Sukhatinaya grass, Morels, Horsetail, Ponytail, Luskavets, Spinach, Pastish, Needle, Padivolos.
Diseases and effects: Heart defects, heart failure, edema in pulmonary heart failure, pyelitis, cystitis, urethritis, atherosclerosis of the heart and brain vessels, inflammatory diseases of the kidneys and urinary tract, urolithiasis, capillary vascular lesions, pulmonary and skin tuberculosis, hemorrhoidal and uterine bleeding, acute and chronic lead poisoning, chronic sluggish ulcers, purulent wounds, lichen, eczema, boils.
Active substances: Silicic acid, saponin equizetonin, alkaloids, nicotine, palustrin (equisetin), trimethoxypyridine, dimethyl sulfone, flavonoids, equisetrin, liteolin-7-glycoside, isoquercitrin, luteolin, ascorbic acid, carotene, aconitic acid, malic acid, oxalic acid, linoleic acid, fatty oil, mineral salts, resins, tannins, bitterness, vitamin C, sitosterol, dimethyl sulfone.
Collection time: June – August Botanical description \ rDistribution \ rChemical composition \ rPharmacological properties \ rUse in medicine \ rContraindications for use \ rProcessing rules \ rDosage forms, method of administration and doses \r\r
Botanical description of horsetail
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Spore-bearing, perennial herbaceous plant of the horsetail family (Equisetaceae).\r
The rhizome is brownish-black, penetrating deeply into the soil with spherical tubers 4-7 mm in diameter.\r
The stems are of two kinds: summer, remaining until autumn, and spore-bearing, appearing in spring. Summer shoots ascending, erect up to 50-60 cm in height, green, thin, with numerous branches, without spikelets, hollow inside, densely covered with very small tubercles in the upper part, and smooth in the lower part. The branches do not have leaves; there are toothed sheaths in the nodes of the stem and branches. Spore-bearing spring shoots are unbranched, 1.5-4 mm thick and 7-25 cm high, light brown with bell-shaped pale green smooth ribs. The upper part of the shoots with brown-black sheaths 12-20 mm long; teeth of sheaths are sharp, lanceolate, black-brown, with a narrow light border. Spikelets 1.5-3 cm long and 3-6 mm wide, oval-cylindrical.\r
Spores in the form of scutes, bearing sporangia on the inside.\r
Spores with 4 twisted appendages, spherical, green.\r
After shedding the spores, the stems die off, and after a while new summer shoots grow from the rhizomes. The plant contains silicic acid and is therefore rough to the touch. New plants grow very slowly, and vegetative shoots and spore-bearing spikelets are found on the same rhizomes every year.\r\r
Distribution of horsetail
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Horsetail is found almost everywhere in the territory of the CIS countries. In the south of Ukraine, it occurs in significant quantities along river banks, near ponds and canals, sparse shrubs and other places with high humidity.\r
In Crimea, it grows in the southern part, foothill-steppe, mountainous and southern coastal zones. Preparations of horsetail in large volumes are impractical here. Industrial harvesting in small quantities, in compliance with existing rules, is possible in the Odessa region up to 1 ton, Kherson, Zaporozhye and Donetsk regions – 0.1 tons each, mainly along the banks of the rivers.\r\r
The chemical composition of horsetail
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Horsetail herb contains saponin equizetonin, alkaloids nicotine, palustrin (equisetin), trimethoxypyridine, dimethyl sulfone, flavonoids (equisetrin, liteolin-7-glycoside, isoquercitrin, luteolin), ascorbic acid, carotene (up to 4.7 mg/%), organic acids (aconitic, malic, oxalic, linoleic), fatty oil, mineral salts, resins, tannins, bitterness, a large amount of silicic acid (within 2.5%). In addition, the plant contains up to 190 mg/% of vitamin C, sitosterol and dimethyl sulfone.\r\r
Pharmacological properties of horsetail
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Horsetail galenic products are superior to kidney tea in diuretic action. Numerous studies have also established the hemostatic and anti-inflammatory properties of galenic forms prepared from the herb of the plant.\r
5-Glucosidluteolin isolated from horsetail has antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties.\r
In the experiment, it was found that horsetail can have a detoxifying effect, in particular, it contributes to the release of lead from the body.\r
Silicic acid, dissolving in water and forming salts, is easily resorbed in the gastrointestinal tract. Silicon compounds are a necessary component in the life of various body systems; they play an important role in the processes of metabolism and functional activity of connective tissue, mucous membranes, walls of blood vessels; they are especially important for the development of bone tissue.\r
In the urine, silicic substances form protective colloids that prevent the crystallization of certain mineral components and thus hinder the formation of urinary stones.\r\r
The use of horsetail in medicine
