St. John's wort oil - Medicinal powerhouse herb!
"When a plant carries a lady's name, that is St. Mary, then you can be sure it deserves it."
St. John's wort (Hypericum perforatum) is a delightful plant of vivid yellow flowers named after the Greek god of the Sun, Hiperion.
Perforate St John's wort is a herbaceous perennial plant (Hypericaceae) with extensive, creeping rhizomes. Its stems are erect, branched in the upper section, and can grow to 1 m high. It has opposite, stalkless, narrow, oblong leaves that are 1–2 cm long. The leaves are yellow-green in color, with scattered translucent dots of glandular tissue. The dots are conspicuous when held up to the light, giving the leaves the 'perforated' appearance to which the plant's Latin name refers. The flowers measure up to 2.5 cm across, have five petals, and are colored bright yellow with conspicuous black dots. The flowers appear in broad cymes at the ends of the upper branches, between late spring and early to mid summer. The sepals are pointed, with black glandular dots. There are many stamens, which are united at the base into three bundles. The pollen grains are ellipsoidal. Hypericum perforatum is native to parts of Europe and Asia but, has spread to temperate regions worldwide as a cosmopolitan invasive weed.
The use of St. John's wort, goes back to the ancient Greeks. Since then, popular treatment in care of anxiety, depression, cuts and burns. While recent studies show the effectiveness of this herb in the treatment of other diseases, including cancer.
It is a medical herb with antidepressant activity and potent anti-inflammatory properties.
St. Jon's wort produces dozens of biologically active substances, although two - hypericin (a naphthodianthrone) and hyperforin (a lipophilic phloroglucinol) - have the greatest medical activity. Other compounds, including the flavonoids rutin, quercetin, and kaempferol, also appear to have medical activity.
St. John's Wort oil is one of the basic homemade home remedies. It has been popular among the people since ancient times, as an antiviral, antibacterial and antimicrobial drug that primarily treat skin problems - wounds, burns, diarrhea, acne, scars, enlarged veins, hemorrhoids, rheumatism, inflammation of the nerves and muscles.
Another important activity of St. John's wort is that "female" - it helps with ovarian, cyst, and fungal infections, while herb's grass tea regulates hormones and causes anxiety.
Another interesting fact about Hypericum perforatum is photosensitivity (photosensitization) - condition in which lightly pigmented skin becomes hyper-reactive to sunlight due to the presence of photodynamic agent(s) in the peripheral circulation and skin. active compound in sjw is hypericin and hypericin is classified as primary (type I) photosensitivity. which means that primary photosensitization occurs when the photodynamic agent is either ingested, injected, or absorbed through the skin. the agent enters the systemic circulation in its native form, where it results in skin cell membrane damage after the animal is exposed to ultraviolet light. people who are sensitive to light should avoid st john's wort in summer days.
Preparation of St. John's wort oil:
Harvest mature St. John's wort plants. Use yellow flowers and unopened flower pups. Leave the plant material for 24 house so insects can leave the flowers. Use glass mason jars and fill the jars with Hypericum flowers and pups (3/4 of jar space). After add cold pressed oil (olive or sunflower oil) and fill the rest of the space with desired oil. Close the jar well and leave it on sunny place for 40 days. After the maceration process is over, drain the oil through plastic drainer into dark glass bottles.
