Nettle

Urtica dioica

Its erect stalk, two to three feet in height, bears dark green leaves with serrated margins and small, inconspicuous flowers. Botanists now designate it Urtica dioica L. and place it in the family Urticaceae. The American material differs from the typical European Urtica dioica subspecies dioica primarily in that it has male and female flowers on the same plant. Some botanists treat the varieties of U. dioica subspecies gracilis as separate species. The four Urtica species (with two subspecies and six varieties) that occur in North America have stinging hairs. (After accidental contact with it, people usually refer to the nettle by various uncomplimentary titles.)

The entire plant, collected just before flowering, has had a lengthy reputation in folk medicine as a specific for asthma. Nettle has also been given as an expectorant, antispasmodic, diuretic, astringent, and tonic. Applying nettle to the scalp, especially in the form of the fresh juice, was said to stimulate hair growth. Cases of chronic rheumatism have been treated by placing nettle leaves directly on the afflicted area. Roman soldiers, facing the inhospitable climate in Britain, reportedly used the same irritation produced by nettle leaves to keep their legs warm. The tender tops of young, first growth nettles are believed especially palatable when cooked; Gibbons gives a number of recipes that use them, including nettle pudding and nettle beer.

Numerous analyses of nettle have revealed the presence of more than twenty different chemical constituents; few of them would provide any pronounced therapeutic activity from the plant when taken internally. Although the local irritation produced by the stinging hairs is real enough, there is just no evidence to show that nettle is effective in treating rheumatism or growing hair on bald heads. The principles in the hairs thought to be responsible for this irritant action include histamine, acetylcholine, and 5-hydroxytryptamine. However, studies on plants of the closely related, but more toxic, genus Laportea have cast doubt on this, and the identity of the compound responsible for the pain from contact with nettle remains to be established.

Nettle is rich in chlorophyll and serves as a readily available commercial source of that pigment. Young nettle shoots are edible when cooked and contain approximately the same amounts of carotene (provitamin A) and vitamin C as spinach or other similar greens. The diuretic properties of nettle leaf have long been recognized, and several pharmaceutical preparations incorporating it are currently marketed in Europe for this purpose. In addition, an extract of nettle root has become quite popular there in recent years for the treatment of urinary retention brought on by benign prostatic hypertrophy (enlargement of the prostate gland not due to cancer). Some clinical evidence attests to its effectiveness, including eight open and observational studies and two placebo-controlled, double-blind studies. Therefore, German health authorities now allow it to be used for this condition. Additional studies are needed to verify this or any other traditional medical use of nettle.

Nettles are highly nutritious, high in vitamins and minerals, particularly iron, silica and potassium, and have been used for centuries as a nourishing tonic for weakness and debility, convalescence and anemia. Through their stimulating action on the bladder and kidneys, nettles help to cleanse the body of toxins and wastes. Nettles relieve fluid retention, bladder infections, stones and gravel. By aiding excretion of uric acid they make an excellent remedy for gout and arthritis as well as skin problems.

Their astringent action helps check bleeding. An infusion, tincture or fresh juice of nettle can be applied externally to cuts and wounds, hemorrhoids, to nostrils for nose- bleeds, and to soothe and heal burns and scalds. They have been used to stem heavy periods, and  interestingly to bring on delayed or absent periods. As a galactagogue they stimulate milk production; they can also make a good restorative remedy during the menopause.
In the respiratory system nettles help clear catarrhal congestion and relieve allergies such as hay fever and asthma. In the digestive tract  nettles help remedy diarrhea, wind,  inflammation and ulceration. They have been found to reduce blood sugar and a tincture of the seeds is said to raise thyroid function and reduce goitre.
Nettle juice applied to the skin relieves bites and stings, including nettle sting. The stinging hairs of the fresh nettle contain formic acid and histamine and have been used traditionally to stimulate the circulation and relieve arthritis and rheumatism.

Although the growing nettle stings externally, it has no such effect when it has been subjected to heat, either in cooking or when made into an infusion. Ironically, it is used in skin complaints as an antiallergenic, and can be used to treat eczema and related allergies when taken internally. Nettle is also antihemorrhagic, and can be used as an astringent to stop excessive bleeding, either from wounds, or in the reproductive system to diminish heavy bleeding. The iron and vitamin C content make it an excellent tonic for anemia and lack of iron. It was used, along with the other first herbs of spring, as a spring tonic. The root has been used to treat enlarged prostate.

