Toxic
Effect:
pain-relieving, decongestant, anti-inflammatory, diuretic, emetic, expectorant, liver-stimulating, slightly narcotic, laxative
Areas of use:
Painkiller, bone pain, joint pain, inflammation-related swelling, for blood purification, nausea, chronic bronchitis, skin diseases, metabolic diseases, asthma, rheumatism, gout, dropsy, psoriasis, eczema, neurodermatitis, cellulite, ulcers
See note below!
Homeopathy: colds, asthmatic cough, cystitis, skin rashes, feverish infections, diseases of the respiratory organs, gastrointestinal tract, urinary tract, joints
Parts of the plant used:
Stems, bark
Collection time:
Autumn, spring
Where to find:
Usually near water and in open locations with sufficient light.
Ingredients:
Alkaloids (soladulzin, solasonin), bitter glycosides, saponins, tannins
Other:
☕ Tea: Pour 1/4 liter of boiling water over 1 teaspoon, let it steep for 10 minutes. Drink throughout the day.
Bittersweet nightshade is a herbaceous or woody climbing plant whose above-ground parts can spread over 8 to 10 meters. Underground, the shoots can grow spreading or creeping. The shoots are rarely hairless, most are hairy, and the density of the hairs can vary greatly. The trichomes are simple and single-row or branched; both forms can occur mixed. They consist of four to eight cells and are usually white. The bark of older shoots is gray to yellowish gray in color. The sympodial units contain many leaves. The leaves are very variable and can take on a wide variety of shapes and sizes, even on one shoot. They can be single or up to three times pinnate. The outline can be elliptical or egg-shaped to heart-shaped. The upper leaves are usually auriculate, spear-shaped or have one or two pinnate lobes. The upper side is hairless to moderately hairy with single-row or branched trichomes along the veins and on the leaf surface. The underside is sparsely to densely and usually more hairy than the upper side; the shape of the trichomes is the same as that of the upper side. Six to nine pairs of lateral veins arise from the central axis. The base is truncated or heart-shaped, the leaf edges are entire or usually doubly or rarely more lobed. The lobes are located at the base of the leaf blade and taper towards the incisions. The leaf blade is pointed or tapered towards the front. The leaf stalk is similarly hairy to the stems. The inflorescences are terminal or lateral, but not opposite the leaves. They are multi-branched, hairless to moderately hairy, and contain up to 40 flowers, only a few of which are open at any one time. The rachis is often tinged with purple. When in bloom, the flower stalks are slender, protruding, often purple-green. They are hairless to sparsely hairy, the trichomes are usually single-row and only rarely branched. At the base, the flower stalk is angled and surrounded by a small sheath which leaves a noticeably swollen cone on the inflorescence axis. The inflorescence axis is zigzag-shaped, the notches left by the flower stalks are irregularly spaced. The buds are twisted, and the corolla extends beyond the calyx tube long before flowering. The flowers themselves are five-petaled. The calyx tube is broadly conical and it is covered with broad triangular calyx lobes. They are glabrous or covered with single-row, white trichomes. The tip is pointed, the margin is papillose. The corolla is deeply star-shaped (up to 3/4 of the way to the base). It is purple, violet or white, with green and bright white dots at the base of each corolla lobe. The corolla lobes are strongly recurved at flowering time, they may be finely papillose at the tip and edges, or they are completely glabrous. Occasionally, however, the outside is densely hairy with single-row, unbranched trichomes. The fruit is a spherical to elliptical berry. When ripe, it is bright red, the pericarp is thin and shiny. The pedicels are protruding and not noticeably woody. Each fruit contains more than 30 seeds. These are flat and kidney-shaped. The surface is pale yellow or brownish, finely grained, the cells of the seed coat are five-sided. (partly Wikipedia)
🛑 All parts of the plant contain poisonous steroid alkaloids and related saponins. The glyco-alkaloid content (toxicity) is highest in the green and yellowing berries, lower in the leaves and stems, and lowest, or almost non-existent, in fully ripe fruit. Although the ripe berries have the lowest alkaloid content in relation to the herb and green berries, the literature states that consuming around 10 berries is a lethal dose. For children, up to 10 (or fewer) unripe berries can be fatal!!! Side effects include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and dilated pupils. The stem contains only low concentrations of alkaloids and is therefore toxic. An overdose can lead to paralysis of the central nervous system, slow heart rate and breathing, low fever, dizziness, delirium, cramps, and death. Please only discuss and clarify internal use with a qualified doctor! Do not use during pregnancy or breastfeeding.
The daily dose of nightshade for an adult should not exceed 1 to 2 g! To be on the safe side, consult a specialist (doctor) before use!
In old folk belief, it was believed that it could banish demons and witches.
The use of bittersweet nightshade is now only permitted in ready-made preparations with standardized extracts from the stems. These extracts are accepted for external use by Commission E and are used to support chronic eczema. The immunosuppressive, cortisone-like, anti-inflammatory and anti-itch effects of the preparations are now considered proven. Accordingly, they are used as a supportive therapy for chronic skin conditions such as eczema or neurodermatitis. According to the European Medicines Agency (EMA), use should be restricted to adults, should not last longer than two weeks and should not be taken orally.
The German tobacco regulation prohibits the use of bittersweet nightshade in tobacco products.
Hildegard von Bingen: If you suffer from heartache or a weak heart, boil a moderate amount of nightshade in water and after squeezing it out, place it warm on your heart and you will feel better. And if you have toothache, warm it in water and place it warm on your jaw, where it hurts, and the pain will go away. And if your feet swell, place the herb warmed in water over the swelling and it will go down. (This probably means black nightshade.)