Want to learn about the health uses of wormwood and how to use wormwood for health? Continue reading and discover the key wormwood uses.
Wormwood grows on most roadsides. Sandy-green in color, you wouldn’t notice it if it didn’t fill the hot summer air with a strong, bittersweet, and dizzying aroma. The vitality of wormwood is amazing, which seems to feed itself directly from the sun, without needing much water and fertile soil. Moreover, wormwood has a privileged spot in Romanian folk medicine, where it is considered a magical plant, a solar symbol, which drives away evil spirits, cleanses the human spirit, and restores vigor and vivacity. Wormwood is the strongest bitter tonic in Romanian natural medicine. Before we show you the health uses of wormwood, here is how to harvest wormwood to make medicine.
In This Article You Will Find:
How to Harvest Wormwood
Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium) is ideally harvested at the end of July, and the beginning of August. Folk healers harvested wormwood at the end of August when they believed its magical healing powers are at their peak. Cut the tip of the stem with the yellow buds using a pair of scissors. You can use fresh wormwood for topical applications, and for the preparation of medicinal wines or syrups, as you will see below. Or you can dry it in a thin layer in the shade, and store it in a dark and dry place for later use. Dried wormwood has a shelf life of 2 years.
Some herbalists believe that the healing powers of wormwood increase when it is used during the waning moon (after the full moon) and that the greatest healing energy is found in the tips with buds of the wormwood plant.
Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium) is very similar to one of its close relatives, mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris), the two being distinguished mainly by the color of the stem: the stem of wormwood has some very fine whitish hairs, while the stem of wormwood is reddish-brown. Now let’s look into the most important wormwood uses.
Health Uses of Wormwood
Wormwood has been designated as one of the most effective natural antibiotics, due to its large amounts of active antimicrobial and antioxidant components. This herb is best known against intestinal worms and parasites, staphylococcus, hemolytic streptococcus, and mycoses, and can even heal wounds with pus. The main active ingredient in wormwood is artemisinin, a natural agent against malaria, an herbal alternative to Ivermectin, and Hydroxychloroquine. Moreover, artemisinin has recently been proven to be a potential novel anti-cancer therapeutic.
Its active principles are toxic to most types of intestinal worms, as well as to Giardia lamblia. Moreover, wormwood is a strong bitter tonic, which favors bowel movements and implicitly elimination of intestinal parasites. It is among the best-known and most effective vermifuges in European medicinal flora.
Given its bitter tonic, wormwood is one of the liver’s favorite medicinal herbs, as it cleanses and detoxifies the liver, the gallbladder, as well as the kidneys, and the urinary tract. Wormwood is also an amazing gastric patch, especially for gastritis, high stomach acidity, and most all gastric and stomach issues. Wormwood is purifying, stimulates, and supports the liver, stimulating the elimination of toxins in the body after poisoning.
Topically (poulitice or bath) wormwood acts as a nerve tonic, improving the flow of nervous impulses locally, thus reducing pain and inflammation. Needless to say, wormwood douches can even help with genital problems for both men and women. It’s hard to say what wormwood doesn’t do, as when you flush out parasites and help the liver, this is an amazing boost for the immune system, and the entire body has the ability to regenerate.
3 Medical Wormwood Remedies & How to Use at Home
1. How to Make Wormwood Powder & Use
Wormwood powder is an extraordinary liver tonic and protector, even in the case of people whose liver is severely damaged after poisoning or after prolonged consumption of toxic substances, such as alcohol. You make wormwood powder by grinding the dried wormwood with an electric coffee grinder into a fine powder. Store the wormwood powder in sealed glass jars, in dark and cold places, for a maximum period of 2 weeks (because its volatile oils evaporate very quickly). As a rule, the dosage is a 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon, on an empty stomach 3-4 times a day. Here are the key health uses of wormwood powder.
- Hepatitis, cirrhosis – 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon, on an empty stomach 3-4 times a day for two weeks, with a week off.
- Food poisoning, poisoning – after getting emergency care you can follow a 2-week cure with two teaspoons of wormwood powder a day.
- Stomach pains, GERD, bloody diarrhea, diabetes, cholera, jaundice, eczema, asthma, lack of appetite, metabolic disorders – Half a teaspoon of wormwood powder 3 times a day, between meals, in green walnut jam or raw honey.
- Bloody diarrhea, dysentery – along with the prescribed treatment you can have a mixture of equal parts of wormwood powder and powdered tangerine peel. Every 2 hours, drink 150 ml of salt water (use Himalayan salt), with 1/4 teaspoon of this powder preparation.
- Bloating – 1/4 teaspoon of wormwood powder mixed with 1/2 teaspoon of ground dill or fennel seeds with warm water, 3 times a day.
2. How to Make Wormwood Syrup & Use
Wormwood syrup was widely used by the Benedictine monks, who considered it a panacea for digestion and bowels. Here is how to make wormwood syrup at home. Fill 1/4 of a 400 ml (13.5 oz) jar with finely cut leaves of fresh wormwood, and fill the rest with raw honey. Seal the jar and leave to soak for a month. Strain and store in a glass bottle in the refrigerator.
The wormwood syrup is viscous, bitter and aromatic syrup, and is a powerful tonic for the stomach, reduces bloating, and has laxative effects. It is a very effective remedy both for children and adults, in the treatment of atonic constipation and gastrointestinal atony. It also has beneficial effects in treating bronchitis, asthma and pneumonia. Here are some health uses of wormwood syrup.
