Nightshade black

The annual herb nightshade has more than nine hundred species, which include both crops (potatoes, tomato, eggplant) and dosage forms (for example, black nightshade).

Black nightshade is found throughout the countries of Eurasia, and in Russia it grows almost everywhere. In fact, nightshade is considered a weed that can be seen in fields, along roadsides, on wastelands, in coastal zones of water bodies, but at the same time very useful.

As a rule, black nightshade does not exceed a meter in height. The plant is characterized by an erect stem and heart-shaped leaves with cuttings. The plant blooms with not very large white flowers, which resemble asterisks in appearance, from July to August. After a month (August-September), black fruits are formed, about the size of a medium pea.

The useful properties of black nightshade have been known to mankind since the time of Hippocrates, but not many people know that the mature fruits of this plant can be eaten. For example, in Siberia and the Urals they are used as a filling, adding them to homemade baked goods. Siberians often make black jam from solen berries and have seen it. In the Caucasus cuisine, there are recipes that also use black nightshade leaves.

Benefits of black nightshade

Black nightshade refers to plants with a wide medicinal spectrum of action. For this, from July to September, it is customary to harvest the leaves and grass of nightshade, and from August to October - its mature fruits. The benefits of black nightshade for human health are due to its composition, which, along with coloring and tannins, contains carotene, organic acids and sugars.

It should be said that the benefits of black nightshade closely border on its harm, since the plant also contains poisonous natural compounds: the bitter glycoside dulcamarin, glycoalkaloids - solanine, solacein and solanein. But in fully ripened fruits, solanine is almost completely destroyed.

Black nightshade fruits are characterized by the presence of choleretic, antipyretic, anti-inflammatory, exhalating and anti-rheumatic properties. The use of berries can have a beneficial effect on the human body with cacaterosclerosis and hypertension, diseases of the genitourinary tract and bladder, skin diseases. Black nightshade acts calming on the nervous system, and also relieves pain of different origins.

Harms of black nightshade

As mentioned above, the harm of black nightshade (in particular its fruits) lies in the content of a strong poison - corned beef, from which there is almost no trace when the berries are fully ripe. However, the mature nightshade is black, as well as the leaves of the plant must be used extremely carefully.

In addition to the individual intolerance of the components in the plant, the likely negative consequences of the use of drugs based on it are obvious for children, pregnant and breastfeeding women.