Gentian - perennial or annual herb or shrubby plant with a height of 20 to 150 cm
The plant belongs to the family of gentian, which has more than 400 species. Gentian has whole opposite leaves.
It has a short, thick root with many thin cord-like roots.
Depending on the species, gentian can have a different description. Its stems can be short and straight, or, conversely, strongly elongated in height, with few or single flowers at their tops.
The gentian has a funnel-shaped or bell-shaped corolla, very rarely does the plant spread its leaves, forming a kind of plate. The fruit of the plant is a bivalve capsule, which is formed from a single nesting ovary.
Flowers gentian have a blue, purple or blue color. White or yellow flowers are very rare.
The composition of gentian
In the chemical composition of gentian contains bitter glycosides that increase intestinal motility. At the root of the plant are present bioflavonoids, about 6% of essential and fatty oils, bitterness, sucrose, pectins, gums and mucus, and the leaves contain an impressive amount of ascorbic acid. Alkaloids that are part of gentian, do not have a physiological effect on the body.
The healing properties of gentian
Gentian has a high therapeutic potential, its useful properties are invaluable in the treatment of diseases of the digestive tract and joints.
Academic medicine recommends the use of drugs made on the basis of gentian, to stimulate the appetite, improve digestion, while weakening the evacuator-motor function of the digestive tract.
Gentian can be found in many herbal teas that stimulate the appetite and improve blood circulation.
Did you know? King Gentius was the first who used a gentian to treat the plague, and therefore the plant was named after him - Gentiana. The great ancient physician Avicenna used it as a diuretic or choleretic agent, and besides that, he believed that the plant has an astringent, cleansing and thinning effect. He prescribed gentian juice for treating wounds, for nervous disorders, blockage of the vascular spleen and liver. He claimed that the bath with a decoction of the gentian will save from the bite of a scorpion and a rabid animal. Galen used gentian to treat gout, arthritis and rheumatism, and medieval healers used it to treat tuberculosis and malaria.
The plant is considered an excellent analgesic and antitussive agent. It is taken with anemia and reduced pressure. Also noted that it possesses slight sedative, antipyretic and anti-inflammatory effect.
In Japanese medicine, gentian has found its widespread use as a detoxification, antirheumatic, anthelmintic and antifebrile drugs.
The use of gentian in traditional medicine: the treatment of various diseases
Gentian in folk medicine has been used for four centuries. Herbalists use for treating not only the ground part of the gentian, but also the root, the medicinal properties of which are considered more valuable than those of its herb.
Gentian decoction is taken when you need to quickly improve your appetite, get rid of heartburn, reduce blood pressure. Also, gentian can be used to treat gastritis caused by low acidity, constipation, dyspepsia and flatulence. Gentian decoction is added to foot baths with increased sweating.
Did you know? Homeopaths use fresh roots of gentian for the manufacture of a drug called Gentiana lutea and used in the treatment of anorexia to eliminate the feeling of overcrowding in the stomach while taking small amounts of food.
Gentian is indicated for anemia, gout and arthritis, for the treatment of which there are many effective recipes of traditional medicine. Reception of gentian helps stabilize the condition of those who suffer from liver diseases, as well as the gallbladder, relieves muscle and joint pain in rheumatoid arthritis.
Large-leaved Gentian will help those men who, due to circumstances, have lost their masculine strength, as its composition contains substances that increase sexual activity.
With poor appetite
Lack of or decreased appetite can be caused by a weakened state after undergoing chemotherapy, neuropsychiatric disorders and diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. Very often, drugs that stimulate appetite, have many contraindications, which makes their reception for some patients impossible.
It is quite another thing - medicinal plants. Gentian infusions and decoctions help to improve appetite quickly and efficiently, while their intake is not accompanied by the development of undesirable consequences.
With a decrease in appetite and systematic heartburn (reflux esophagitis), accompanied by a burning sensation in the esophagus and the epidermis, will relieve unpleasant symptoms taking infusion of gentian root yellow.
To prepare the infusion, you should take a tablespoon of the roots of gentian and pour a glass of boiling water, insist drug for 2 hours. Use the tool should be on a tablespoon three times a day.
Perfectly increases the appetite Gentian decoction for its preparation it is necessary to take a tablespoon of rhizomes, pour boiling water on it and boil for 15 minutes over low heat. Let it brew for another 20 minutes, strain and take a tablespoon before meals for 30 minutes.
With increased sweating feet
Hyperhidrosis stop is able to deliver a lot of unpleasant moments to a person, ranging from the inability to establish a personal life and ending with difficulties in hiring.
The fact is that excessive sweating of the feet is very often accompanied by the appearance of an unpleasant smell, which is for many an insurmountable barrier in solving many life situations.
