St. John's Wort - A Must for your Herbal Medicine Cabinet
For years we have had St. John’s Wort in capsule form in our herbal medicine cabinet. But only recently have we considered growing our own. This year we have taken the leap and already have seeds started in our growing room. By the time spring comes, we’ll be ready to plant our own and have enough to share with you, our customers and friends!
Why would we want to grow this flower?
The wide range of health benefits make this flower an important item for our herbal medicine cabinet and we want to know for certain we are getting a good quality. Growing our own ensures that we are harvesting the plant at just the right time to gain all the benefits.
In recent years, St. John’s Wort has become extremely popular as a potential healing herbal remedy for many health problems.
St. John’s Wort is also known as Hypericum perforatum: it is a small flowering plant of genus Hypericum (scientific name) which grows wild in Europe but extends to America, Russia, Asia, China, and the Middle East.
You can find it in the form of a capsule, tincture, and in oil. Chemical components include bioflavonoids and a number of antioxidants that can have a significant impact on the body’s hormonal, physical and chemical behavior.
Although ingredients are very valuable to human health, there are some possible side effects or complications that may arise with certain conditions or drugs along with the use of St. John’s Wort. Just like any herbal remedy, be sure to consult with your doctor or naturopath provider when using.
We plan to make an oil with our home-grown St. John’s Wort and include it in our pain-relieving salve made from Arnica Oil.
How to make St. John’s Wort Oil
The oil used to make salve or use directly on the skin, is made by obtaining the flowers which we will collect near the ends of the flowering branches of the plant. Either fresh or dried, these are added to jars filled with a good, quality olive oil. In 6 weeks with proper care, the oil will be ready to be strained and used.
This oil is widely consumed in various countries by applying it to heal wounds without any trace and is also consumed to heal stomach wounds.
We plan to use the oil in our Arnica Oil Pain Relief salve to get the extra benefits.
Benefits of St. John’s wort Oil or Salve
Antidepressant – Perhaps the most famous feature is the antidepressant ability of this flower. Used for generations to reduce symptoms of depression and is even prescribed by doctors to their patients for this purpose.
Alleviates Anxiety - people who complain about anxiety and mood swings may benefit greatly from the relaxing nature of this oil.
Hormonal Balance - It helps regulate body’s hormonal balance; relieves insomnia, irritability and chronic fatigue. Elimination of chronic stress hormones in the body; Excessive stress hormone secretion can affect various organs and may also improve overall health and cognitive functions.
Reduces Mood Change
Pre-menstrual syndrome and menopause that can be challenging times that bring mood changes. St. John’s Wort oil is widely recommended for women in both periods of life because of the chemical components have been shown to reduce mood changes and anxiety.
Overall, St. John's Wort is a powerful healing herb. For our family, the greatest benefit lies in its ability to help heal wounds, burns and skin issues. This is why we plan to add it to our Arnica Oil salve blend. We have had friends use St. John’s wort salve on burns and within hours the burn was gone and pain almost immediately helped. We were amazed.
In Switzerland, where St. John's Wort grows quite profusely, it is a common household remedy, and you will find beautiful red oils infusing in the windowsills in almost every home. It's just a wonderful plant, with many uses.
Here in Missouri, while we don’t see it growing wild, we do think it will grow quite well. We already have 40 seeds started and are looking forward to our first harvest and a growing plot of this wonderful healing herb.
Contraindications: There is evidence that St. John's Wort should not be used internally in conjunction with certain anti-depressants or anti-anxiety medications. Some information says it may also affect usage of hormone medications. St. John's Wort may cause sensitivity to light, although I have never actually heard of this happening or know about any actual incidences. This is likely due to cases of livestock ingesting quite a lot of it and shortly after having some photosensitivity problems.
We plan to use it regularly in our goat milk lotions and in our “no more pain” arnica salve. With that said, you should consult a doctor before using or taking any herbs externally or internally. Always do your own due diligence, and check with your doctor before using any herb.
Watch for more information when these oils are made available in our online store!