Name: Arnica (Arnica montana)
Otherwise known as: Leopard’s Bane, Mountain Tobacco
Habitat: A perennial member of the Compositae family, growing to 75cm in acid soils in mountainous habitats in Europe and western Asia. A related species can be found in the United States. The plant has creeping rhizomes with erect stems displaying yellow, daisy-like flowers; the basal, ovate leaves are arranged in rosettes and are hairy in the first year, followed by opposed lanceolate leaves in the second year. Arnica is now becoming scarce in the wild due to injudicious gathering and is a protected plant in most European counties. All parts of the plant are poisonous.
What does it do: The plant’s name is taken from the Greek word arnikos – lamb’s skin; obviously an allusion to the leaf’s texture. Arnica has been used for centuries in folk medicine, particularly among the Shamans of Asiatic Russia and some of the mountain tribes of North America as a pain reliever and stimulant. The poet Goethe credits arnica with life-saving properties, believing that tinctures from the plant saved him from a life-threatening fever. There is a theory that the medieval Swiss mercenaries chewed the flowers to overcome the effects of mountain fatigue; it is more likely that they smoked the dried leaves and flowers, as the whole plant is poisonous.
Arnica contains flavanoid glycosides, alkaloids, sesquiterpene lactones, such as helenalin and dihydrohelenanin; these latter chemicals are responsible for the plant’s reputation as a rescue remedy for bruising. The lactones increase white cell activity, especially those that digest congested blood and also release built up fluids from inflamed joints. It is anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, immune stimulating, tonic and vulnerary.
Siberian folk medicine accredits arnica with a wide range of cures: they apply it in cases of angina, myocarditis, arteriosclerosis and uterine haemorrhage. It is used topically in modern herbal medicine to combat fatigue, severe bruising, phlebitis, acne, vertigo, travel-sickness and insect bites; a hair rinse is applied to treat alopecia neurotica. Recent research indicates that the plant may have a beneficial effect on salmonella poisoning.
Arnica features in over 100 homeopathic remedies and is taken by athletes to relieve muscle strain in competitions.
Arnica is toxic and should not be taken internally except under strict medical supervision and never applied to broken skin, nor should it be applied when pregnant and must be stored away from children.
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