Vitex sacred: properties, application, reviews

What is a vinex sacred plant? The answer to this question you can find in the materials of this article. In addition, we will tell you about the use of such grass as it is harvested and used.

General information

The vinex sacred herb has many different names. Often it is called vitex or ordinary prutnyak, as well as the Abraham tree. This plant belongs to the tree-like shrubs of the family.

Botanical description

Vitex sacred is a tree-like shrub which often reaches a height of 4-8 meters. Its branches are brown, tetrahedral, with a sharp aroma, and the root is well branched, rod-shaped and with a large number of accessory roots.

The leaves of this plant are green, large, palchatosyllabic and opposite. They are located on long petioles (up to 5 cm) and consist of 5-6 sharp, narrow-lanceolate, rarely-toothed leaves, which are dull from above, and from below are grayish.

Among other things, the Vitex sacred has numerous flowers. They are bisexual, pale-lilac and collected at the tops of branches in the form of dense, intermittent and paniculate-spicate inflorescences. Cups of these flowers have a tubular shape and have 4 stamens that protrude above the whisk.

The fruits of the sacred vitex are black, dry four-nested and spherical stems with a diameter of 3-4 mm. Blossoms this plant from early June and until the very end of October, and fructifies in October or November.

Spread

Vitex sacred, which we will present below, grows in North Africa, Southern Europe, in the subtropics of Asia, Central Asia, Iran, Afghanistan, India, China, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. To the soils this culture is undemanding, in connection with which it can grow even on stony, loamy and sandy earth. As is known, the represented shrub grows along the banks of irrigation ditches and rivers, on the coasts and forms small thickets.

Chemical composition

Vitex sacred, reviews about which are more positive, is a medicinal plant. The curative properties of this herb are due to the presence of iridoids, flavonoids, alkaloids, tannins, vitamins, microelements and essential oils.

In the leaves of this plant contains ascorbic acid, as well as glycoside and agnoside. In the seeds flavonoidectacin and fatty oil were found. Fruits include organic acids, coumarins, etc.

Vitex sacred: medicinal properties of the plant

According to experts, the plant has a hormone-like activity. In this regard, it is able to influence the function of the yellow body (that is, the gland that regulates the menstrual cycle). In addition, it reduces the level of the hormone that stimulates the formation of milk, and thereby suppresses its separation. It should also be noted that such a plant has antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, sedative and antifungal properties.

Collection and storage

The medicinal raw materials of such a plant are flowers, leaves, fruits, as well as bark and branches. In this case, the fruits are removed after full ripening (in September-October), shoots, flowers and leaves - during budding and flowering (in June), and bark - in autumn or spring. The collected vegetable raw materials should be dried in air at a temperature of no more than 40 ° C.

Application in medicine

Vitex sacred, whose properties have been described above, are used to treat malaria, female diseases, as well as chronic ailments of the spleen and liver. Alcoholic tincture made from mature fruit is often used for abnormalities that are accompanied by a depressed mood, with sexual impotence and spermatorrhea. In addition, the dry extract of the sacred vitex is prescribed to the fairer sex during the termination of breastfeeding.

In folk medicine, a decoction made from the branches and fruits of this plant is drunk with gonorrhea, and infusion of flowers is used to make baths for serious skin diseases.

Due to its hormone-like activity, preparations based on this plant in traditional medicine are prescribed for patients with various gynecological problems, namely: with premenstrual syndrome accompanied by swelling, menstrual shortness or total absence, as well as in anovulatory cycles, chest pains, infertility and Various violations after using contraceptives.

Forms of the preparation

On the basis of this medicinal plant various pharmacy products are produced:

• pills;
• Liquid extract or tincture;
• Dried plant or tea;
• Capsules.

Thus, in pharmacy chains, you can buy the following drugs that were made using leaves, fruits and flowers of the sacred sacred: "Mastodinon", "Agnukaston", "Cyclodinon" and so on.

Vitex sacred: application and dosage

Before using drugs and medicinal plants for the treatment and prevention of certain diseases, you should always consult a doctor or at least read the instructions:

• With premenstrual syndrome, this drug in tablets is recommended to take in an amount of 20-40 mg per day.
• With cyclic mastalgia (or pains in the mammary glands) doctors prescribe 60 drops of extract or 1 tablet a day.

For other abnormalities, you should also consult your doctor for the correct dosage.

Application Features

To maximize the benefits and increase absorption, experts advise taking this medication in the morning on an empty stomach. After using vitex for 10 days, every third woman with painful premenstrual syndrome notes a significant improvement during the next cycle. Although the full effect of this plant is manifested only after 90 days. By the way, for the treatment of amenorrhea or infertility, preparations based on this herb should be taken for 6 months.

Other uses

Fruits, seeds and leaves of this plant are often added to soups, meat dishes, semi-smoked and boiled sausages, as well as canned fish. They are quite well combined with other spices.

Elastic and flexible branches of this shrub are used for the production of garden furniture and baskets. In male bodybuilding, this plant is used to control the level of testosterone.

Side effects

In most people, the use of such a plant and drugs based on it, rarely causes side effects. However, some patients complain of headaches, increased menstruation, irritation of the stomach and the appearance of an itchy rash. That is why with such side effects it is necessary to stop taking the drug.

A warning

As mentioned above, vitex can affect the production of hormones, and therefore they are not recommended to use women who take hormonal drugs, including estrogens and birth control pills. Also, such a medicinal plant is contraindicated in pregnancy and during the course of in vitro fertilization.

One can not ignore the fact that the sacred vitex should be used with particular caution when taking medications for mental illnesses together, including Parkinson's disease and schizophrenia.