Other names

• Common Nettle
• Common Stinging Nettle
• Great Nettle
• Great Stinging Nettle
• Hsieh-tzu-ts'ao
• Stinging Nettle

Parts used

Aerial parts, root.

Uses

Cleansing - Nettle's key use is as a cleansing, detoxifying herb. Nettle has a diuretic action, possibly due to its flavonoids and high potassium content, and increases urine production and the elimination of waste products. Nettle helps many skin conditions for example, childhood eczema and arthritic problems, especially when poor kidney function and fluid retention are features.
Astringent - Nettle slows or stops bleeding from wounds and nosebleeds, and is good for heavy menstrual bleeding.
Allergies - Nettle is antiallergenic. Nettle treats hay fever, asthma, itchy skin conditions, and insect bites. The juice can be used to treat nettle stings.
Additional uses - The leaves help anemia and improve breast-milk production. The root is now used to treat enlarged prostate.
Nettle is also used to treat malabsorption syndrome, and teeth grinding (bruxism).

HOMEOPATHY
Stinging nettles have been used medicinally throughout history. The 16th-century herbalist John Gerard used the plant as an antidote to poisoning and curiously, the juice of the nettle provides an excellent antidote for its own sting. This common weed is used in herbalism, to treat hemorrhoids, stomach problems, diabetes, and nosebleeds. Hives  (urticaria), which looks very similar to nettle rash, is treated with the homeopathic remedy.
This remedy, taken either internally or applied as an ointment externally, is mainly used for skin problems, especially if the skin is burning and stinging due to an allergic reaction. Urtica is an excellent remedy for skin rashes, for example, hives (urticaria) caused in particular by insect stings, and by eating shellfish, such as shrimp. Burns, where the skin is hot and blistered, and eczema, especially when the skin is itchy or blotchy, are both helped by this remedy. Skin eruptions that are suppressed by steroid ointments, for example, can lead to diarrhea, which is eased by this remedy.
Urtica is also an effective remedy for rheumatism and is given for acute gout, neuritis (nerve inflammation), and neuralgia.
In women, Urtica is a remedy for vulval itching and scanty breast milk in lactating mothers.
It is also good for burning urine that causes itching and may be associated with cystitis.

Habitat & cultivation

Nettle grows in temperate regions throughout the northern hemisphere, southern Africa, the Andes, and Australia. Young shoots are picked in spring for use as a tonic and a vegetable. Aerial parts and leaves are picked in summer when the plant is in flower. The root is harvested in autumn.

Research

Root - Research into nettle root in the US, Germany, and Japan has established its value as a medicine for benign prostate hypertrophy (enlargement).

Constituents

Nettle contains histamine, formic acid, acetylcholine, serotonin, glucoquinones, many minerals (inc. silica), vitamins A, B, C, tannins.

How much to take

Many people use two to three 300 mg nettle leaf capsules or tablets, or a 2-4 ml tincture three times per day during allergy season to help prevent and treat hay fever. For BPH, many people use 240 mg per day of the root extract in capsules or tablets. Many products for BPH will combine nettle root with saw palmetto or pygeum extracts.

Side effects

Allergic reactions to nettle are rare. However, when contact is made with the skin, fresh nettles can cause a rash.

Applications

AERIAL PARTS:

INFUSION - Take to stimulate the circulation and to cleanse the system in arthritis, rheumatism, gout, and eczema. Also increases milk flow in nursing mothers. The fresh shoots make a revitalizing spring tonic.

TINCTURE - Used in combinations for arthritic disorders, skin problems, and heavy uterine bleeding.

COMPRESS - Soak a pad in the tincture, and apply to painful arthritic joints, gout, neuralgia, sprains, tendinitis, and sciatica.

OINTMENT - Apply to hemorrhoids.

WASH - Apply to burns, insect bites, and wounds.

JUICE - Liquidize the whole fresh plant to make a good tonic for debilitated conditions and anemia, and to soothe nettle stings. Prescribed for cardiac insufficiency with edema.

POWDER - The powdered leaves are inhaled as snuff for nosebleeds.

ROOT:

HAIR RINSE - Use the decoction as a rinse for dandruff, falling hair, and as a general conditioner.

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