You can Sign Up here. WholisticMatters offers health care practitioners and nutrition enthusiasts alike the opportunity to create a free profile for access to site features like bookmarking. Article • September 16, 2019 • 4 min read, Article • December 11, 2018 • 2 min read, Please use 8 or more characters with a mix of letters, numbers & symbols. by the Biloxi tribe of Mississippi, a term that loosely means “tree hair.” French colonizers thought it looked like the long beards of. Traditional uses of Spanish Moss also included treating open wounds. Traditional uses of Spanish Moss also included treating open wounds. It remains an important medicine in Mexico, Cuba, Brasil, Argentina, and Peru, and was used historically among folk healers in the Southeast United States, though FDA concerns about potentially toxic compounds have dissauded its frequent use in modern western herbalism. (2003). It is well documented that people are deficient in vitamin D. The same holds true for dogs. Spanish Moss is a unique plant with a long history of therapeutic potential. Receive clinically driven nutrition insights you can trust. It has been used by the Houma of Louisiana as well as more modern Louisiana healers as a diabetes remedy and a decoction for fevers and chills. (1979). Cytotoxic cytochalasins and other metabolites from xylariaceae sp. Spanish Moss has a history of use as a remedy for rheumatism, either taken as a tea, soaking in a bath with the decoction, or having the liquid massaged into sore muscles and joints. Initial human studies showed significantly reduced serum cholesterol after six weeks of daily HMG supplements. The mind controls the body, however humans have the ability to control the mind as well. We'll verify your credentials and get you access to our great interactive tools. Once your account is created, you'll be able to save and organize what matters to you! Create a free account to continue reading and gain full access. But what about Spanish moss medicine? During the 1970s and early 1980s, multiple clinical trials were launched that focused on HMG as a tool for blood lipid management and bolstering cardiovascular health. This is a premium article created for our Healthcare Practitioner readers. It is commonly found on oak and cypress but can grow on a variety of species, and provides support to a variety of animal species. It is astringent, containing coumarins and resins. Commonly known as Spanish Moss, Tillandsia usneoides, is neither Spanish nor a moss; it is a flowering plant that grows on trees in particularly humid locations. Investigations into the compounds found in Spanish Moss showed the plant to contain multiple phytochemicals: The primary flavonoid identified in Spanish Moss – 6,3′,5′-trimethoxy-3,5,7-4′-tetrahydroxyflavone – is unique to. Animal studies of dietary Spanish Moss extracts incorporated into rats’ diets showed lower blood glucose levels and inhibition of diabetes development. Keep in mind if you try your hand at a Spanishmoss bed that the plant often harbors redbugs in its natural environment – you can steam, boil, or cook the moss to kill the bugs before rolling around all over the moss bed, but still practice caution during the harvest process. Herbs and Healthy Skin - Medicinal Herbs Podcast Series. Spanish Moss Uses: Mundane and Medicinal. WholisticMatters also offers health care practitioners who create a free user profile access to exclusive content and tools to utilize in clinical practice. In animal studies, extracts of Spanish Moss reduced the amount of time for wound healing. (2015). Spanish moss picks up compounds – good and bad – from air particles, inadvertently becoming a representation of air quality for a particular region. The plant has a history of use in domestic infrastructure and medicine. Its species name “usneoides” means that it has an appearance like moss – though is not actually a moss, but rather an epiphytic bromeliad, with long threadlike festoons that can grow several feet in length off of tree limbs. This is because HMG acts as a competitive inhibitor of the enzyme HMG-CoA reductase, which helps control cholesterol production in the liver. Identification of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaric acid (HMG) as a hypoglycemic principle of Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides). A detailed investigation identified 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaric acid (HMG) as the source of bioactivity in Spanish Moss; the phytochemical was found at an average concentration of 2.8 milligrams per 100 grams of the raw plant.4, During the 1970s and early 1980s, multiple clinical trials were launched that focused on HMG as a tool for blood lipid management and bolstering cardiovascular health. pose problems because of their ability to cause infection in an open wound, ultimately slowing the healing process. Participants in these studies were genetically predisposed to high cholesterol levels, and they experienced limited side effects.5 Limiting HMG-CoA lyase activity provided additional effects on blood glucose management, thereby decreasing blood ketone bodies and forcing the brain to use more blood glucose for energy.4, Traditional uses of Spanish Moss also included treating open wounds. From being stuffed into car cushions to being part of a cheap air conditioning system in the South, Spanish moss uses are multi-layered. A detailed investigation identified 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaric acid (HMG) as the source of bioactivity in Spanish Moss; the phytochemical was found at an average concentration of 2.8 milligrams per 100 grams of the raw plant. It is also a reliable indicator of metal pollution in an atmosphere – so be discerning about the location from which you wildcraft it. Haines, B. E., Wiest, O., & Stauffacher, C. V. (2013). Vitamin D for Dogs Part 1: Vitamin D Deficiency in Dogs. Healing Inspired. Tillandsia usneoides (more commonly known as spanish moss) is a perennial plant with many therapeutic uses as a dietary supplement and herbal remedy for fever, chills, and wound healing.