Medicinal properties and contraindications of viburnum, benefits and folk recipes

Viburnum is a perennial shrub whose fruits are known for their anti-cold properties. The seeds are also used for medicinal purposes. In folk medicine, viburnum or viburnum is used. Drinks and preserves are prepared from the fruits. The seeds and juice are used in cosmetology. Viburnum has many medicinal properties and indications for use, other than colds, but there are also contraindications.

Chemical composition of viburnum

Useful substances that fruits contain:

• fructose;
• glucose;
• pyrocatechins;
• organic, fatty, acids;
• vitamins C, A, E, K, P;
• glycosides;
• flavonoids.

The berries contain pectins, which adsorb toxins, and P-active polyphenols, which strengthen blood vessels. Viburnum seeds consist of 21 percent fatty oil.

The main chemical elements contained in viburnum berries:

• iron;
• calcium;
• zinc;
• molybdenum;
• potassium;
• manganese;
• sodium;
• magnesium;
• phosphorus.

Viburnum contains the rare element vanadium. It belongs to metals. In the human body, vanadium is involved in metabolism and energy production, regulates the functioning of the nervous system, and is part of bone tissue. The substance helps lower cholesterol, so it is useful for atherosclerosis.

Viburnum is a well-known medicine for colds. One berry fulfills the daily requirement of vitamin C for a child, and a tablespoon for an adult. The seeds of viburnum berries are rich in antioxidants and substances that stabilize heart function. They are dried, fried, ground and brewed like coffee.

Useful and healing properties

Benefits of viburnum berries for the body:

• increase immunity;
• have a healing effect on the skin and mucous membranes;
• slow down the inflammatory process;
• cleanse of toxins;
• strengthen the walls of blood vessels;
• reduce blood pressure;
• influence hemostasis, accelerate blood clotting;
• help remove mucus from dry coughs;
• prevent stagnation of bile.

Berry juice prevents the formation of malignant tumors in the stomach and intestines, when consumed regularly, it reduces spasms during periodic female pain, and regulates the menstrual cycle.

Tea helps cope with neurosis, headaches and insomnia. Gargling with viburnum decoction relieves sore throat due to sore throat and pharyngitis.

What diseases will it help cope with?

Eating canned and raw viburnum berries strengthens the body for the following diseases:

• gastritis with low acidity;
• intestinal polyposis;
• eczema;
• furunculosis;
• acne;
• bronchial asthma;
• pneumonia;
• hypertension;
• anemia.

Drinking the decoction is useful for diarrhea, dropsy, and liver diseases. A small amount of viburnum berries can be eaten for diabetes. The healthy berry contains easily digestible pectin, stimulates insulin production and replenishes vitamin deficiencies.

Traditional medicine recipes

Drinks made from viburnum berries have a healing effect when consumed over a long period of time. It is recommended to drink them for a course of one to three months.

Viburnum juice with honey for hypertension

For preparation you will need:

• viburnum berries - 1 kilogram;
• honey - 250 grams;
• water - 200 milliliters.

Cooking method:

• wash the berries, remove the stems;
• squeeze out the juice by grinding through a sieve or in a juicer;
• transfer the wort into a saucepan and add water;
• boil;
• boil for 10 minutes;
• strain the broth and pour into the squeezed juice;
• After cooling, add honey and stir.

Two tablespoons of the drink are taken twice a day, before lunch and dinner. If the pressure is constantly high, add the morning dose before breakfast.

Kvass from viburnum and beets for existing cardiovascular problems

Compound:

• viburnum berries - 1 kilogram;
• beets - 1 kilogram;
• sugar - 1 glass;
• water - 3 liters.

How to cook:

• grate the beets on a coarse grater into the pan;
• boil in a liter of water and simmer until a decoction is obtained;
• Pour washed viburnum with hot water and boil for 15 minutes;
• filter the beetroot and viburnum decoctions, combine;
• add sugar and boil.

The drink can be drunk after cooling. Sugar can be replaced with honey. Viburnum-beet kvass, as an additional remedy to drug therapy, reduces the risk of stroke and heart attack.

Tea with viburnum for colds

To prepare a healing drink, you will need 200 grams of fresh washed viburnum berries. Brewing method:

• rinse the berries;
• knead in a ceramic bowl, pour boiling water over it;
• leave for 10 minutes;
• strain;
• put the liquid on the fire and boil.

The tea comes out with a slight sourness. For a rich taste, you can add honey and lemon.

Honey with viburnum for cough and bronchitis

To prepare you will need:

• honey - 3 tablespoons;
• viburnum fruits - 250 grams;
• water - 1 liter.

