Horse chestnuts are not only food for wild boars? Far from it, they have a lot to offer and can be used in many ways. Brown seeds are full of multiple virtues and can be used in many ways.

With all the good advice and the short time we have to stock up on chestnuts, it would be a shame if they were lost due to mold. During the harvest period, it is often not yet known what will become of the chestnuts later. With dried chestnut powder you can preserve and store the active ingredients, especially saponins, tannins and aescin, for many products for a long time and easily.

The house dyes are a very special way to use healing chestnuts. The valuable, vascular strengthening, contracting, blood circulation promoting and antibacterial active ingredients are bound to alcohol and can then be used in many ways.

Why to prepare tinctures with chestnuts, how to make it and how to use them, you will find out in this article.

Applications of chestnut tinctures

Of particular importance is the active ingredient aescin, which increases blood flow and narrows and strengthens vascular walls. This means that less water accumulates in the tissues. Due to this special medicinal effect, aescin is also used in vein gels.

Tinctures made from horse chestnuts or chestnut flowers can help relieve many ailments internally or externally, depending on how they are produced and how they are administered:

• Cough
• Varicose veins and swollen feet
• Eczema and other skin problems like acne and inflammation
• Sores, open legs and ulcers
• Venous diseases and inflammation
• Joint pain and rheumatism
• Lumbago and sciatica
• Arteriosclerosis
• Hemorrhoids

Three chestnut tincture recipes

In order to be optimally prepared for external or internal healing application or to be able to quickly produce a soothing cream, depending on the area of ​​application, you will need the following ingredients:

• Fresh horse chestnuts or homemade horse chestnut powder (the quantity depends on the volume of the container)
• About 40% double grain or vodka
• Possibly a handful of fresh juniper berries to improve the properties of the chestnuts

Where :

• 1 handful of horse chestnut flowers
• 250 ml double grain or alcohol

The following may be helpful:

• cutting board and knife
• Hammer or powerful blender
• Glass with airtight lid
• coffee filter or tea towel and sieve
• Dark glass or hermetically sealable dark bottle to store finished tincture

1. The simple horse chestnut tincture recipe

This tincture is very astringent and is the most commonly used. If necessary, it can be transformed into multipurpose ointments. For a cream as light as possible, you need a tincture made without skin. Otherwise, you can also keep the skin of the chestnuts.

Here is how the tincture is made:

1. Wash and cut the horse chestnuts into quarters and remove the skin if necessary.
2. Cut the chestnut quarters into slices and cut them into small pieces.
3. You can also smash them with a hammer or use a powerful blender to crush them into powder.
4. The quantity required depends on the size of the container. Half fill the glass container with chestnut pieces or powder, add the juniper berries if desired and pour alcohol over it until the chestnuts are well covered.
5. Close the jar tightly, shake and place in a warm place for three weeks. Shake occasionally for a more concentrated result.
6. After the waiting time has passed, let the fortified alcohol flow through a coffee filter. To do this, place the filter on a tall glass or use a filter attachment for cups. You can also strain through a cloth that you place in a sieve.
7. Fill the finished tincture into an airtight dark glass. If you only have clear glass containers, you can darken them with orphan socks.

2. Chestnut peel tincture

A dye for the hemorrhoids treatment is made only from horse chestnut shells. Use two tablespoons of chopped chestnut peel and 200 ml of alcohol. The subsequent procedure is the same as before.

3. Chestnut flower tincture

With the lighter flower dye you can treat stomach crampsthe cough and theatherosclerosis, strengthen the veins Where reduce rheumatism.

This extract is prepared with 250ml of double grain or alcohol and a handful of horse chestnut flowers. The rest of the procedure should be performed as described in the first step. The flowers come out in the high season, in May, and provide a delayed opportunity to use the chestnut ingredients.

Application and dosage of chestnut mother tinctures

Tinctures can be stored for up to one year when stored in a cool, dark place. According to the sources of Doctissimo, the following dosages result depending on the different areas of application or forms of administration.

Internal app

For varicose veins, 10 drops of the simple tincture of horse chestnut are taken three times a day for 14 days. In case of circulatory disorders and other complaints, a dose of 10 to 50 drops maximum two to three times a day is recommended.

For hemorrhoidsshell tincture is taken for 20 days with 10 drops each diluted with water or herbal tea.

For rheumatismflower tincture can have a soothing effect with 15-20 drops three times a day and it helps against stomach cramps with 10 drops on a piece of sugar. Otherwise, it should also be taken two to three times a day with 10 to a maximum of 50 drops.

External use

The simple tincture helps with varicose veins, vein problems, joint pain, lumbago, sciatica, arteriosclerosis, eczema, skin rashes and inflammations. The affected area is rubbed with the undiluted tincture several times a day.

Compresses or washes are suitable for the treatment of wounds, as well as for dabbing for disinfection. To do this, the tincture is diluted with two parts of water.

For rheumatic pain, rub or dab a few drops of undiluted flower tincture onto affected areas.

Have you used tinctures before and how was your experience? Share your information in the comments so that it is also useful for other readers.