Micah Stanley
Desmodium (Desmodium adscendens) — also known as beggar weed — is a plant native to Africa and South America. In folk medicine there, it has been used for a wide variety of ailments for many years. Scientific studies confirm that the plant is particularly active in terms of liver protection. So Desmodium can protect the liver from damage caused by chemicals or alcohol. Since Desmodium also has a relaxing effect on the bronchi, the medicinal plant can also be used for asthma and bronchitis
Desmodium adscendens protects the liver and helps with asthma
Desmodium adscendens is a perennial herb of the Paphiaceae family. It prefers to thrive in the tropical regions of Africa, South America, Asia, Australia, and Oceania. Desmodium has been used as a medicinal plant for centuries, particularly in West Africa (Ivory Coast, Congo, Senegal, and Ghana) and in the rainforests of Peru and Brazil.
There, the plant is still an integral part of folk medicine today – especially for those people who have no access to medical care.
Desmodium is particularly appreciated for its hepatoprotective effect, which means that the plant protects the liver. But Desmodium is also a good choice for asthma and bronchitis – as researchers wrote in June 2011 in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology.
Desmodium adscendens in folk medicine
A decoction made from the leaves and stems was and is used in traditional medicine in Africa and South America for a wide variety of ailments – from asthma, bronchitis, and blocked sinuses to gonorrhea (gonorrhea), hepatitis, muscle cramps, joint pain, and back pain and allergies symptoms and eczema.
In Belize, Desmodium adscendens is even called Strong Back (strong back), which could indicate its effect on back pain.
Desmodium adscendens: The Effects
Studies are available from Africa and South America, but also from France, England, and Canada. One certifies the plant
- a bronchodilator effect,
- the ability to normalize elevated liver values,
- an anti-histamine effect (which is particularly helpful for allergy sufferers) and
- a relaxing effect on smooth muscles.
The smooth muscles line the hollow organs in particular, such as the stomach, intestines, bladder, uterus, bronchi, and even the blood vessels. If the muscles in these organs contract, pain can occur, such as stomach cramps, abdominal pain, or abdominal cramps during menstruation. If the muscles in the bronchi contract, this promotes an asthma attack.
Drugs such as Desmodium adscendens, which are suitable for relaxing these muscles, have an antispasmodic and pain-relieving effect. No wonder desmodium leaves are given in traditional Brazilian medicine for diarrheal diseases, generally for pain and excessive urination, e.g. B. in cystitis, when the bladder cramps.
Active ingredients in Desmodium
As in every top-class medicinal plant, Desmodium adscendens contains many different active ingredients. The main active ingredient is said to be D-pinitol. Using the usual liver values that are usually used to assess liver damage (AST (formerly GOT), ALT (formerly GPT) and AP (alkaline phosphatase)), the liver-protective effect of both isolated D-pinitol and a desmodium plant extract. It turned out that D-pinitol is definitely one of those substances that have such a positive effect on the liver.
According to studies from Ghana and Nigeria, other active substances are the flavonoid vitexin and its derivatives vitexin-2”-xylosid and isovitexin, as well as triterpenes, saponins, amines, and indole alkaloids (e.g. tryptamine).
Desmodium adscendens: specialist in the liver
In any case, the special application area of Desmodium adscendens is the liver. No matter what the liver is lacking, Desmodium can be used as a support to help the liver regenerate and heal and ultimately improve liver function. It is arguably its impressive effects on the liver that led to Desmodium adscendens being discovered by modern medicine.
It was 1960 when two French doctors were working on a humanitarian project in Africa and reportedly witnessed Desmodium curing hepatitis in a matter of weeks. Desmodium has therefore been sold in France for many years as a dietary supplement with a liver-protective effect, while the medicinal plant has only been introduced to other European countries for a few years.
For many liver diseases – whether caused by viruses, chemicals, or toxins such as alcohol or drugs or pharmaceuticals – Desmodium is therefore the drug of choice. Desmodium is an effective adjunctive therapy for symptoms of hepatitis (jaundice, headache, fatigue, loss of appetite), as the symptoms improve in a short time.
Studies in England, France, and Canada showed that Desmodium can not only treat liver dysfunction but also protect the liver during therapy with many side effects, such as chemotherapy. At the same time, the plant seems to protect and strengthen the immune system.
For the liver: avoid unhealthy foods and take liver medicinal plants
The liver is an incredible organ. It not only helps our entire organism to recover and regenerate again and again. She herself also has strong regenerative power. Even if only 25 percent of the liver tissue is still functional, this miraculous organ can keep its human body healthy and carry out all necessary liver tasks.
