Blackberry

Who would have thought that brambles can actually be useful? The thorny, clingy bushes that invade our shady gardens and make forests so unpleasant to walk through have some purpose after all. Besides the making of that black, seedy and quite tasty jam, blackberry leaves and even roots are being used by people to treat different conditions like sore throats, painful oral ulcerations, dysentery or diarrhea.

Blackberries (Rubus fruticosus) contain important, powerful antioxidants and eating the raw fruit is a wise choice. But, the fruits can also be frozen and even dried without compromising their properties. It is well known that eating or drinking an important amount of antioxidants helps the human body fight dangerous types of cancer, prevents aging and certain kinds of degenerative disorders. Blackberries have a great deal of antioxidants so, dig in! They can make delicious, purple smoothies, can be an interesting addition to a fruit salad, or a humble bowl of cereals and they can be made into a juicy, flavorful pie.

The gently dried leaves of the blackberry can be made into refreshing teas. The chemical compounds can be of good use both internally and externally. Drinking blackberry tea can prevent an excessive loss of fluids in bad cases of diarrhea or dysentery.

Even if studying shrubs and brambles was not a priority until very recently, people experimented and managed to discover important medicinal properties to all sorts of humble plants like the blackberry bush. Their discoveries can be expanded, new and amazing properties can be brought to light and we can one day discover that we can cure our illnesses only by using natural remedies!