Description
Nettle Leaf – [Urtica dioica]
Nettle Leaf – So often snubbed as merely a weed, has an amazing array of talents. It can clothe you, feed you, light your lamps, and be medicinal!
In Africa, the oil expressed from nettle seed is used as burning oil in lamps; and since ancient times it has been made into twine or cloth. When woven into fine cloth for clothes it is both softer and warmer than cotton, and was used as a cotton alternative during the World Wars. In recent years an Italian fashion house produced a range of jeans made from nettle.
Nettle is perhaps best known as a highly nutritious feed herb/fodder for animals, and has been used through the ages for this purpose, occasionally even cultivated en masse and mown to provide ‘hay’ for milk cows. It is considered a spring tonic and detoxifier for human and animal alike. It is rich in chlorophyll, and is an excellent source of calcium, chromium, magnesium, zinc, cobalt, manganese, phosphorous, potassium, protein, riboflavin, selenium, silicon, thiamine, vitamin A, vitamin C and vitamin K. No wonder then that nettle is such an appetiser, and conditioning, restorative tonic for horses. It is reputed to enhance coat shine and dappling, and, interestingly, is a folk remedy for hair loss (perhaps based on its reputation for enhancing circulation).
ACTIONS include: Leaf – diuretic (increasing the flow of urine), nutritive, anti-allergic, astringent (constricts and firms membranes), styptic (stops blood flow when applied externally), galactogogue (promoting the production and flow of breast milk), hypoglycaemic, anti-diarrhoeal, anti-inflammatory, alterative (“blood cleansing”), stimulating to circulation, tonic.
Root – inhibits/reduces the symptoms associated with benign prostate enlargement.
CAUTION: Very occasionally a person or animal may develop a rash in response to ingesting nettle. If so, discontinue feeding it and seek the advice of a herbalist. A lower dose may be required for that individual, or possibly a complete elimination of nettle. Very occasionally gastro-intestinal symptoms may result from ingesting nettle root. It is generally considered a very safe herb.
While some authors advise caution on the use of nettle during pregnancy, others disagree and do not expect adverse effects.
DOSAGE: Recommendations for an average sized (450kg) horse range from 15g (approx 1/3 cup) per day to one cup three times a day. “The European Medicines Agency saw fit to establish no maximum intake on nettle herb for animals”1 and there is no restriction on long term use.
DRUG INTERACTIONS: Due to a lack of hard evidence, the potential for nettle to interact with drugs is largely speculative, based on the known actions of nettle. Some caution may be required if combining nettle with anti-hypertensives, anticoagulants, Central Nervous System depressants, diuretics, insulin, and oral hypoglycaemic agents. Nettle root may have additive effects on prescribed medication for BPH, but this may be beneficial. As mentioned previously, arthritis sufferers were able to reduce drug dose whilst taking nettle. 1Wynn and Fougere, 2007.
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