Health Benefits
Willow is a natural Aspirin, but apart from its pain relieving properties, it has a lot more medicinal benefits:
Relieves Pain
Anti-inflammatory Properties
Reduces Fever
Menstrual cycle
Stomach Disorders
Weight Loss
Skin Care
Relieves Pain
Due to its rich blend of antioxidants and organic compounds, willow bark functions as a very successful analgesic. In fact, more than 2,500 years ago, the earliest recorded use of an herb was of willow bark, in Chinese traditional medicine.
This herb has been used for natural pain relief, reducing fever and inflammation, in the herbal treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and lower back pain.White willow bark is one of the herbs used for migraine and headache treatment.
The use of white willow bark is also indicated for fibromyalgia, post surgical pain, Crohn’s disease, warts treatment and any condition characterized by pain and inflammation.
Anti-inflammatory Properties
Inflammation takes on many different forms within our body. If you are looking to eliminate the inflammation in your respiratory tracts, gastrointestinal system, or joints, then willow bark can quickly soothe your symptoms. If you prepare a decoction or a tea of this bark, you will feel the inflammation and topical pain from arthritis, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), gout, and other conditions disappear.
Reduces Fever
One of the most important anti-inflammatory properties of willow bark is in the reduction of fevers. Fevers are a symptom of an infection in the body, but reducing a fever or breaking it is important to speed up the healing process and get the organs working normally again. It has been used to treat fevers for thousands of years.
Menstrual cycle
For many women who suffer from abnormally heavy periods or severe menstrual symptoms, taking a small glass of willow bark tea or extract can do wonders for everything from period pains and cramping to mood swings and unnecessary stress hormones in the body. Its relaxing characteristics are particularly good in these circumstances, as they can help re-balance hormones in a woman’s body.
Stomach Disorders
The high content of tannins can help soothe the stomach and prevent gastrointestinal distress during other illnesses or periods of a weakened immune system, including worms, chronic dysentery and diarrhoea. While willow bark can be slow-acting, while its effects are long-lasting, making it an effective herbal remedy to occasionally add to your health regimen, but it should not be consumed daily unless advised by a doctor or trained herbalist.
Weight Loss
Many people turn to willow bark to enhance their weight loss efforts, namely because the herb combines so well with other fat-burning and metabolism-boosting substances. It can intensify the effects of these herbs in a healthy way, thereby increasing their efficacy and improving your results even further.
Skin Care
The appearance of the skin is very important for many people, and the high content of antioxidant compounds found in willow bark can have a major impact on the health of the skin. Whether applied topically or consumed, willow bark can increase blood flow to the skin due to its antioxidants, while also reducing the appearance of wrinkles and age marks. Furthermore, it can eliminate inflammation in the skin and ease the pain of insect bites and irritation.