed in autumn. Mass flowering is repeated after 2-3 years. The first flowering in 10-30 years. Life expectancy is usually at least 50 years. Propagated by seeds and vegetatively. It occurs in the forest belt, forest-steppe and steppe zones the European part (except for the Baltic), Siberia, the Amur region, as well as in the Caucasus and Tien Shan in the upper forest and subalpine belts. It can dominate in meadow communities on fairly rich and well-moistened soils. It grows in pastures, as it is not eaten by livestock.

Rhizomes with roots, contain alkaloids (alkaloid veratrin, its lethal dose: about 0.02 g) in the roots - up to 2.4%, in rhizomes - up to 1.3%, as well as pseudo-yervin glycoalkaloid, glycosides, resins, tannins .

Powder from the rhizomes or a decoction is used as an insecticide, emetic and for wound healing. In folk medicine, it is used for skin diseases. Poisonous. Possible poisoning of farm animals (however, in the highlands of Altai, horses, marals and spotted deer eat hellebore), poisonous to bees.

As insecticides, related species can be used: white helleboregrowing in the Carpathians, hellebore ostolodolny, Dahurian and chalice - from Eastern Siberia and the Far East. They are somewhat different from hellebore Lobel in the pubescence of the leaves, the shape of the inflorescence and the perianth lobes. Only in black hellebore, which is almost as widespread as Lobel's hellebore, and in Maak's hellebore growing in the Far East, the perianth is dark purple. Infusion of black hellebore rhizomes heals abrasions and wounds well.

Hellebore black - Veratrum nigrum L

It grows wild in the European part of Russia, Siberia, the Far East, Central Europe, China, and Japan. Perennial plant up to 130 cm tall. Stems are dense, thick, leafy. The leaves are large, corrugated, oval-lanceolate, glabrous, up to 40 cm long, 7-8 in number. The flowers are numerous, blackish-red, up to 1.5 cm in diameter, collected in a paniculate inflorescence. Blooms in July. Fruiting. Most decorative.

Hellebore white - Veratrum album L

Wildly grows in the European part of Russia, in the Caucasus. Perennial plant with densely pubescent stem up to 150 cm tall. The flowers are greenish outside and whitish inside, up to 1.5 cm in diameter. Blooms in June. Fruits in August. In culture since 1529.

Hellebore California - Veratrum califomicum Durand

Homeland - North America. Perennial plant with straight stems up to 120 cm tall. The flowers are white with greenish veins. Blooms in June-July. Fruiting.

Cheremitsa green

Highly active alkaloids contains green hellebore (Veratrum viride). A closely related species of hellebore (Veratrum californicum), which grows on mountain pastures, causes malformations of the embryo in sheep that have eaten this herb on the 14th day of pregnancy. The period of sensitivity of the embryo to the poison of this plant is only about 6 hours. In action, it resembles the infamous medicine thalidomide, which—before it was banned—had led to the birth of many babies with congenital deformities.

Signs of poisoning.

Hellebore refers to plants that are toxic to the heart. Their berries, flowers, stems and leaves are poisonous. Their poisoning is manifested by nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, severe headache and pain in the epigastric region. In severe cases, the rhythm and heart rate are disturbed, while the pulse, as a rule, becomes rare. Sometimes the nervous system is also affected. This is evidenced by agitation, visual disturbances, convulsions, loss of consciousness.

Symptoms.

Often the only sign of poisoning is dyspeptic disorders (nausea, vomiting, loose stools) and a sharp slowing of the pulse with a drop in blood pressure. (excitation of the vagus nerve).

Hellebore alkaloids (protoveratrin, nervin, etc.) first excite and then paralyze the central nervous system: strong general excitation, vomiting, diarrhea appear, and deaths are possible.

Specific treatment - 0.1% solution of atropine up to 2 ml subcutaneously, cardiovascular agents.

Application.

Dosage forms in the form of tinctures, ointments, hellebore water (Aqua Veratri) are used for rheumatism; in veterinary medicine - against scabies, skin gadfly, withers, lice.

Ointments and alcohol tincture of the rhizome are popularly used externally for rubbing into the skin as an irritant for neuralgia, myositis, to reduce pain of rheumatic origin, for dandruff and for hair growth. Extracts are used as anti-scabies, anti-pediculosis agent.

Usage. As an ornamental leaf for planting in groups and singly, near ponds and shrubs.

According to the newspaper "Komsomolskaya Pravda in Ukraine" dated September 9, 2003. 12 lyceum students from the city of Ostrog (Volyn) were hospitalized in a local hospital with symptoms of food poisoning. As the correspondent of the KP found out, the ninth-graders tried the seeds of hellebore growing in the surrounding meadows (9 species of hellebore grow in Ukraine) for the “effect”. Three of them, who not only chewed the seeds, but also swallowed them, ended up in intensive care, it’s good that there is no threat to their lives during and now. The rest got off relatively easy and were able to describe the symptoms to the correspondent: dry mouth, very thirsty, nausea, vomiting, then white spots flashed in the eyes and loss of consciousness.
It should be remembered that not only the seeds, but all parts of the plant are poisonous.
Animals do not eat this plant at all.

Conclusion

The plant world is far from being explored. There are still a lot of mysteries and secrets in nature, and she reluctantly reveals them. For example, many carnivores, when bitten poisonous snakes or other serious illness, they eat the leaves of cereal plants and are cured. This means that in these plants nature has laid down something that only some animals “know” about, and about which a person has yet to learn in order, perhaps, to use it for his own benefit.

And how to explain the fact that among cereal plants there is not a single poisonous one? It still remains a mystery why, for example, of two plants growing side by side in the same place, one takes only useful substances from the soil, while the other accumulates so much poison in itself that even touching it threatens with trouble, and if you happen to eat several fruits of this plant, death is inevitable. Such poisonous plants in our forests include the wolf's bast and the raven's eye, and there are others that are no less poisonous. Why did they need such heavy-duty protection? To save your kind? Or maybe there is some other secret of nature in this?

Useful wild plants sometimes it is difficult to subdivide into edible or medicinal. Often they are both. Depending on the plant itself and on the purpose, different parts of it are used: roots, leaves, stems, flowers, fruits, seeds and pollen. Some plants have a noticeable therapeutic effect and even in large doses are completely harmless to the body. But there are also plants that, with inept and immoderate use, can cause the most severe changes in the body. Therefore, any use of little-known plants for treatment is permissible only after consulting a doctor.

Literature

1. Folk health recipes. V.V. Chekmarev. - Rostov n/a. CJSC "Kniga" 1997. -480 p.

2. Zamyatina N. Medicinal plants. - M.: New disc, 2006. - 496 p.
3. Chumakov F.I. Forest basket. - Arkhangelsk: North - West. book. publishing house, 1992. - 238 p.

4. Yakovlev G.P., Blinova K.F. Encyclopedic dictionary of medicinal plants and products of living origin, St. Petersburg, "Special Literature", 1999. -407 p.

Poisonous and medicinal plants can be harvested. Poisonous plants. Pictured raven eye

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