Periwinkle

2024 Author: Rachel Wainwright | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 07:39

Instructions for use:

1. Chemical composition
2. Useful properties
3. Indications for use
4. Contraindications
5. Home remedies

Periwinkle is a medicinal plant that contains substances with antitumor and hypertensive activity.

Chemical composition

Periwinkle is a perennial climbing or creeping herb of the Kutrov family, found in Europe, Asia, and North America. It grows in hornbeam, beech and oak forests, less often in bushes and pine forests, preferring areas with rich, not very moist soils.

Vinca leaves are surprisingly strong and tenacious. They keep their fresh look even under snow. This plant is considered a symbol of vitality and eternal love.

For medicinal purposes, periwinkle has long been used for scurvy, consumption, bleeding, diarrhea. The plant parts used are leaves, stems and flowers.

For medical purposes, small periwinkle and pink periwinkle are used. They contain about 80 alkaloids, many of which are poisonous. Rose periwinkle has a high content of antitumor alkaloids (such as vinblastine, vincristine, leurosine), which have a cytostatic effect (block tumor growth). Some of these substances are classified as essential and essential medicines. In addition to alkaloids, the plant contains steroids, phenolic compounds, organic acids, tannins, glycosides, sugars, and mineral salts.

The grass is harvested during and after flowering (usually from May to June). In one place, the harvesting can be carried out no more than once every 3 years. To preserve the properties of periwinkles, they must be stored in well-ventilated dry rooms.

Beneficial features

In folk medicine, periwinkle is used for diarrhea, hypertension, dysentery, sexual weakness, tuberculosis, migraine, and also as a hemostatic agent. Outwardly, it is indicated for the treatment of burns, purulent wounds, weeping eczema, skin itching and other skin diseases, locally - for toothache and bad breath.

Due to its beneficial properties, periwinkle is used for the manufacture of medicines with hypotensive, anti-inflammatory, hemostatic and astringent effects. So, it is the active substance of the anticancer drug "Rosevin" (the action of the drug is due to the ability of the active substances of the plant to block cell division, prevent the formation of leukocytes and platelets, without significantly affecting erythropoiesis).

Semisynthetic derivative of the alkaloid devinkan, contained in periwinkle, is the active substance of Cavinton, a drug with a vasodilating effect, used for mental and neurological disorders associated with cerebrovascular accidents.

Another alkaloid contained in the leaves of periwinkle, vincamine, improves cerebral circulation, has a vasodilator and stimulates metabolism in the central nervous system. A drug of the same name is made from the vincamine released from the plant, which is prescribed for the treatment of memory impairment, arterial hypertension, migraine, cerebrovascular accident and other diseases.

Due to its medicinal properties, periwinkle is included as a component in many homeopathic medicines.

Indications for use

The use of periwinkle is indicated in the treatment of: toothache, bad breath, itching, diarrhea, dysentery, ulcers, tuberculosis, gingivitis, eczema, hypertension, headache, impotence, burns.

Contraindications

Bradycardia;
Pregnancy and breastfeeding period;
Increased blood clotting;
Constipation.

Periwinkle home remedies

Periwinkle medications are best used under the supervision of an experienced herbalist to prevent overdose.

In case of hypertension, take an infusion of periwinkle three times a day, which is prepared from 1 tablespoon of chopped herbs and 1 glass of water (simmer at a low boil for 20 minutes). Single dosage - 1/3 cup. Topically, the infusion can be used in the treatment of toothache, externally - in the treatment of burns and wounds.

The use of periwinkle in the form of a tincture is indicated for migraine, hypertension, uterine and intestinal bleeding, toothache, sore throat, diarrhea, tuberculosis, leucorrhoea, and sexual weakness. To prepare it, 20 g of chopped grass is poured into 250 ml of vodka and boiled over low heat for 5 minutes, after which it is infused for an hour. Take 8 drops twice a day.

Also, the use of periwinkle in the form of a tincture is effective for enhancing sexual function. To prepare the drug, 20 g of chopped herbs are poured with 1 glass of vodka and simmered at a low boil for 10 minutes, after which they are insisted for 2 hours. Take a tincture of 10 drops twice a day, the treatment course is 4 days. To achieve a therapeutic effect with a break of 2 weeks, it is necessary to carry out 3 courses.

As a medicinal plant, it is necessary to use periwinkle at home with great care, since the alkaloids included in its composition are poisonous. If atypical symptoms develop, see your doctor.

Information about the drug is generalized, provided for informational purposes only and does not replace the official instructions. Self-medication is hazardous to health!