Artemisia is a species of Artemisia, native to temperate regions of Eurasia and northern Africa. It is grown as an ornamental plant and is used as an ingredient in the spirit absinthe as well as some other alcoholic drinks.
The plant can easily be cultivated in dry soil. It should be planted under bright exposure in fertile, mid-weight soil. It prefers soil rich in nitrogen. It can be propagated by ripened cuttings taken in spring or autumn in temperate climates, or by seeds in nursery beds. Artemisia absinthium also self-seeds generously. It is naturalized in some areas away from its native range, including much of North America and Kashmir Valley of India.
This plant and its cultivars 'Lamb rook Mist' and 'Lamb rook Silver' have gained the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit.
The herb long has been used in herbal remedies to rid the body of pin worms, roundworms, and other parasites. And if you've got one, chances are, you're eager to see it go. However, it can also be used to enhance digestion for the worm-free.
Before we commence our study into its medicinal properties, let me tell you that Essential Oil of Wormwood is a potent poison due to presence of high concentration of thujone in it. Precisely, it is a neurotoxin. So, care should be taken while using it for medicinal purposes and prolonged use should be avoided.
Benefit & Uses: It is an ingredient in the spirit absinthe and is used for flavoring in some other spirits and wines, including bitters, vermouth and pelinkovac. In the middle Ages, it was used to spice mead. In 18th century England, wormwood was sometimes used instead of hops in beer.
The most common use for this bitter herb is to stimulate the digestive system. A bitter taste in the mouth triggers release of bile from the gallbladder and other secretions from intestinal glands, which enables us to digest food.
Digestion or insufficient stomach acid may benefit from taking wormwood preparations before meals. Wormwood, however, may cause diarrhea. Its secretion-stimulating qualities make the intestines empty quickly. Because wormwood also contains a substance that is toxic if consumed for a long time.
Wormwood's bitter substances, called absinthian, have also been used to brew beer and distill alcohol. Absinthe, an old French liqueur prepared from wormwood, is now illegal because absinthol, a volatile oil the herb contains, has been found to cause nerve depression, mental impairment, and loss of reproductive function when used for a long time.
Wormwood also lent its flavor and its name to vermouth. The German word for wormwood is "wermuth," which is the source of the modern word vermouth.
It has promotes discharge of bile from liver into the stomach and stimulates other discharges too. This helps in two ways. Bile being alkaline or basic in nature, it helps in the decomposition or breaking down of food and thereby facilitates digestion. And it helps neutralize the excess acids in the stomach, thereby giving relief from problems like acidity, ulcers caused due to prolonged acidity and acidosis.
It stimulates production and secretion of bile and other digestive juices into the stomach. This facilitates digestion and hence this oil can be used for digestive purposes, but in very-very low doses.
It stimulates menstrual discharges and help open obstructed menstruation. This is very beneficial from the point of view of health since obstructed menstruation can give rise to some critical health problems in women, including uterine tumors and cancer. Wormwood Essential Oil helps get rid of problems like headache, abdominal cramps and ache, nausea, fatigue, lack of appetite etc. and make periods regular.
The toxic property of certain components like alpha thujone and beta thujone of Wormwood Essential Oil helps fight infections as they kill microbes and inhibit their growth. They are also fatal for the virus and bacteria which give fevers thereby aid reduce fever, making this oil a febrifuge.