Hyperhidrosis can be hereditary, occur on the background of hormonal disorders or diseases of the nervous system. It can also occur on the background of the defeat of the feet with a fungal or bacterial infection, while wearing too tight, breathable shoes. 
To get rid of or reduce the manifestations of hyperhidrosis, should be done daily before bedtime. foot bath with the addition of a decoction of gentian roots and oak bark. To prepare the broth, take 5 tablespoons of the gentian root and 3 tablespoons of oak bark, pour them with a liter of boiling water and boil for 15 minutes in a water bath, then let it brew for 45 minutes.
With constipation
Most often, constipation occurs against a decrease in peristalsis or intestinal atony. In such cases, the reception of coarse plant fiber is not only ineffective, but can cause flatulence or intestinal colic.
To quickly and effectively deal with such a problem as constipation, will help tincture made from the root of the gentian. For the drug should be 50 g of medicinal raw materials pour 0.5 liters of vodka and insist 8 days. Take the tincture of twenty drops, diluted in 100 ml of water 20 minutes before a meal.
Besides, gentian is used in herbal teaswith a pronounced laxative effect. To prepare the medicine, take two tablespoons of the roots of gentian and rhubarb, pour 300 ml of alcohol or vodka over them, insist in a dark place for 10 days. Take the tincture in half a teaspoon, diluted in a small amount of water before meals in the morning and evening. 
When gastritis
Gastritis is an inflammation of the gastric mucosa. It can be accompanied by severe pain, indigestion and heartburn. Drug treatment of gastritis is very long and, as a rule, allows you to get rid of the disease only for a while.
Gentian has long been used to treat gastritis, its reception allows for a long time to forget about the exacerbations of the disease, and sometimes completely cured.
Important! Gentian is used only for the treatment of gastritis caused by low acidity, as the substances contained in it and the bitterness can provoke an exacerbation of this disease.
For this you need to cook herbal tea, consisting of equal parts of peppermint, yellow gentian root, Japanese sapphire, three-leaf watch, flax seeds and succession. All herbs must be carefully placed, then take one spoonful of the collection and pour a glass of boiling water, boil in a water bath for 10 minutes. Let the broth stand for 45 minutes, strain and take one third of a cup three times a day half an hour before meals for a month.
With rheumatism and arthritis
Arthritis and rheumatism are manifested by inflammatory lesions of the joints, a violation of their mobility and the inability to perform habitual actions, which leads to the dependence of the patient on others and his further disability.
Patients with arthritis and rheumatism constantly suffer from severe pains that are stopped by taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs that have a negative effect on the gastric mucosa and gastrointestinal tract.
Acceptance of phyto-collections allows you to get rid of pain and inflammation, but only if the disease is at the initial stage and until the articular cartilage has undergone profound changes.
To reduce the manifestations of arthritis or rheumatism, our ancestors used decoctions of gentian. To prepare the drug, 3 tablespoons of dry grass or gentian root should be poured over 700 ml of boiling water, boiled in a water bath for 15 minutes, then insisted for another two hours. Strain and take half a glass 20 minutes before meals three times a day for 30 or 45 days.
In addition, you can use a warm decoction of the gentian for compresses on the affected joints. Compress relieves pain, reduces swelling and inflammation, and also improves mobility in the affected joint. 
Harvesting and storage of medicinal raw materials from gentian
The collection of medicinal raw materials is carried out from October to November or in early spring. For the preparation of suitable specimens that have reached the age of three.
The excavated rhizomes are thoroughly cleaned from the remnants of the earth, small roots and the ground part, then they are washed well in cold water and cut into pieces. If the root is in diameter more than two centimeters, then it is also cut along.
Now the roots should be dried as quickly as possible, dryers are suitable for this purpose. Drying should be carried out at a temperature of 45 - 60 ° C.
Important! It is not recommended to dry raw materials at temperatures above 60 WITH, as it can lead to deformation and decrease in the healing properties of the roots. Properly dried roots have a light honey aroma and a very bitter taste.
Store medicinal raw materials should be in paper bags or glass jars in a cool, protected from sunlight place for a maximum of five years. 
Contraindications and side effects gentian
Even for medicinal purposes, the gentian should not be used by those who suffer from high acidity, since the bitterness contained in the plant can cause exacerbation of gastritis.
It is necessary to refrain from treating with the gentian pregnant and nursing mothers, since the substances contained in it can cause an increase in the tone of the uterus, as well as a change in the taste of milk.
Important! When taking tinctures made on the basis of gentian, you must comply with the dosage. Acceptance of tinctures in medicinal doses is absolutely safe for humans, but the use of large doses of the drug causes flushing of the skin, headaches and dizziness.
It is also better to refuse to take gentian if you suffer from high blood pressure, as taking a drug can trigger a hypertensive crisis.
Gentian is a beautiful medicinal plant, with charming flowers, leaves and horses that hide a powerful healing potential.
