Girchak kidney – highlander kidney

Hirchak kidney (Polygonum persicaria); magpie paws; mountaineer 

An annual herbaceous plant of the buckwheat family. The stem in the lower part is raised or straight from the base, branched, rarely simple, 30-100 cm high. The leaves are broad-lanceolate, gradually pointed, with or without a dark brown spot on the upper side. The leaves of the sheath (horns) are covered with bristles, tightly embracing the stem, with long abundant eyelashes along the edge. The flowers are in thick, short spikelets, mostly pink, less often white. The fruit is a nut. Blooms from June to September.

Spread. It grows along the banks of rivers, in various wet places throughout the territory of Ukraine.

Procurement and storage . Herbs (Herba Polygoni persicagiae) are used to make medicines, which are harvested during the flowering period of the plant. Flowering stems covered with leaves are cut. Yellowed leaves and rough parts of the stem are discarded. Dry in the shade outdoors, in well-ventilated rooms or in dryers at a temperature of 40-50°. 25-27% of dry raw material is obtained. The shelf life is 2 years. Pharmacies release raw materials.

Chemical composition. The herb contains flavonoids (avicularin, hyperoside, quercitrin and others), tannins (1.5%), anthraglycosides, vitamins (rutin, ascorbic acid), organic acids, p-sitosterol, mucilage, phlobafens, essential oil (0.05% ), sugars, etc.

Pharmacological properties and use. The plant has a gentle laxative (due to the activation of intestinal peristalsis), hemostatic (due to increased clotting and blood viscosity), diuretic, anti-inflammatory, pain-relieving and vasoconstrictive effects, tones the muscles of the uterus, strengthens the activity of the heart, and has a hypotensive effect. An increase in blood pressure is not observed when vessels are narrowed. Galenic products of bitter gorse are used mainly for hemorrhoids complicated by bleeding, especially in patients with atonic constipation, with spasmodic constipation. In gynecological practice, they are prescribed for vaginitis (as an astringent and disinfectant), for diseases associated with uterine bleeding (uterine hypotonia, excessive menstruation, etc.). In folk medicine, a decoction of the herb is used to treat wounds, ulcers, ringworm and rashes on the skin, it is used to gargle with sore throat and laryngitis. Fresh crushed grass is applied to the back of the head with a headache. Fresh plant juice is also used to treat wounds.

Medicinal forms and applications.

Internally – herbal infusion (two tablespoons of grass per 200 ml of boiling water) 1 tablespoon 3 times a day;

herbal tincture (15 g per 200 ml of vodka) 30-40 drops 2 times a day;

a mixture of St. John’s wort grass, St. John’s wort and St. John’s wort (15 g each), plantain leaves (10 g), chamomile flowers (10 g), horsetail grass and dried marsh flower (10 g each), buckthorn bark (10 g ) prepare as an infusion (10 g of the mixture per 200 ml of boiling water) and drink a third of a glass 3 times a day for hemorrhoids.

Externally – herbal infusion (1 tablespoon per 200 ml of boiling water) for washing, rinsing and douching (douching is carried out 1-2 times a day with a solution prepared by diluting 100 ml of the infusion in 1 liter of boiled water).