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SWEET BASIL
Sweet basil's use as a flavour in food is matched by its value as a digestive aid. Its volatile oil is also applied externally in herbal medicine as a treatment for acne.
Sweet basil is a native of India, where it is revered as a sacred plant. This may be due to its properties as an insect repellent; it keeps disease-carrying flies and mosquitoes away from where it grows. Sweet basil has been cultivated as a culinary herb in Mediterranean countries for centuries. A highly aromatic annual with smooth, slightly curved, green or red leaves, it produces small white flowers in midsummer, followed by small, oval, black seeds.
PARTS USED Whole herb.
ACTIVE INGREDIENTS Volatile oil containing linalool, estragole, cineol, borneol, eugenol, and gerianol; phenolic acids; vitamins A and C.
ACTIONS Aromatic; relieves wind and colic; expels intestinal worms; antibacterial.
MEDICINAL USE Used mainly for problems of digestion. The oil is also applied externally to treat acne.
PREPARATIONS Dried herb, essential oil, tincture. |
Ocimum basilicum (Labiatae)