- Children’s lack of appetite – 1 tsp of wormwood syrup 15 minutes before the main meals. Do not use longer than 21 consectutive days. Pause for 14 days and resume if needed.
- Poor digestion, heaviness after meals, poor appetite – 50 ml of wormwoos syrup with 100 ml of lukewarm water, 3 times a day, 30 minutes before meals, for 3-4 weeks.
3. How to Make Wormwood Poultice for Pain
Wormwood poultices for pain are very easy to make and have so many health uses. To prepare the poultice, mix 2 tbsp of finely chopped wormwood with 4 slices of bread, and with wine or vinegar until you make a sort of dough. Apply this dough over the painful area, then cover the poultice with cling foil and let it sit for 4 hours. Some of the health uses of wormwood poultices are in sprains, rheumatic pain and neuralgias, but there are more.
- Rheumatism, paralysis, sprains – apply the wormwood poultice on the painful area; alongside, take wormwood baths. Make 5 liters of combined wormwood infusion and pour it into your warm bathwater – bathe twice a week.
- Dog bites, insect bites – apply fresh wormwood leaves crushed in the palm of your hand to the affected areas; bandage tightly and keep in place for 3-4 hours.
- Wounds, cuts, skin lesions – Juice some wormwood, soak a gauze in the juice, and apply it to the wound, cut or bruise, covering it with cling foil so it doesn’t dry out. Change the dressing 5-6 times a day. When the wormwood leaves are juicy, you can simply crush and apply them without squeezing the juice.
- Retinal hemorrhage – Make a poultice by wrapping a teaspoon of chopped wormwood leaves in 2 layers of gauze. Immerse the poultice in boiling water, cool to a bearable temperature and apply to the affected eye for 15 minutes, 3-4 times a day.
- Headaches, migraines – Chop up equal parts of wormwood and lovage and apply on the painful areas, on the forehead or on the temples for 30-40 minutes. This remedy reduces the pain, but does not eliminate the cause, always look for the cause.
How to Use Wormwood For Evil Spirits
In addition to the health uses of wormwood abovementioned, there are even spiritual or energetical uses for wormwood, that poeple in Eastern Europe have used for centuries. One of them is purifying the homw from bad energies, and the other is preventing children from getting sick. Here is how to use wormwood for evil spirits and disease.
To purify the house, sweep every corner of the house for seven weeks, every Saturday morning, with a symbolic broom made of wormwood leaves. People believed that the evil spirits are banished, and the seeds of enmity and strife are cleaned from the house, leaving the occupants to live in peace and harmony. Wormwood leaves placed under pillows and bedding are also believed to drive away unclean spirits, but also insects, which can not stand the scent of this plant.
To prevent chidren from getting sick place a wreath of wormwood leaves at the head of the bed where the children sleep. In some villages, there is the custom of passing babies through a circle made of fresh stalks of wormwood on the nights of the new moon. It is believed that this plant protects children from epilepsy, colds, various lung diseases, as well as from demonic possessions.
Wormwood Safety & Contraindications
The bitter principles in wormwood give it exceptional healing properties. However, when used in high dosages, wormwood is toxic, it can cause agitation, hallucinations, loss of consciousness, and the abuse of wormwood drinks can even lead to mental disorders, memory loss, and nausea. Moreover, an active substance in the composition of wormwood can create addiction when used for more than a month.
For these reasons, wormwood treatments will not last longer than two-three weeks, followed by a 10-14 day pause. No more than six grams per day per adult should be used. Wormwood is contraindicated for pregnant or breastfeeding women and very weak or elderly people. Please seek the advice of a specialist before using wormwood supplements, or follow the instructions on the leaflet.
The Short History of Wormwood
Centuries ago, European apothecaries bought an unusual powder from the Eastern merchants who kept its provenance a secret. The powder was called “Artemisia cina” and was used to eliminate intestinal worms. Very quickly, the doctors of the time noticed that large doses produced hallucinations, spasms, vertigo, and therefore prescribed it in small quantities. The bitter powder was prepared from the wormwood that grew in the salty soil on the shores of the Caspian Sea.
The plant was named Artemisia in honor of the Greek goddess Artemis, the protector of women and moral purity.
The Druids called black wormwood “all that is good for mothers”, and white wormwood “old lady”. In ancient Greece, wormwood was successfully used to cure ailments associated with menopause, while Egyptian healers prevented epileptic seizures with this marvelous plant. The Romans discovered that wormwood supports digestion by stimulating the gall bladder, but also protects against deadly poison, which was often put in their food by their foes.
More Wormwood Recipes with Uses
How to Make Wormwood Tea
How to Make Wormwood Tincture
How to Make Wormwood Juice
My ancestors in The Carpathians solved many problems related to nausea and vomiting or stomach pain by chewing a leaf of wormwood, and in case of insomnia, they placed a sprig of wormwood next to their pillow. Before setting off on a long journey, they would put fresh wormwood leaves in their shoes, so that their legs wouldn’t get tired. On the brink of cholera or plague epidemics, they smudged their houses daily with burning dry wormwood, and spread thick layers of fresh wormwood on the floor to disinfect the air.
Wormwood is by far one of the most powerful medicinal plants, a natural alternative for both Ivermectin and Hydroxychloroquine, as it kills parasites. If you’ve enjoyed learning of the many health uses of wormwood, how to make wormwood syrup, powder and poultices, please share this article. This way more more people learn of the many wormwood uses and can apply this information. Stay healthy, naturally!
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