Cooking steps:

• to boil water;
• add berries and boil for 10 minutes;
• drain the broth through a sieve;
• add honey

Take half a glass of the drink three times a day.

As a cosmetic

An infusion of viburnum berries clears the face of freckles. Fruit extract and seed oil have a rejuvenating and brightening effect on the skin, removing age spots. Viburnum ice is a remedy against the first wrinkles. The juice is frozen into cubes and wiped on the face every morning. After the procedure, you need to wait 10 minutes and then wash your face. As a result, the skin becomes fresh and tightened.

Grinded berries and seeds form the basis of the masks. Additional ingredients turn viburnum puree into a universal cosmetic product:

• against wrinkles - with egg yolk and banana puree, keep for 40 minutes and rinse with warm water;
• for dry skin - with kelp and shea butter, apply to a steamed face and rinse after 30 minutes. Nourishing mask eliminates dryness in 10 days;
• for oily skin - mix viburnum juice with St. John's wort oil and red clay, hold for 20 minutes and rinse with nettle decoction. In 10-14 days, the skin becomes matte and the oval of the face is tightened;
• against rosacea - berries with seeds, but without peel, mixed with honey and heated avocado oil, applied to the face, except for the area around the eyes and lips, after 20 minutes, wiped off with a cotton pad;
• against expression lines and deep wrinkles - with rice starch or crushed rice grains, fat sour cream and a pharmaceutical oil solution of tocopherol. The mixture is applied to the face for 30 minutes;
• for moisturizing - warm mashed potatoes with viburnum juice, glycerin and rose essential oil are applied for 40 minutes;
• tonic - a mixture of juice, rich sour cream, crushed oatmeal and apricot oil is applied to the face and washed off after 40 minutes.

A simple remedy against pigmentation is viburnum juice. It is applied with a cotton swab to the problem area and washed off after 10 minutes. With regular use, the skin brightens.

How to pick berries and store them

Viburnum fruits are harvested after the first frost, when they become sweet. The bunches are plucked or cut off entirely. The skin of the berries does not tear as long as they remain on the petioles. But if you pick the berries one by one, the skin bursts and the juice flows out. The collected berries are hung in bunches in the attic or dried in a dryer at a temperature of 70 degrees. The dried fruit is separated from the stalks and added to black tea.

There are also ways to preserve and deliciously prepare fresh viburnum.

Freezing

Before freezing, whole berries are not washed, but only freed from cuttings. Excess moisture leads to mold formation. The fruits are laid out on a flat plate in one layer and placed in the freezer. After an hour, the berries are removed, packaged in vacuum bags and placed in the freezer. It is better to divide a large volume into small portions and put them in separate small boxes. Berries cannot be frozen twice, as defrosting them again will destroy the beneficial substances.

Viburnum can be frozen immediately in bags at temperatures from 18 to 23 degrees below zero. The shelf life of the product when blast frozen is 8-12 months. At a temperature of -8...0 degrees, viburnum is stored for 2-4 months. Frozen berries can be added to tea, used in making jelly and pie filling.

Canned juice

Before cooking, wash the viburnum and leave it in a colander to drain the water.

The juice is prepared according to the usual recipe:

• squeeze with a juicer or through two layers of gauze;
• boil the cake for ten minutes and filter;
• Juice and sugar are added to the broth and heated at a temperature of +85 degrees.

Hot juice is poured into sterilized jars and sealed. Before use it is diluted with water.

Viburnum, mashed with sugar

Ingredients:

• viburnum fresh fruits - 300 grams;
• sugar - 60 grams.

Cooking method:

• sprinkle washed and dried berries without cuttings with sugar;
• grind in a meat grinder or chop in a food processor with a knife attachment.

The finished mass is stored in the freezer in plastic containers, and can also be preserved: placed in sterilized jars, pasteurized in a pan of boiling water and rolled up.

Candied viburnum is eaten for dessert, dissolved in boiling water or added to black tea.

In what cases is it better to refuse berries?

Contraindications to treatment with folk remedies based on viburnum:

• hypotension;
• increased stomach acidity;
• acute kidney disease;
• varicose veins;
• thrombophlebitis;
• increased blood clotting;
• individual sensitivity.

Harmful red tart berries are noted during pregnancy. The use of infusions and juice increases the tone of the uterine walls, which can lead to premature birth. An increase in hemoglobin due to excessive consumption of red berries also negatively affects the development of the fetus. Viburnum is contraindicated during breastfeeding due to the risk of allergies in the baby.