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Medicinal plants: a practical guide to the knowledge of the most widespread.

Widely used in phytotherapy, medicinal plants have been used since ancient times thanks to their healing abilities.
There are many varieties of plants useful for combating the most common ailments and, thanks to scientific research, we know that some medicinal plants can prove to be truly precious.

Among the best known are undoubtedly lavender, clary sage, helichrysum, verbena and thyme. In short, there are really a lot of them, but in this article we will mainly deal with those just mentioned and their properties.

What are medicinal plants

Also known as medicinal herbs, they are plants containing substances and active ingredients useful for therapeutic and beneficial use. Basically, their active ingredients are used for many different applications. These are particularly concentrated in some plant elements, including leaves, flowers, buds, roots and many other plant parts.

How medicinal plants are used

Over the centuries, medicinal plants have been used in many different ways, which is why as many systems have been devised to make the best use of all these medicinal herbs, especially in the absence of scientific medicine.

Therefore, the remedies of natural and phytotherapeutic origin are available in different formats among which we find:

• Drying : this is certainly one of the most widespread and ancient methods for the conservation of herbs. Drying can be achieved through exposure to the sun, ventilation or heat. After which the dried vegetables can be used for many different purposes.

• Essential oil : the very famous essential oils are obtained thanks to squeezing or distillation processes in such a way as to best preserve all their organoleptic properties. Furthermore, hydrosols can be obtained from these oils. These remedies are the most concentrated and therefore also the ones to be used more sparingly.

• Herbal teas : the typical hot herbal tea obtainable thanks to the infusion of dried and shredded medicinal herbs is a well-known system for taking advantage of and taking advantage of the benefits offered by these plants.

At this point, once we have discovered the main methods of preserving medicinal plants, we can move on to the properties of some of the best known and most appreciated plant species, namely lavender, clary sage, helichrysum and verbena.

Lavender, clary sage, helichrysum and verbena: the properties of these medicinal plants

The classic lavender flowers are particularly widespread due to their slightly sedative and antispasmodic properties which mostly act on the smooth muscle fibers that make up our intestines.
Furthermore, the lavender essential oil used externally and obtained thanks to the distillation of the flowers, proves to be very useful thanks to its anti-inflammatory properties.

Otherwise, clary sage and in particular its essential oil are used in the cosmetic and herbal sector. On the contrary, the common type sage is mostly used in our kitchens. However, sclarea is particularly appreciated by companies involved in the production of liqueurs, of which the most famous is undoubtedly Vermouth. Moreover, this plant is particularly suitable for its cleansing, anti-inflammatory, anti-aging and hair mask properties.

Continuing with the in-depth analysis of the properties of the most widespread medicinal plants, we cannot fail to mention the helichrysum . Its essential oil has strong anti-allergic and anti-inflammatory properties, especially as regards the respiratory system. On the contrary, in the cosmetic sector its extract is used to make sunscreens and to make real elixirs for the skin of the face.

We are approaching the end of our article talking about the Erba Cedrina or Limoncina, also known as Verveine, or a medicinal plant with multiple properties.
Among these, those related to stress reduction undoubtedly stand out. Furthermore, its essential oil boasts a good disinfectant power as regards the nasal cavities and the oral cavity. Moreover, verbena helps the healing of the skin, relieves cervical and rheumatic pains and is able to fight infections that affect the muscles. In this regard, by visiting the link https://comeinprovenza.it/search?q=vervaine it will be possible to find all the Verveine-based products suitable for every need.

Finally, among the most widespread medicinal herbs we cannot fail to mention thyme.
In fact, this plant is attributed antispasmodic, antimicrobial, stomachic and expectorant properties. Moreover, the effectiveness of thyme is well established, so much so that its use is still quite widespread today to treat the symptoms of bronchitis and cough.
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