Herbs & Herbal Remedies @ Green Papaya

Pesto Versus Parasites

Family: Labiatae; other members include mint

Genus and species: Ocimum basilicum, 0. sanctum

Also known as: Sweet basil, st. Josephwort

Parts used: Leaves and flower tops

Basil is a key ingredient in pesto-the zesty, immensely popular sauce for pasta. But basil is no newcomer. It’s been a favorite for thousands of years, not only in the kitchen but also in the medicine chest. Basil has been used successfully to treat intestinal parasites and skin infections, particularly acne. It may also stimulate the immune system.

Reviled and Revered in Folklore

Considering basil’s current popularity, it’s amazing what a contradictory reputation it has had down through the ages. To the ancient Greeks and Romans, the herb was a symbol of hostility and insanity. They believed that to grow truly fragrant basil, one had to shout and swear angrily while sowing its seeds Even today in French “sowing basil” (serner Ie basilic) means “ranting.”

Other folk traditions have associated the herb with love.

During recent centuries, when an Italian woman placed a potted basil plant on her balcony, it signaled that she was ready to receive her lover. And in northern Europe, lovers exchanged basil sprigs as signs of faithfulness.

In India, basil has long been revered as a sacred herb. The native species is even called Ocimum sanctum, “holy basil.” It is considered sacred to the gods Vishnu and Krishna and believed to be a protector in life and death. Haitians also believe in basil’s protective powers. Shopkeepers in Haiti sprinkle basil water around their stores to ward off evil spirits and bring prosperity.

Is It Bad or Good?

Basil’s reputation in healing has been equally contradictory. The ancient Greek physician Dioscorides and the influential Roman doctor Galen both warned against taking basil internally, saying it caused insanity and spontaneous generation of internal worms.

But the Roman naturalist Pliny and Arab physicians 1,000 years later defended it as a great healer, as did the Chinese, who used it to treat stomach, kidney, and blood ailments.

During the I I th century, the German abbess Hildegard of Bingen used basil in a complicated mixture that included “powder from a vulture’s beak,” to treat cancerous tumors.

By the 17th century, basil was widely used in Europe to treat colds, warts, and intestinal worms. Then the French botanist Tournefort published a tale that tarnished the herb’s reputation for years:

“A certain Gentleman of Sienna, being wonderfully taken and delighted with the Smell of Basil, was wont very frequently to take the Powder of the dry Herb, and snuff it up his Nose; but in short Time, he’d turn’d mad and died; and his Head being opened by Surgeons, there was found a Nest of Scorpions in his Brain.”

Used on Everything

As rhe centuries passed, the scorpion story faded. Basil has never become a major healing herb in North America, but around the world, it has been used as frequently in healing as in cooking. The medicinal plant database at the U.S. Department of Agriculture shows basil has been recommended for just about every conceivable ailment: alcoholism, boredom, childbirth recovery, cholera, colds, constipation, convulsions, cough, cramps, croup, deafness, delirium, depression, diarrhea, dropsy (congestive heart failure), and dysentery-and this list just takes us through the D’s!

In the Philippines, basil poultices are applied to ringworm infections, and pregnant women drink basil tea to induce labor. In El Salvador, the herb is placed in the ear to treat deafness. And in Malaya, basil is used to expel intestinal worms and promote menstruation.

If they mention basil at all, American herbalists suggest it as a digestive aid, appetite stimulant, and milk promoter in nursing women.