Transcript Aromatic herbs - Programma LLP

Officinal herbs
The natural laboratory
through knowledge–taste –history - culture
Index
Definition
A bit of history …
Therapeutic proprieties
Picking tecniques post picking
techniques
• Extraction tecniques and taking of
active principles
• Aromatic herbs
• Essential oils
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Officinal herbs are all the herbs
not requiring special preparation that can be used to
these purposes
therapeutic
to flavour liqueurs
to enter into the
composition of perfume
to enter into the
composition of cosmetic
alimentary
to make palatable foods
The term officinal herb comes from
“officina” (a storeroom of a monastery for medicines and
necessaries), that
in the Middle age was the pharmacist’s laboratory .
The pharmacist prepared and sold the pharmacies .
A bit of history ….
Plants have been used for medicinal purposes
for as long as history has been recorded.
The first text that lists plants and their
medicinal uses is “The Ebers Papyrus” (1500 b.
C.)
The Egyptians extracted the essences from
plants to obtain perfume and beauty treatment;
Cleopatra’s bath contained rosemary,thyme
oregano and lavander.
Curative herbs were frequently mentioned in
the ancient legends : Achilles treated his
wounds with a plant that today is named
“Achillea millefolium ” milfoil in English.
Hippocrates, celebrated as the father of
medicine, (460 a. C.) compiled the first
European treatise on the properties and uses
of medicinal plants, De Materia Medica.. he
classified 200 species of medical herbs and
their pharmacological actions.
The Romans used herbs to prepare
perfume. Pompei became the most
important centre of “ars profumandi”.
In the middle ages the “Scuola Medica
Salernitana” developed.
It classified important medical herbs
and used treatments based on the
curative proprieties of herbs .
It grew the necessary herbs in
specialist
gardens “ il giardino della minerva”
Many Greek and Roman writings on medicine, as
on other subjects, were preserved by hand
copying of manuscripts in monasteries. The
monasteries tended to become local centers of
medical knowledge, and their herb gardens
provided the raw materials for simple treatment
of common disorders.
Benedictine monasteries such as
the “Abbazia di Cava de’ Tirreni”
were important centers of medical culture.
Paracelso(1493-1541) introduced the use
of active chemical drugs.
Today the scientific community is aware of
the curative qualities of herbs.
A lot of medicines contain
active principles extracted from plants.
Therapeutic proprieties
Medicinal qualities of the officinal herbs depend on substances
called ACTIVE PRINCIPLES
The active principles can be either in the whole plant or in part
of it.
leaves
flowers
roots
seeds
fruit
Medical activity of plants is vast.
We can group plants according to their main
effects on human organisms:
Antiasthmatic plants: St John’s wort, Elicriso,
Belladonna
Antiseptic plants: basil, thyme , rosemary, St
John’s wort
Antidiabetis plants: Orteca, Sage, garden
savory
Demulcent plants: Mauve, lime, vervain
Diuretic plants: wormwood, Sage, borage
… other activities of herbal medicines are:
antirheumatic, cardiotonic, laxative, astringent,
vasodilatative, antidepressive, sedative
expectorant …..
Harvest tecniques and post-harvest tecniques
The part of the plant used that is rich in active
principles is called
Drug.
At the peak time, when the compounds are in their
highest concentration, the plant material is
collected. This moment in time is different for each
plant.
Each drug has its harvest tecnique:
Leaves are picked
In the middle morning.
Flowers are picked
When completely open at dawn.
Root are picked in the quiescence
period of vegetation.
The resin and the gum , the latex are
extracted Through the bark.
Seeds and fruits are picked when the
weather is warm and dry.
Drugs undergo a number of treatments
after harvesting to avoid fermentative
activities that can alter the active
principles:
-drying process
-Stabilization
-Sterilization
Extraction tecniques
There are many ways in which herbs can be prepared to be
used to medicinal purposes:
Before extraction they are either smashed or pulverized
or triturated.
The vegetal material is put in contact with a liquid solvent
to transfer its compounds.
There are many ways in which herbs can be prepared
to be used to medicinal purposes:
Capsules
Infusions
Herb tea
Decotions
Drops
Unguents
Ointments
Compresses
Aromatic herbs
Any of a group of vegetable-derived drugs
having a fragrant odor and slight
stimulative properties. They have
compounds that do not dissolve in water
and are called either essences or essential
oils.
Aromatic herbs
Essences:
Attract pollinating insects
Repel dangerous insects
Have a curative action
They can be in the whole plant
or in some organs such as:
Seeds (anise,juniper )
Bulbs and roots e
radici(garlic,onion,iris)
Leaves (tea )
Wood (sandal,camphor)
Oil extraction techniques
To extract essential oils three methods are
used:
expression: most citrus peel oils are
expressed mechanically, or cold pressed due to
the relatively large quantities of oil in citrus
peel.
distillation: Raw plant material is put into an
alembic (distillation apparatus) over water. As
the water is heated the steam passes through
the plant material, vaporizing the volatile
compounds. The vapors flow through a coil
where they condense back to liquid, which is
then collected in the receiving vessel.
solvent extraction: Most flowers contain too
little volatile oil to undergo expression and
their chemical components are too delicate
and easily denatured by the high heat used in
steam distillation. Instead, a solvent such as
or is used to extract the oils.
Aromatic herbs
Aromatic herbs have a good taste
and a pleasant and inviting
appearance.
They are natural additives, besides
they have antibiotic, antibacteria ,
antioxidant actions.
Aromatic herbs are widely used in
the kitchen and are available in
most supermarkets and grocery
stores, either fresh or dried.
Herbs should be used fresh for the
best flavor.