Blessed Thistle

Western Bulk Herbs – Blessed Thistle

Blessed Thistle is most commonly used to enrich and increase milk in nursing mothers, and to help balance female problems such as dysmenorrhea and amenorrhea. It also balances female hormone problems and strengthens heart and lungs.

It has been used to strengthen memory as Blessed Thistle takes oxygen to the brain and that brings more blood flow to enhance the brain and the memory. It also transports circulation to every part of the body.

Latin Name:
Cnicus benedictus

Common Names:
Holy Thistle, Blessed thistle, holy thistle, St. Benedicts thistle

Parts Used:
The whole plant

Properties:
Blessed Thistle is a tonic, stimulant, diaphoretic, emetic, and emmenagogue.

Topical Uses / Applications:
There are four different ways of getting Blessed Thistle into your body. You can eat it as a green leaf with bread and butter or in a salad. Take it as a powder in wine or water, the juice can be taken everyday. You can make up an infusion of the dried herb as use as a preventive or to remove disease, as a capsule at bedtime. Anyway you take Blessed Thistle it will work.

Culinary Uses:
You can add it to your salad or eat it on a sandwich.

Chemical Properties:
Blessed Thistle contains a volatile oil, and a bitter, crystallineneutral body called Cnicin which is said to be analogous to salicin (aspirin) in its properties.

Cautions:
Blessed Thistle should not be used during pregnancy. High doses may irritate the stomach and cause vomiting. Do not use if you are allergic to other Asteracea plants.

Folk Lore:
Benedictus is Latin meaning blessed and the plant was considered a gift from God. It was thought to be a cure all as it has properties that help the body, namely salicin, which is aspirin, so it takes away the pain of most ailments.

Early herbalist highly regarded this plant as a tincture for treating jaundice, hepatitis, and arthritis. Larger doses produce a diaphoretic and stimulant action on the digestive track. They also gave it to nursing mothers to increase their milk. It was thought to increase strength in combat because of its bitter taste and it was believed anything tasting so bitter would give them more strength.

Blessed thistle is an excellent herbal source of potassium and sodium. The herb has been used to treat dysmenorrhea, amenorrhea, arthritis, dysura, jaundice, fevers, and respiratory allergies.

*Disclaimer: These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

Resources:
PDR for Herbal Medicines, 2000. Medical Economics Company, Montvale, New Jersey.

The New Holistic Herbal. David Hoffmann, 1990. Barnes and Noble Books, New York.

A Modern Herbal, Mrs. M. Grieve, (Dover Publications, New York, 1971)

Major Herbs of Ayurvedic.Compiled by Dahur Research Foundation and Dahur Ayurvet Limited, Ghaziabad, India., 2002. Churchill Livingstone, London, England.

Chinese Herbal Medicine: Materia Medica, Third Edition, Dan Bensky and Andrew Gamble, 1986. Eastland Press, Seattle, WA.