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Horsetail galenic products are prescribed as a diuretic for congestive events of cardiac origin (heart defects, heart failure), as well as for edema associated with pulmonary heart failure. In these cases, urination in patients increases significantly even when taking only horsetail products. The therapeutic effect is manifested from the 1st day of taking the products and is observed throughout the course of treatment. With a repeated course of treatment, diuresis increases again, which indicates the absence of addiction to galenic products of horsetail.\r
In diseases of the urinary tract (pyelitis, cystitis, urethritis), horsetail is often prescribed simultaneously with bearberry or other plants with diuretic and anti-inflammatory properties.\r
As a remineralizing agent, decoctions and infusions of horsetail are prescribed to the elderly. Due to the presence of silicon compounds, horsetail herb is used for atherosclerosis of the vessels of the heart and brain, for inflammatory diseases of the kidneys and urinary tract, for urolithiasis, lesions of capillary vessels, as well as for tuberculosis of the lungs and skin in the course of their chemotherapeutic treatment.\r
Given the hemostatic properties of horsetail and its ability to accelerate the excretion of lead from the body, horsetail products are prescribed for hemorrhoidal and uterine bleeding, for acute and chronic lead poisoning.\r
Aqueous galenic forms of the plant, which have disinfectant properties, are used for external use in chronic sluggish ulcers or purulent wounds.\r
Usually, horsetail herb is used as part of complex medical preparations.\r
In folk medicine, a decoction of horsetail is externally used as a lotion on wounds, lichen, eczema, boils and other skin lesions; used to rinse the mouth and nose with diseases of the mucous membrane, with nosebleeds; bathe babies with colds.\r
In veterinary medicine, dried horsetail herb powder is applied to animal wounds and ulcers.\r\r
Contraindications to the use of horsetail
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Horsetail is contraindicated in nephritis and nephrosis, as it can irritate the kidneys. Therefore, it must be remembered that horsetail products should be used as prescribed by a doctor.\r\r
Rules for harvesting horsetail
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Medicinal raw materials are dried aerial parts of a perennial herbaceous plant – field horsetail with stems up to 30 cm long, whole or chopped, grayish-green in color, weak odor, slightly sour taste.\r
The crushed raw materials are pieces of stems and branches passing through a sieve with holes with a diameter of 7 mm. Collection time June-August. The above-ground parts of summer barren vegetative stems are collected, cutting the shoots with sickles or scythes at the very base, but not longer than 30 cm.
Whole raw materials should have a moisture content of no more than 13%; total ash – no more than 24%; other parts of plants – no more than 1%; other types of horsetail – no more than 4%; organic impurities – no more than 1%; mineral impurity – no more than 0.5%.\r
The shelf life of the collected raw materials is 4 years.\r
When harvesting, impurities of other types of horsetail can get in. Meadow horsetail differs from field horsetail in an almost horizontal arrangement of branches, bent to the bottom in an arcuate manner, also in the presence of cone-shaped papillae in the upper part of the stem, located densely along the ribs, clearly visible under a magnifying glass.\r
The marsh horsetail is distinguished by a thick (0.5 cm) stem, up to 150 cm high. Its branches are short, few or may be completely absent. There are blunt spikelets at the top of the stems.\r
Forest horsetail is distinguished by branching, downward-sloping branches. On the upper part of the stem on the ribs, under a magnifying glass, two rows of horn-shaped spines are visible. There are dull voices on the tops of the stems.\r
Marsh horsetail is distinguished by the fact that the sheaths of the stems are equipped with a wide white border of unsoldered teeth and the sheaths of the teeth are black, and not green or dark brown.\r\r
Dosage forms of horsetail, method of administration and doses
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A decoction of horsetail herb (Decoetum herbae Equiseti arvensis): 20 g (4 tablespoons) of raw materials are placed in an enamel bowl, pour 200 ml (1 cup) of hot boiled water, cover with a lid and heat in hot water (in a water bath) for 30 minutes, cooled at room temperature for 10 minutes, filtered, the remaining raw material is squeezed out. The volume of the resulting broth is added with boiled water to 200 ml. The prepared broth is stored in a cool place for 2 days.\r
Take 1/2-1/3 cup 2-3 times every day 1 hour after meals.\r
Available in packs of 100 g. Grass is stored in a cool dry place.\r
Horsetail liquid extract (Extractum Equiseti arvensis fluidi) is taken 1/2 teaspoon 3-4 times daily.\r
Briquettes : 1.5 slices of a briquette are poured into a glass of cold water, boiled for 30 minutes, cooled, filtered. Take orally 1 tablespoon 3-4 times every day.\r