Herbs & Herbal Remedies @ Green Papaya

Catnip is considered nontoxic. but some people may experience upset stomach.

The Food and Drug Administration lists catnip as an herb of “undefined safety,” but no significant toxic reactions have ever been reported. For otherwise healthy nonpregnant, nonnursing adults, catnip is considered safe in amounts typically recommended.

Catnip should be used in medicinal amounts only in consultation with your doctor. If catnip causes minor discomforts, such as stomach upset, 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.

Protect Plants from Cats

Catnip is a gray-green aromatic perennial that grows to 3 feet and bears all the hallmarks of the mint family: a square stem, fuzzy leaves, and twin-lipped flowers.

Catnip grows easily from seeds or root divisions planted in spring or fall. It thrives in almost any well-drained soil under full sun or partial shade. Some growers say keeping soil on the dry side produces more aromatic plants. Thin seedlings to 18-inch spacings.

Harvest the leaves and flower tops in late summer when the plants are in bloom. Dry and store in opaque, tightly sealed containers to preserve the volatile oil.

Gardeners’ mythology holds that cats are not attracted to catnip in the ground An old rhyme says: “If you set it; the cats will get it; But if you sow it; The cats won’t know it.” Don’t you believe it. Cats often destroy sown plants. The current consensus is that sowing, per se. does not keep cats away. The key is to prevent bruising of the leaves. Carefully cultivated, completely unbruised plants reportedly hold little attraction for cats. But any bruising releases the plant’s aromatic oil, and the cats come running.

Studies show catnip is definitely not just for cats. Modern herbalists tend to overstate its value, but scientists have confirmed several of its traditional uses.

Digestive Aid - Like the other mints, catnip may soothe the smooth muscles ofthe digestive tract (making it an antispasmodic). Have a cup of catnip tea after meals if you’re prone to indigestion or heartburn.

Women’s Health - Antispasmodics calm not only the digestive tract but other smooth muscles as well-the uterus, for example. Catnip’s antispasmodic effect supports its traditional use for relieving menstrual cramps.

Catnip was also used traditionally as a menstruation promoter. Current research suggests it should not stimulate the uterus, but pregnant women should exercise caution and not use medicinal amounts.

Tranquilizer - German researchers report the chemicals (nepetalactone isomers) responsible for cats’ intoxication are similar to the natural sedatives (valepotriates) in valerian. This finding supports catnip’s traditional use as a mild tranquilizer and sedative. Try a cup of tea when you feel tense or before bed and see if it works for you.

Infection Prevention - Catnip also has some antibiotic properties, which lends credence to its traditional use in some cases of diarrhea and fever. As an antibiotic, catnip is not particularly powerful, but it may help prevent infection after garden mishaps.

Rx for Catnip

Enjoya pleasant, minty infusion of catnip as a digestive aid, as a mild tranquilizer, or to soothe menstrual cramps.

For an infusion, use 2 teaspoons of dried herb per cup of boiling water. Steep 10 to 20 minutes. Do not boil catnip; boiling dissipates its healing oil. Drink up to 3 cups a day.

If you prefer a tincture, take ½ to 1 teaspoon up to three times a day.

Weak, cool catnip infusions may be given cautiously to colicky infants. For older children and people over 65, start with low-strength preparations and increase strength if necessary.

To treat minor garden mishaps, press some crushed catnip leaves into cuts and scrapes on your way to washing and bandaging them.

Enjoy it with Kitty

Family: Labiatae; (includes Mint)

Genus and Species: Nepeta Cataria

Also known as: Catmint, catnep, catswort, field balm

Parts used: Flowers and Leaves

You don’t have to be an herbalist to know this plant’s effect on cats. But here’s a case where one species’ intoxicant is another’s calmer. In people, catnip may help soothe the digestive tract. It may also help relieve menstrual cramps and soothe the nerves, and it might provide handy first aid for gardeners.

Healing Vapors

From Europe to China, catnip has been used medicinally for at least 2,000 years. In teas, its pleasant, lemon-minty vapors were considered a cold and cough remedy, relieving chest congestion and loosening phlegm. Old herbals also praised its ability to promote sweating, a traditional treatment for fever.

Catnip also has a long history of use as a tranquilizer, sedative, digestive aid, menstruation promoter, and treatment for menstrual cramps, flatulence, and infant colic. Parents used to give a weak catnip tea to colicky infants and even hang a small bag of the herb around their necks so they could inhale its soothing vapors.

Equal parts of catnip and saffron were once recommended for smallpox and scarlet fever.

The leaves were also chewed to relieve toothache, and as crazy as this sounds today, smoked to treat bronchitis and asthma.

Catnip was a popular beverage tea in pre-Elizabethan England. During the Age of Exploration, it was replaced by the more stimulating Chinese herb we call tea (Camellia sinensis). However, not all English catnip lovers switched to Chinese tea without regrets. In her book, Tlie Herb Garden, a certain Miss Bardswell clucked, “Catmint Tea was … a good deal more wholesome.”

Hangman’s Root

Colonists introduced catnip into North America. It quickly went wild and now grows across the continent. The Indians adopted the herb and used it as the whites did, for indigestion and infant colic and as a beverage.

Early Americans also believed catnip roots made even the kindest person mean. Hangmen used to consume the roots before executions to get in the right mood for their work.

Catnip was listed as a stomach soother in the US.

Pliarmacopoeia from 1842 to 1882 and the National Formulary, the pharmacists’ reference, from 1916 to 1950.

Contemporary herbalists continue to have great faith in catnip. One writes, “Surely a plant with such a powerful impact on our feline friends … could not be destitute of medicinal value in humans.” Modern herbals recommend catnip as a tranquilizer, sedative, digestive aid, and treatment for colds, colic, diarrhea, flatulence, and fever.

Not a Hallucinogen

A report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 1969 claimed catnip produces marijuana-like intoxication. The wire services picked up the story, newspapers ran screaming headlines, and bewildered pet shop owners reported a sudden run on cat toys.

But the report was quickly discredited by correspondents who flooded the medical journal with letters pointing out that the “catnip” photos that ran with the article were actually marijuana. Catnip has no history as a human intoxicant, and authorities quickly dismissed the notion that smoking catnip caused anything but a sore throat.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the popular press. As Yarro Tyler, Ph.D., writes in The New Honest Herbal, “Once an erroneous statement has appeared in print, it is almost impossible to eradicate. Catnip continues to be listed in practically every book devoted to drugs of abuse as a mild intoxicant.” For the record: It isn’t.

Cat intoxication is another matter. All cats are attracted to catnip, but only about two-thirds exhibit strong “feline catnip euphoria,” according to a report published in Economic Botany. Kitty euphoria is an inherited trait, and not all cats have the gene necessary for it.