For example, the liver is involved in digestion together with the gallbladder. If the liver is not working properly in this area, there is a feeling of fullness and loss of appetite. Other typical liver tasks include i.a. detoxification, regulation of the glucose balance, protein formation, storage of nutrients and vital substances, cholesterol production, regulation of the hormone balance, and over 500 more tasks.
Poor diet, alcohol abuse, and excessive sugar consumption damage the liver and leave it in a pitiable condition. Due to its great ability to regenerate, the liver can be supported with just a few measures so that it can recover.
From a naturopathic point of view, these measures primarily include two things:
- Liver-damaging habits are given up immediately so that the liver is relieved immediately (no alcohol, no sugar, no finished products, little fat, less meat, reduce stress, instead eat foods rich in vital substances, take more bitter substances, cleanse the intestines, only take the medication that is really necessary, etc .).
- Medicinal plants have been used that help in the regeneration of liver cells and at the same time protect the liver from further damage. In addition to the well-known liver plants (milk thistle, dandelion, and artichoke leaves), this also includes Desmodium adscendens.
Desmodium adscendens together with other liver medicinal plants in the liver cleanse
If you would like to take Desmodium as part of a liver cleanse, i.e. together with other measures that benefit the liver and promote its regeneration and performance, then you could proceed as follows, for example:
You can perform the liver cleanse described here: The Holistic Liver Cleanse and drink Desmodium tea instead of the tea specified. How this tea is prepared, read below under “Desmodium adscendens: tea and capsules – the application”.
If you want to take desmodium extract capsules, you can take them e.g. B. combined with milk thistle capsules and/or artichoke extract capsules (or artichoke juice) over a period of two to four weeks and thus give your liver support as a cure.
Desmodium adscendens: Specialist in the lungs and airways
Studies showed that Desmodium adscendens can also inhibit allergic (histamine-related) reactions (at least in guinea pigs) and is therefore used for allergy, e.g. B. could be interesting in allergic asthma.
In related tests, Desmodium’s bronchial-relaxing effect was very rapid—within a minute or two—confirming the traditional use of the plant for asthma. In Ghana, for example, the plant is one of the first measures prescribed for acute asthma attacks. Even the risk of anaphylactic shock can be reduced with the help of Desmodium.
Desmodium adscendens also help to clear the paranasal sinuses and free the airways from blockages, to end stubborn coughing, reduce heavy congestion, and even provide relief from snoring, which usually only occurs when the airways are congested.
Due to all these positive effects on the respiratory tract, the medicinal plant can be used not only for influenza infections with a cold and cough but also for serious lung diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and emphysema.
Desmodium adscendens: tea and capsules – the application
You can buy desmodium online, in tea shops or herbal shops, for example, dried (to make tea), as a tincture, or as an extract in capsule form. The latter simplifies the intake enormously, since the active ingredients can be taken in light doses and in higher concentrations.
For example, if it is an extract with a 2:1 ratio, then 200 grams of plants were used to make 100 grams of extract.
If a capsule with such an extract contains 250 mg of desmodium extract, then you are taking as many active ingredients per capsule as you would with 500 mg of the plant.
In liver diseases – so it is said – 6 to 10 grams of the dried plant (finely powdered or crushed) should be infused with one liter of hot water. After 10 minutes you can pour off the tea or simply wait until the powder has fallen to the ground and then drink the liquid. You can also drink some of the powder. This tea is drunk for 2 to 4 weeks for acute problems. For chronic problems, 6 to 8 weeks.
Before, during, and after conventional medical therapy, you can always drink Desmodium tea (6 g of the dried plant per liter of water) to protect the liver.
For fatty liver, prepare the tea from 10 g of the dried plant and drink it daily for 1 to 3 months. Those who suffer from allergies only take 5 g a day and use it to prepare the tea described.
Drink your daily amount of Desmodium tea in two to three portions throughout the day. If you opt for capsules, then follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for use, which are listed on the package.
Desmodium adscendens: Important information
In order to increase Desmodium’s regenerative abilities on the liver, physiotherapists recommend combining the plant with other medicinal plants as part of a liver regeneration cure (or even intestinal cleansing). B. with milk thistle or an artichoke extract (e.g. as described above under “Desmodium adscendens together with other liver medicinal plants in the liver cleanse”).
Since Desmodium adscendens has a mild laxative effect, the recommended doses should be followed. Sensitive people start with small doses and thus test their individual tolerance.
If the dose is too high, people who are sensitive to migraines may get headaches.
Desmodium is not licensed as a medicinal product. It is just a medicinal plant that has been used in folk medicine in South America and Africa for thousands of years, for which there are some animal and cell studies, individual case reports, and numerous field reports. However, large-scale clinical studies are still lacking. If you would like to take Desmodium preparations, it is of course best to discuss this – as always – with your doctor or naturopath who is experienced in herbal medicine.
