Meadow Sweet Leaves | Slide Mouse

Meadowsweet leaves and flowers contain salicylates compounds that are converted by the body to aspirin.

Meadow sweet leaves. The erect stem is red marbled and hollow and the plant has 3 to 9 pairs of dark green toothed dentate leaves. They have short petioles. It was known to be analgesic or pain relieving but the chemical extract was too nauseating to be useful. Meadowsweet was the key headache busting ingredient from which aspirin was synthesized.

Meadowsweet leaves and flower bud late may in spring the young leaves can be eaten raw or cooked as a green though many find the flavour somewhat medicinal. Bayer pharma ceuticals used dried meadowsweet leaves for its original methyl salicylic acid formulation. Other constituents present in the plant include acid esters and a high tannin content. Overview information meadowsweet is a plant.

Meadowsweet is a mild but effective anti inflammatory herb used to treat arthritis and other aches and pains. The leaves are dark green on the upper side and whitish and downy underneath much divided being interruptedly pinnate having a few large serrate leaflets and small intermediate ones. Meadowsweet is a perennial herbaceous plant. The terminal leaflets are large 1 to 3 inches long and.

Meadowsweet is used for colds heartburn arthritis bladder infections and other. Kaempferol and quercetin have also been isolated from the plant while hyperoside is present in its leaves and its stalks. Meadowsweet contains a number of medicinal compounds including flavonoids phenolic glycosides and quercetin glycoside. Meadowsweet leaves are alternate up to 3 long and 3 4 across and occur along the young branches.

The stems grow up to one to two meters in height. Meadowsweet is an herbaceous perennial shrub growing up to 2 m tall. The leaves are pinnately compound with serrate leaflets usually three to five lobed. In colonial times meadowsweet was used as an anti inflammatory to reduce the symptoms of arthritis and rheumatism.

Meadowsweet is especially helpful for those arthritis sufferers who have gastritis inflammation of the stomach lining from years of taking nsaids. The parts that grow above the ground are used to make medicine. Salicylic acid was identified and isolated from meadowsweet leaves in 1827. I used to but since working with some very talented chefs and barmen i have learned ways of capturing melon vanilla courmarin and almond benzaldehyde flavours from the foliage.

Description the fragrant meadowsweet is one of the best known wild flowers decking our meadows and moist banks with its fernlike foliage and tufts of delicate graceful creamy white flowers which are in blossom from june to almost september. The plant is native to europe but also grows in north america preferring damp moist soil. The upper side of each leaf is medium green while its lower side is pale green.