| Common Names | Autumn Mandrake, Mandrake, Mediterranean Mandrake |
|---|---|
| Description | |
| Locations | Epirus (cultivated not wild species) |
| Clinical Summary | |
| Contraindications | The whole plant is poisonous, narcotic and hallucinogen. Its use is not recommended as it may cause skin redness, dry mouth, tachycardia, arrhythmia and pupil dilation. |
| Active Substance | Alkaloids (hyoscyamine, scopolamine, atropine, hyoscine, melatonin, b-sitosterol, b-methylesculetin) |
| Active Substance Plant Part | Flowers leaves |
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| Features Description | Atropa Mandragora is an annual, herbaceous plant growing from 10 to 25cm, with large, oval, wavy leaves and cone-shaped, green, violet, purple or red flowers. The fruits are yellow berries, which look like small apples. It has a characteristic large (up to 1m), fleshy root, which is often compared with anthropomorphic statue and a lot of traditions and legends are created from it. The flowering and the harvesting take place from March to April, while the fruiting happens from July to August. |
| Method Administration | Nowadays the plant is not used in medicine. In folk medicine it is administered in the form of herbal tea (a spoon of dried herb in a cup of boiled for 10min, up to three times a day). It is applied externally to the skin in the form of poultice made from the fresh plant, while in ancient Greece the leaves were chewed or smoked for their hallucinogenic properties.Warning: The use of herb preparations is not recommended without seeking advice from your physician or pharmacist. The substances they contain may interact with the subscribed drugs that the patient already takes, thus eliminating their therapeutic efficacy or inducing toxicity. They may also burden further weakened vital functions of the body thus exposing the patient to increased morbidity and life threatened conditions. |
| Pharmacological Info | The root has laxative, emetic, hallucinogenic and narcotic properties. Nowadays, the plant is rarely used in medicine, due to its high content in toxic alkaloids. In recommended dosage it can be used with caution against travel sickness, as well as anesthetic before surgeries. In folk medicine root's juice may be applied externally to the skin to relieve rheumatic pain, ulcers and inflammation, while its oral administration is recommended for the treatment of depression, convulsion and mania. Finally, the root is classified as analgesic, in the same category with cocaine's leaves, and the Greek Anaesthesiology Company still uses Mandragora as its emblem. |
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| References | https://60gr.wordpress.com/%CE%BC%CE%B1%CE%BD%CE%B4%CF%81%CE%B1%CE%B3%CF%8C%CF%81%CE%B1%CF%82-mandragora-autumnalis-%CE%AD%CE%BD%CE%B1-%CE%B1%CE%BD%CE%B8%CF%81%CF%89%CF%80%CF%8C%CE%BC%CE%BF%CF%81%CF%86%CE%BF-%CE%B4%CE%B7/ http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/ingredientmono-1021-european%20mandrake.aspx?activeingredientid=1021&activeingredientname=european%20mandrake http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Mandragora+officinarum http://entheology.com/plants/mandragora-officinarum-mandrake/ https://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/m/mandra10.html |
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