Smoking in Herbalist: Properties of Fumaria

Scientific name

Fumaria officinalis

Family

Papaveraceae

Origin

The fumaria is a very common weed

Used Parts

Drug given by the aerial parts

Chemical constituents

Isoquinoline alkaloids (famariin, protopine);
Flavonoids;
mucilage;
Organic acids.

Smoking in Herbalist: Properties of Fumaria

The fumaria is used as a choleretic, hepatoprotective and antispastic for the smooth muscle of the sphincter of Oddi; it is indicated in the presence of biliary dyspepsias, difficult digestions, constipation, postprandial heaviness, meteorism and halitosis.

Biological activity

As mentioned, flue gas is a plant with purifying, hepatoprotective and antispasmodic properties, which are practiced above all in the bile ducts, but also in the gastrointestinal tract.

Moreover, the plant is able to exert an amphocoleretic action, ie it is able to regulate the bile flow increasing it if it is insufficient and decreasing it if it is excessive.

Finally, from some studies conducted on the plant, it emerged that some of the alkaloids contained in it are able to exert an interesting inhibitory activity against acetylcholinesterase (the enzyme deputed to the metabolism of acetylcholine), therefore, they could turn out to be a valid aid in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease, a neurodegenerative disease characterized by a reduction in cholinergic transmission.

However, before a similar medical application of the flue can be approved, further research and in-depth clinical studies are required.

Fumaria against hepatobiliary disorders

Thanks to the hepatoprotective, amphocoleretic and antispasmodic activities on the bile ducts, which the flue is able to exercise, the use of this plant has obtained the official approval for the treatment of hepatobiliary diseases of different nature.

For the treatment of these disorders, the plant must be taken internally. The usual recommended daily dose is about six grams of the drug.

In addition, the flue may also be taken in the form of an infusion (for more information on this, see the article on "Fumaria nelle Tisane").

Fumaria in folk medicine and homeopathy

In folk medicine, flue gas is used for the treatment of a wide variety of disorders, such as arthritis, rheumatism, cystitis, infections, skin diseases, constipation and arteriosclerosis; as well as being used as a purifying remedy for blood.

In addition, the fumaria is also exploited by homeopathic medicine, where it can be found in the form of granules, oral drops and mother tincture.

In this context the plant is used in case of chronic eczema caused by hepatobiliary disorders and in the case of psoriasis.

The dose of homeopathic remedy to be taken can vary from one individual to another, also depending on the type of disorder that must be treated and according to the type of preparation and homeopathic dilution that is intended to be used.