Hyssop

Also known as : Hyssopus Officinalis, Herbe Sainte, Ysop, Herbe de Joseph

Native to Southern Europe and Middle East, Hyssop is a cleansing, medicinal plant belonging to the mint family, mentioned several times in the Bible for its purifying qualities. Treasured by bee keepers, Hyssop  can be used as an aromatic condiment, as a flavor in liqueurs or as a fragrance agent in soaps and cosmetics.

Medicinal uses include digestive and intestinal disorders, loss of appetite, colic, intestinal pain, flatulence, liver dysfunctions and gallbladder conditions. Hyssop can also remedy respiratory problems, colds and cough and may increase secretions in the lungs. An old folk remedy for asthma, brings together Hyssop and garlic in a treatment lasting for 21 days. The recipe required to boil for 20 minutes a handful of green Hyssop strains  with  2 chopped garlic cloves, in 1 liter of water and the resulting decoction was administered in a day.

The healing virtues of the volatile oil and the refreshing aroma of Hyssop has purifying effects also on the psychic, improving mood and relieving the symptoms of asthenia, anxiety and  mild depression. Relaxing baths with Hyssop oil can ease rheumatic pains and arthritic conditions.

Hyssop tea favors water elimination from the tissues and can cause sweating. Used sometimes in the composition of mouthwash and eye drops, Hyssop can prove helpful in circulatory conditions (poor circulation), HIV , urinary tract infections and menstrual cramps. Externally, Hyssop is antiseptic and cicatrizing, being beneficial to burns and bruises, skin rashes and frostbites.

Hyssop use must be avoided during pregnancy and if you have a hypertensive condition or epilepsy.