Thyme is a fairly well-known plant. It has many beneficial and medicinal properties. In ancient times, thyme was considered a "divine herb" capable of restoring health to people.
Plant thyme
Thyme (common thyme) is a perennial low shrub of the Labiate family with a woody stem and erect or ascending herbaceous branches. The leaves of the thyme are small, oval-oblong in shape, the flowers are mauve, the stems spread along the ground. Thyme is a very fragrant plant, during its flowering the air is literally filled with fragrance.
Thyme grows practically throughout Russia, mainly in the steppes, on the slopes of hills and on the outskirts of pine forests. In addition, it is cultivated in Canada, the USA and in many European countries. As a medicinal raw material, flowers and grass of a plant are used, which are harvested during the flowering period (May - June).
In total, there are more than 30 varieties of thyme; more than ten of its species grow on the territory of Russia.
Thyme is used in the pharmaceutical, food and perfume industries. It is highly valued in the field of beekeeping, as the plant has excellent melliferous qualities.
The healing properties of thyme
Thyme contains a lot of bioactive substances: essential oil, tannins, phenols, flavonoids, organic acids, gum, resins and mineral salts.
The plant has an expectorant, antiseptic, diaphoretic, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, sedative, analgesic, anthelmintic and wound healing effect.
Due to its good bactericidal properties, thyme is used in the treatment of tuberculosis and anthrax.
Thyme contains a high content of healing essential oil, which is successfully used in medicine for the treatment of infectious intestinal inflammation and lung disease. The plant helps very well in the treatment of severe cough, whooping cough and asthma.
In the fight against skin diseases, for the treatment of wounds, various diseases of muscles and joints, infusions of thyme are taken externally (baths, lotions, compresses).
Thyme tea is good to drink in case of stress, migraines and neurasthenia. Decoctions and tinctures normalize the stomach and improve digestion.
Thyme-based preparations are used in the treatment of diseases of the upper respiratory tract, throat, lungs and bronchi as an anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and expectorant agent.
Thyme is used in cooking as a condiment that enhances the taste of dishes and promotes better absorption of food. Thyme, rosemary and salt make a wonderful spice herb.
Contraindications for the use of thyme
The use of medicines based on thyme is contraindicated in gastric ulcer and duodenal ulcer, cardiosclerosis, atrial fibrillation and cerebral atherosclerosis, in acute inflammatory diseases of the kidneys and liver, pregnancy and lactation.
