Hanging birch (Betula pendula Roth.).
A 20-25 m tall tree of the birch family. Widespread in the northern parts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts. For medicinal purposes use buds, in folk medicine leaves and juice of birch, less often bark, root and branches. The wood is used to make tar and charcoal. They also use birch mushroom (chaga) - growths on the trunks.
Prepare buds - from January to March (before the beginning of budding); sap - from incisions in the trunk at the beginning of sap movement after the first thaw; leaves - during flowering (in May), when they are still young, fragrant, sticky and not coarse; chaga - all year round, but better in the fall or spring (in Polesie and Carpathians).
Medicinal raw material of birch contains valuable biologically active substances: in buds and leaves - essential oil, phytoncides, resin, saponins, flavonoids, carotene, ascorbic and nicotinic acid, tannins and other substances; in chaga - resin, pterins, chromogenic complex, potassium, manganese and other substances; in juice - fructose, glucose, organic acids, calcium oxide, magnesium, iron, vitamins, enzymes, amino acids, tannins, aromatic and other substances.
Birch preparations have diuretic, choleretic, anti-inflammatory, diaphoretic, expectorant, antispastic, anthelmintic, vetrogonanny, disinfectant, tonic and wound-healing effect. Therefore, they are used in medicine for diseases of the kidneys and urinary tract, liver and biliary tract, giardiasis, hypo- and avitaminosis C, laryngitis, bronchitis, tracheitis, cardiac edema, spasms of the intestines and other smooth muscle organs.
Birch is especially popular in folk medicine - its preparations are also used for gastritis, peptic ulcer, colitis, cholera, kidney stones, gall and bladder stones, dropsy, obesity, neurosis, scrofula, catarrh of the upper respiratory tract.
In addition, 10-20% alcohol tincture of kidneys used externally for rubbing, compresses and lotions for joint diseases, muscles, sciatica, long non-healing wounds, ulcers, sores, rashes, scabies, burns and bruises. In acute and chronic eczema make a hot bath of decoction of buds. When scurvy rub the gums with birch buds. For toothache apply a absorbent cotton with the tincture on the sore tooth. Birch leaves in the form of 5% infusion used in acute wet eczema, neurodermatitis, scabies, skin itching, furunculosis, acne and psoriasis. Decoction of leaves used for baths for sciatica, allergic itchy dermatoses and acne; lotions with decoction of leaves or buds or diluted with water tincture used for wounds, ulcers. Decoction of leaves and buds rub into the roots of the hair in baldness. So-called dry baths are used for rheumatism, gout, paralysis, sweating feet, lichens and other itching rashes (foot, sitting or general) - fresh, leaves are placed in a deep cauldron, cover it so that the leaves warm up, and then the patient is buried in them up to the neck or waist and is there as long as he can stand <1 hour or more) (A. П. Popov, M. О. Garbarets). However, such baths should be carried out under the supervision of a doctor and in the absence of disorders of the cardiovascular system.
In addition, raw birch leaves are covered with patients with edema and dropsy, patients in bed, on the swollen legs and abdomen (with dropsy) put a thick layer of leaves, covered with warm blankets and give plenty of warm diaphoretic drink of linden flowers, elderberries or raspberries, while the patient sweats profusely. The same treatment is carried out under medical supervision in rheumatism and gout.
Young fresh leaves cover sore spots in sciatica, rheumatism, gout and applied to boils, festering wounds and burns. В. В. Karhut in dropsy, rheumatism, gout and paralysis recommends steaming boiled dry leaves, as well as crushed raw to cover the painful places of the hands and feet, put on mittens, socks or stockings and bandage warm for 30-60 minutes and more. Some doctors in the treatment of cervical erosion and other diseases use 20% infusion of leaves or buds of birch, as well as diluted tincture of buds in the form of tampons and baths.
In some areas, instead of buds and leaves are also used decoction of young freshly cut and finely cut branches of birch. Birch bark ash is used for heartburn, and tincture of stamen earrings is used for heart disease.
Very popular in folk phytotherapy sweet resinous birch sap. It is not only a pleasantly refreshing dietary multivitamin, but an invigorating and therapeutic drink. Fresh or canned birch juice is used as a tonic, antizyngotic, diuretic, thirst-quenching and normalizing metabolism means internally and externally. It is used for pulmonary tuberculosis and other bronchial and pulmonary diseases, anemia, general weakness, gout, rheumatism, arthrosis, uric acid diathesis, chronic pyelonephritis, skin diseases (eczema, acne, furunculosis, rashes, lice), wounds, ulcers and other diseases, especially useful juice weakened children. For chronic runny nose drink 1 cup of juice every morning. Birch sap is also popular in cosmetics - for removing age spots on the face. It is also used to wash the scalp for dandruff and hair loss.
Activated charcoal in powder or tablets (carbolen) used as a good adsorbent for flatulence, heartburn, colitis, nausea, poisoning poisons and bacterial toxins, food toxic infections, dysentery, liver disease and pulmonary tuberculosis (2 tsp. spoonfuls per meal in a glass of milk), as well as in allergic diseases.
Chaga preparations are used as a biostimulant and nonspecific symptomatic tonic in gastric cancer, lung cancer, pelvic cancer, but in cases where radiation therapy and surgical treatment is not indicated, as well as in anacid gastritis, peptic ulcer, polyposis, liver disease and intestinal dyskinesia with predominant atony. In the treatment of chaga can not be administered intravenous glucose and take penicillin, patients should observe mainly dairy and vegetable diet, limit the intake of meat and fats, it is forbidden to take canned food, smoked meats, sausages, spicy and spicy seasonings.
In the home infusion of chaga is prepared as follows: washed mushroom is poured with water for 4-5 hours to soften. Then crush it in a mortar or grate or pass through a meat grinder, 1 part of the mushroom pour 5 parts (by volume) of the same water in which soaked mushroom, heated to 50 °. Infuse for 48 hours, after which the water is drained, and the sediment is squeezed through several layers of gauze; the resulting thick liquid is mixed with water drained from the sediment to the original volume. The infusion can be stored for 4 days.
Birch tar contains phenols, resins and other substances. It has disinfectant, insecticidal and locally irritating effects. It is included in ointments (tar, Wilkinson, Vishnevsky), liniments, tar water (10%) and sulfur tar soap for the treatment of scabies, wounds, eczema, psoriasis and fungal skin diseases.
In folk medicine birch tar is used internally and 5-10 drops 3 times a day on milk for throat diseases, purulent bronchitis, pulmonary tuberculosis and catarrhal cystitis (A. Popov).
