Horehound Uses
Answered by: Susan Eagles
Question from: Name not given
Posted on: September 26, 2001

Can you tell me uses for horehound? I can’t find any information. A friend told me it is good to clean out your system when having flu like symptoms or stomach problems. I boiled it like tea and drank it and since have had feelings of severe gas and my stomach is puffy and hurts. I wondered if it’s from that.

Black Horehound (Ballota nigra) relaxes the gut. It is used in nausea, vomiting (including nausea and vomiting in pregnancy and travel sickness) and nervous indigestion. The dose is one teaspoon of dried herb to a cup of boiling water, steeped for 10 minutes.

White Horehound (Marrubium vulgare) is a sedative, expectorant (loosening lung congestion) and antispasmodic. It is used in respiratory problems like bronchitis, cough in a cold and whooping cough. It is also a "bitter" herb, stimulating secretion of digestive juices. Large dosages of bitters can cause excessive irritation in the digestive system, so this could have been your experience. The dose is 1/2 to one teaspoon of dried herb, steeped in a cup of boiling water for 15 minutes.

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