Herbs & Herbal Remedies @ Green Papaya

Safety questions have been raised about tannins. In various studies, they show both pro- and anti-cancer action. Their cancer-promoting action has received more publicity, notably from a study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, which showed that tannins produce malignant tumors in laboratory animals. But tannins apparently also have an anti-cancer effect against some animal tumors.

Tannins’ effects on human cancer remain unclear. Small quantities have never been implicated in human tumors, but Asians who drink large quantities of tea, which is high in tannins, show unusually high rates of stomach cancer. Adding milk neutralizes the tannins, which appears to be why the tealoving British have a low rate of stomach cancer. People with a history of cancer, particularly stomach or colon cancer, should exercise caution and not use medicinal quantities of this herb. Other people should take no more than recommended amounts of infusions or decoctions, and for extra safety, add a bit of milk.

Distress Signals

In large amounts, tannins may cause stomach distress, nausea, and vomiting. Blackberry root bark contains the most tannins, followed by the leaves, and finally the fruit. People with chronic gastrointestinal conditions, such as colitis, for example, should probably not use the roots.

For otherwise healthy nonpregnant, nonnursing adults, blackberry is safe in amounts typically recommended.

Blackberry should be used in medicinal amounts only in consultation with your doctor. If blackberry causes minor discomforts such as nausea or vomiting, use less or stop using it. Let your doctor know if you experience any unpleasant effects or if the symptoms for which the herb is being used do not improve significantly in two weeks.

Native Cultivation - Go Wild in the Garden

Blackberry bushes grow wild around most of North America. They have long, tangled, thorny stems, lush foliage, and a profusion of berries that turn red as they ripen and become a juicy, purplish blue-black by midsummer.

Blackberry bushes are so vigorous and invasive, they quickly become a thick, thorny, impenetrable mass. Rooting them out is almost impossible-as any gardener who has tried can attest. Even when removed, stray root fragments continue to send up new shoots. To minimize problems, plant this shrub in containers or surround its roots with sheet metal.

Blackberries grow easily from Ih-inch root cuttings taken in autumn and stored through the winter in cool sand (around 50°F). Plant cuttings vertically 1 to 3 feet apart in 3 to 4 inches of soil.

Blackberries adapt to many conditions but grow best in loose, moist rich soil amended with manure or finished compost. The plants flower in spring and bear fruit throughout the summer.

Harvest the leaves and roots any time. For ease of harvesting the berries, train the branches along supports and prune them mercilessly.

Contrary to the claims of Nicholas Culpeper, blackberry in any form doesn’t do much for the genitals, but it is a tasty remedy for several common ills.

Diarrhea - Blackberry’s high tannin content makes it quite astringent and supports its traditional use as a treatment for diarrhea and dysentery.

Wounds - Tannin’s astringent action helps constrict blood vessels and stop minor bleeding. This action would tend to explain the traditional external use of the herb to treat wounds. Blackberry thorns often cause minor cuts, so it’s nice to know first aid is close at hand.

Mouth Sores, Sore Throat - Enjoy some of the sweet, ripe berries. Their astringent tannins might help.

Hemorrhoids - The astringent nature of blackberry may explain its traditional use as a hemorrhoid treatment.

Intriguing Possibilities - One animal study shows that a strong infusion of blackberry leaves reduces blood sugar levels in diabetic rabbits, suggesting possible value in the management of diabetes.

Research has shown that blackberry’s close relative, raspberry, relaxes the uterus. Women might try blackberry for painful menstrual cramps.

Rx for Blackberry

To treat diarrhea or soothe a sore throat, try an infusion, decoction, or tincture. For an infusion, use 2 to 3 teaspoons of dried leaves per cup of boiling water. Steep 10 to 20 minutes. Add a bit of milk. Drink up to S cups a day. You can also use a handful of crushed berries, either dried or fresh, or i to 2 teaspoons of dried powdered bark to make an infusion.

For a decoction, use I teaspoon of powdered root per cup of water. Boil for 30 minutes. Drink up to I cup a day. Enjoy it with a bit of milk.

In a tincture, take up to 2 teaspoons a day.
Iin commercial preparations, follow package directions.
To treat wounds or hemorrhoids, soak a clean cloth in a tincture or strong infusion and apply externally.

Medicinal doses of blackberry should not be given to children under age 2. For older children and people over 65, start with low-strength preparations and increase strength if necessary.

Not Just Jam and Jelly

Family: Rosaceae; (includes Rose, Apple, Almond, Strawberry

Genus and Species: Rubus Fruticosus (European); R. Villosus (American)

Also known as: Bramble, Dewberry, Goutberry

Parts Used: Leaves, bark, roots, fruit

If your acquaintance with the blackberry is confined to jam and jelly, it’s time to branch out. You have to look to the whole bush to benefit from its full potential.

The blackberry bush was once as highly prized for its medicinal leaves, bark, and roots as it was for its sweet fruit. Today, however, blackberry has fallen from healing fashion, replaced by its close botanical relative, raspberry. It’s time to bring back blackberry. Externally it may help treat wounds, and internally, it’s a tasty treatment for mouth sores, sore throat, and diarrhea.

“Goutberry”

The ancient Greeks used blackberry to treat gout. They were the only people to use the herb as a treatment for this disordec but Greek medicine was so influential in Europe that well into the 18th century, the herb was called goutberry.
The ancient Chinese used the unripe berries to treat kidney problems, urinary incontinence, and impotence.

The Romans chewed the leaves and bark for bleeding gums and drank a decoction for diarrhea.

Tenth-century Arab physicians considered the fruit an aphrodisiac (it isn’t)

“An Excellent Syrup”

During the Middle Ages, blackberry leaves were applied to the skin to soothe burns and scalds.

In his influential Herbal, 17th century English herbalist Nicholas Culpeper called the herb “very binding” and good for “fevers, ulcers, putrid sores of the mouth and secret parts [genitals], spitting blood [tuberculosis], piles [hemorrhoids], stones of the kidney, too much flowing of women’s courses [menstruation], and hot distempers of the head, eyes, and body”.

The 19th century American Eclectic physicians recommended a preparation made from the fruit as “an excellent syrup which is of much service in dysentery, being pleasant to the taste, mitigating the sufferings of the patient, and ultimately effecting a cure.” They also recommended blackberry leaves for gonorrhea, vaginal discharges, recovery from childbirth, and “cholera infantum” - an old term for infant infectious diarrhea, which, in the days before antibiotics, was often fatal (and still is in many parts of the world).

The few contemporary herbalists who discuss blackberry at all recommend it as an astringent for diarrhea.