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Golden
Seal Root
(hydrastis
canadensis)
COMMON NAMES: Eye balm, eye root, ground raspberry, Indian plant, jaundice root, orangeroot, turmeric root, yellow puccoon, yellow root.
MEDICINAL PART: Rootstalk.
DESCRIPTION: Goldenseal is a small, perennial plant, usually cultivated but also found wild in rich, shady woods and damp meadows from Connecticut to Minnesota and southward. A thick, knotty, yellow rootstock sends up a hairy stem, about a foot high, with two palmately five-lobed, serrate leaves near the top. The stem is topped by a small, solitary, patulous flower whose greenish-white sepals fall away when the flower opens. The fruit resembles a raspberry and consists of fused, two-seeded drupes.
PROPERTIES AND USES: Ant periodic, antiseptic, astringent, diuretic, laxative, tonic. Goldenseal has been a popular remedy mucous membranes and can be used for all catarrhal conditions. The infusion makes a good vaginal douche and an antiseptic mouthwash. Apply the tea with a toothbrush for sore gums or pyorrhea. Use it also as an external wash for skin diseases, sores, erysipelas, or ringworm (sprinkle powdered rootstock on after washing with tea). Snuff the powder up the nostrils for nasal congestion or catarrh. Goldenseal also has been popular for home use as a laxative and for stomach ailments. Small doses taken frequently will help relieve nausea with boric acid (see below).
It is an excellent remedy for colds, la grippe, and all kinds of stomach and liver problems. It exerts a special influence on all the mucous membranes and tissues with which it comes in contact. For open sores inflammation, eczema, ringworm, erysipelas, or any skin disease, golden seal excels.
PREPARATION AND DOSAGE:
Infusion: Add 1 tsp. powdered rootstalk to 1 pint boiling-hot water; let stand until cold. Take 1 to 2 tsp. three to six times a day.
Eyewash: Add 1 tsp. rootstalk and 1 tsp boric acid to 1 pint boiling-hot water; stir, let cool, and pour off the liquid. Add 1 tsp. of the liquid to 1/2 cup water to make an eyewash.
