Uporabni del rastline: list navadnega sleza (Althaea folium), korenina navadnega sleza (Althaea radix)
Ljudsko ime: ajbiš, ajbiž, ajpš, beli popelj, beli slez, navadni slez, slezen, sliz, valika žlez, zelenik.
Description and harvesting
Marshmallow is a perennial plant growing mainly in humid soil in the lowlands. Flowers are harvested in a dry weather from June to August and dried in a warm and well ventilated area. The leaves are harvested only after the plant has stopped blooming; make sure the leaves are not rusty. The roots are gathered in the early spring or in the autumn, peeled and dried quickly at 40°C and ground into powder. All parts of the marshmallow should be dried quickly and kept in a very dry place because they tend to mould. No cooking is required; instead, a teaspoon is marshmallow is soaked in 0.5 l of cool water overnight and simply warmed up prior to drinking. Cooking marshmallow for too long would result in mush because it is very slimy. Not knowing this, Kneipp was not particularly interested in marshmallow. Soaked marshmallow works well in tea blends for various diseases where marshmallow is recommended. Root powder is used most commonly.
Constituents and medicinal use
Marshmallow is most commonly used to treat the respiratory organs: it helps with sore throat, bronchitis, cough and catarrh, clears the oral cavity, treats mouth ulcers and acne, and clears the lungs. It is especially beneficial for stonemasons and miners. The tea is usually prepared from powder and sweetened with chestnut honey. Tea used for digestive problems: especially roots, used for digestive tract and stomach diseases, digestion disorders, stops diarrhoea, soothes problems in the large intestine and constipation-related problems and pain in the gall bladder. Tea used for urinary tract problems: helps with urinary hesitation and incontinence, treats vaginal discharge and bladder and kidney inflammation. It is especially helpful with pain resulting from kidney stones. External use: tea is used to rinse abscesses, growths on eye’s conjunctiva. The marshmallow root is rubbed into toddlers’ gums when they are teething.
Monk Simon Ašič’s product containing marshmallow:
Sources:
1. Domača lekarna patra Simona Ašiča. Priročnik za nabiranje zdravilnih rastlin. Celjska Mohorjeva družba.
2. Domača lekarna patra Simona Ašiča. Recepti. Celjska Mohorjeva družba.
3. Willfort R. Zdravline rastline in njih uporaba. Založba obzorja Maribor.
