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| Calamus; Acorus calamus | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Feb 9 2011, 08:23 PM (455 Views) | |
| yass | Feb 9 2011, 08:23 PM Post #1 |
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Calamus - Medicinal Properties and Benefits Calamus is a perennial herb with long creeping and aromatic rhizomes or underground stems sprouting leaves. The flowering shoots of the plant are supported by a large leaf like structure called spathe. It has pale-green, small flowers, in 5 to 10 cm long cylindrical spikes and yellowish fruits. The root stock of the plant is an aromatic stimulant, bitter tonic and expectorant. The dried rhizomes of the plant constitute the drug calamus and are of great medicinal value. The dry rhizomes of calamus contain yellow aromatic oil. The essential oil contains calamen, calamenos, calamenon and asarone. Indian calameon oil contains asarone, small amounts of sesquiterpenes and sesquiterpene alcohols. The odor of the oil is ascribed to an unidentified constituent. The leaves contain oxalic acid and calcium. Botanical Name: Acorus calamus Indian Name: Bach Health Benefits of Calamus Below are some of the medicinal properties of calamus: - It gives relief to heavy stomach by relieving flatulence, colic and increasing appetite. The burnt root mixed with some bland oil such as refined coconut oil or a poultice of the root may be applied over the abdomen in treatment. - Calamus is a valuable remedy for chronic diarrhea. It is also effective in chronic dysentery, due to the presence of tannins. Its infusion can be given to children suffering from these ailments. - It is useful in the treatment of asthma; it removes catarrhal matter and phlegm from the bronchial tubes. About 65 centigrams of the herb is taken every 2 or 3 hours in this condition. - Calamus is also useful in treating common cold. A small piece of rhizomes is roasted and powdered. A pinch of this powder taken with honey provides great relief. For infants, the paste of calamus mixed in breast milk is touched on the baby’s tongue. Another convenient method of giving the medicine to infants is to apply a little paste on the mother’s nipple. - It is also useful in treating mouth ulcers, coating on tongue and rawness, that is, inflammation of the skin. A small piece of the herb should be rubbed on the tongue to obtain relief. - The powder of the roasted calamus is a valuable home remedy for children suffering from whooping cough. A pinch of this powder can be given with honey. Being antispasmodic, it prevents the severe bouts of coughing. For smaller children, the dose must be proportionately smaller. - It is effective in expelling intestinal worms. The powdered root is taken for this purpose. http://www.home-remedies-guide.com/herbs/calamus.htm |
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| yass | Feb 9 2011, 08:24 PM Post #2 |
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Calamus Root and Powder Profile Also known as Acorus calamus, Sweet Flag, Cinnamon Sedge, Sweet Myrtle, Acorus, and Sweet Rush. Introduction The sharp-edged calamus is a perennial semi-aquatic plant that grows in marshes and on muddy banks of streams. Although experts usually say the plant may have been used in herbal medicine as long as 4,000 years ago, the first mention of the plant as a medicine is in the Divine Husbandman's Classic of the Materia Medica, a Chinese medical text dating even earlier, to about 2837 BCE. The traditional use of calamus was to "open the orifices" to allow the inner spirit to reach out to the world. Chinese physicians of antiquity reported that calamus "vaporized phlegm," but the word they used refers to not just physical phlegm but also the "residues" of difficult emotions. Calamus was also employed to treat winter-time joint pain, wounds, and sores. In the United States and Canada, calamus was used to make calamine lotion, used to relieve skin inflammation of all origins. It was considered a sacred incense by both the Sumerians and the Egyptians. Calamus was planted by Native Americans along migratory paths so that it could be harvested at later times. It was normally used as an antiseptic for toothaches and headaches. It was also used as an attractant for muskrats, who voraciously ate the root, even collecting it for future consumption in their nests. Native Americans planted it on the edge of villages so they could trap the muskrats when they came for the root. Constituents Bitters, asarone, calamene and related chemicals, eugenol and related chemicals. Parts Used The rhizome, dried and chopped or ground. Typical Preparations Traditionally used as a tea. The varieties of calamus available in the United States and Canada are best used as bath additives, gargles, lotions, or washes, unless they are used in combination with other herbs in Chinese or Ayurvedic medicine. In Chinese medicine, calamus is used with platycodon to treat laryngitis, turmeric to treat deafness, magnolia to treat any kind of chest congestion, and mixed with lychii fruit and chrysanthemum flowers to make a tea to be soled for use as an eyewash. Seldom found as a capsule or extract. Summary Walt Whitman wrote 39 poems for Calamus in his famous work Leaves of Grass. Ayurvedic medicine uses it as a rejuvenator of the brain and nervous system, as well as a remedy for digestive disorders. Varieties of calamus traded in the United States (and all the varieties of calamus permitted for import by Health Canada) are most effective when used externally. In the United States and Canada, calamus has been used to make calamine lotion and to relieve skin inflammations of all types. As a bath additive, calamus helps with circulation and joint pain, and as a gargle calamus relieves sore throat. As a lotion, calamus relieves skin inflammation of all origins. http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/learn/calamus.php# |
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| yass | Feb 9 2011, 08:26 PM Post #3 |
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Sweet flag, or calamus has been used since ancient times for its effects on the digestive system and the lungs. This herb eliminates phlegm and tranquilizes the mind, and has been used to treat amnesia, heart palpitations, insomnia, tinnitus, chronic bronchitis, and bronchial asthma. http://www.anniesremedy.com/herb_detail225.php |
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| yass | Feb 9 2011, 08:27 PM Post #4 |
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Many cultures throughout the world believe that sweet flag roots contain potent powers that ward off evil. Countless North American Indians hung calamus root in their homes and sewed it into their children’s clothing; the belief was that nightmares would stay away and evil would pass by their homes and families. To this day, the Winnebago, Ponca, Omaha and Dakota tribes make traditional garlands of calamus grass that are used in secret rites known as “wakan wacipi,” a sacred dance wherein the dancers symbolically die and are resurrected during a day-long ceremony. It is believed that the famous Taoist An-ch’i-sheng, who is said to have instructed Ch'in Shih Huang-ti, the first Emperor of China, used wild calamus as an elixir that would not only cause him to be become immortal, but also invisible. Reportedly, the recipe for creating this ancient tincture was not passed down through the generations. There are, however, unfounded rumors in archaeological circles that an ancient text exists. In both the Ayurvedic and Tibetan systems of medicine, calamus is an important psychoactive plant used to treat sleeplessness, melancholy, neuroses, epilepsy, hysteria, memory loss and fever. Sweet flag root is good for colds (throat, chest and head), bronchitis and headaches. It is known to calm, if not completely cure, a sore throat with its antibacterial properties. Chewing the root not only fights the infection (especially for throat colds) but it also has a stimulant effect, helping one to overcome the fatigued feeling that accompanies a cold. Calamus is almost without a plant equal as a treatment for panic and anxiety attacks. http://www.entheology.org/edoto/anmviewer.asp?a=261&z=5 |
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| yass | Feb 9 2011, 08:29 PM Post #5 |
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Calamus Root Pieces This root was a favorite of Native American tribes and had many uses, including fighting pain and fatigue. The Cree say that they can take Acorus Calamus root and "travel great distances without touching the ground." Native American Indians would simply eat roots that were the diameter of a pencil in 1-inch sections as a medicinal, in 2-inch sections as an anti-fatigue, and in 6-inch sections as a visionary tool. Calamus has a certain sweetness as well as a sour quality and a heat like ginger or cinnamon. http://www.shamansgarden.com/c-24-calamus-root.aspx |
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