Knowing how to use herbal remedies is an important prepping skill, but you also need to learn about an herb’s pros and cons so you can use it safely and properly.
Jimsonweed (Datura stramonium) is a plant that is poisonous to cattle. It may also have adverse effects on humans, but when used properly, it has some medicinal applications that may be useful when SHTF.
Note that you should never ingest it because it’s not supposed to be used internally. If you accidentally or purposefully ingest jimsonweed, you may experience awful hallucinations.
While many of the conditions jimsonweed helps treat can be managed with other herbs that are safer to use, you may not have many choices when SHTF so learning how to use it could be useful.
How to use jimsonweed
Inhaling a puff or two of jimsonweed can help ease asthma symptoms as the herb helps relax the muscles. The smoke also dries up the hypersecretions of membranes.
Note that dryness of the throat and mouth means that you have inhaled too much jimsonweed.
Jimsonweed seeds are smoked with tobacco as a narcotic and anodyne. The herb is generally used in the form of an extract and prepared by boiling the seeds in water or macerating them in alcohol. The extract is given as pills to relieve cough caused by spasmodic bronchial asthma, whooping cough and spasm of the bladder.
A tincture is considered a better cough remedy than opium, but it should be used with extreme care because if overused, the tincture can become a strong narcotic poison.
Since the function of jimsonweed is almost completely local, you don’t need to inhale too much because it may get into your bloodstream. Note that frequent use of jimsonweed decreases its effect.
How to harvest, prepare and use jimsonweed
To harvest jimsonweed, collect the leaves and flowers.
Jimsonweed infusion
To make a jimsonweed infusion, add a handful of fresh or dried leaves to a large pot of boiling water. The infusion is only for external use in a bath.
Jimsonweed liniment
To make jimsonweed liniment, add one cup of chopped leaves and one tablespoon of cayenne pepper to one quart of rubbing alcohol. Let the mixture steep for one week, shaking daily until ready to use.
Jimsonweed poultice
To make a jimsonweed poultice, use the fresh plant as it is strongest. Apply the poultice to painful joints.
Jimsonweed powder
Make jimsonweed powder by grinding the dry leaves and flowers until you have a fine powder.
Jimsonweed salve
To make jimsonweed salve, heat one part of the plant in petroleum jelly (e.g., Vaseline), lard or lanolin (hydrous) over low temperature for one hour.
You can also grind jimsonweed seeds to a powder and mix the powder with tallow. Let the mixture cool before use.
Jimsonweed smoke
To use jimsonweed smoke, sprinkle the dry powder onto the flame of a cigarette lighter several times and inhale.
Modern uses of jimsonweed
Below are some of the modern uses of jimsonweed:
Dermatological:
- Boils (poultice)
- Cuts (poultice)
- Hemorrhoids (salve)
Musculoskeletal:
- Muscle aches (infusion/bath or liniment)
- Neuralgia (poultice)
- Painful joints (infusion/bath, liniment or poultice)
Respiratory:
- Asthma (smoke)
- Sinus inflammation (smoke)
Considerations before using jimsonweed
Remember that jimsonweed can be deadly when abused or misused.
If you are going to forage for jimsonweed, learn how to identify it properly. Fortunately, it is easy to identify because it doesn’t have any lookalikes.
Jimsonweed is one of the few herbs with a proven track record for managing what can be a fatal disease when conventional medications aren’t available after SHTF. It has been successfully used for centuries to treat asthma.
But remember that jimsonweed is considered violently toxic and should not be used internally. Jimsonweed has no contraindications when used externally.
Note that elderly individuals and those with limited mobility should be supervised when the herb is used in a bath. When absorbed by the skin in sufficient quantity, the alkaloids in jimsonweed may cause drowsiness.
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