Yarrow

Achillea millefolium L. – Asteraceae

Yarrow is a perennial plant, whose stem is round, greenish, up to 80 cm tall. It has many leaves that are alternate, with toothed edges, the lower leaves are petioled, and the upper leaves enclose the stem. The whole plant is hairy and fragrant. The flowers are gathered in an inflorescence at the top of the stem. It grows in the temperate zone of the northern hemisphere, next to roads, in dry places.

The medicinal part of the weed is the above-ground part of the plant. During the flowering period, the aerial part of the plant contains essential oil, flavonoids, alkaloids, germacranolides, triterpenes, vitamin K, resins, sterols, tannins, organic acids and sugars. Essential oil is obtained by distillation using steam, and the active ingredients of essential oil are: pinene, thujone, camphor, cineole, borneol, limonene.

Yarrow is a medicinal plant that has a very rich biological potential. It has been proven by many studies that it occupies an important place as an auxiliary tool in the treatment of inflammatory conditions of the gastrointestinal and hepatobiliary tract (anti-inflammatory and hepatoprotective action). The aerial part of the yarrow grass is used to treat intestinal and stomach ailments (a means for eliminating gas and improving appetite). Also, it can often be recommended as a tool that neutralizes pain and spasms in the gastrointestinal tract, because it affects the relaxation of the smooth muscles of the digestive tract, and the use of yarrow is also recommended for relieving menstrual pain, as well as for irregular menstrual cycles (so-called amenorrhea – absence of menstruation), and excessive bleeding.

Also, the use of yarrow is recommended for people suffering from diabetes because it lowers the level of glucose in the blood, rheumatoid arthritis, gout, osteoarthritis, hemorrhagic disorders, eczema, psoriasis, as well as skin ulcers.

Yarrow

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