With its white trunk and beautiful leaves, the birch is considered a splendid tree above other trees. Due to its bark, various popular beliefs call it the white goddess. It is a wonderful tree, full of healing power. Our ancestors worshiped it as a sacred tree, helping to release the old and negative, and to make room for the new and positive.
Today, the birch represents a symbol of love and protection. In traditional healing media, birch is synonymous with purification and is used especially in today’s herbal medicine and natural cosmetics. This tree is extremely rich in essential oils and vitamin C. It is for this reason that the active ingredients from the whole tree are used in alternative medicine and cosmetics.
Birch is considered the tree of spring and light. Not only does it need a lot of light, but despite its size, the elegant tree is capable of blooming with impressive ease and thus symbolizes the joy of nature and the unbridled desire for freedom and eroticism. In total, there are about 60 different species of birch.
An interesting fact is that birch resin was used as the first “glue” to join stone wedges and wooden handles during the Stone Age.
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Birch within cosmetics and medicine
Hardly any other tree offers such varied benefits for body, mind, and soul as the white goddess. In herbal medicine, birch leaf extracts are used to treat bladder infections, gout, and other metabolic diseases.
The birch sap is used to treat difficult to heal wounds and birch charcoal is extremely aid against diarrhea, since it absorbs fluid and contaminants within the intestine.
A beneficial natural ointment
There is also a long tradition of using birch as a skin ointment, and it has been used to heal wounds since the Middle Ages for its antiseptic effect. In cosmetics, the power of the leaves and the juice are harnessed, which act in many different ways.
The draining and detoxifying qualities of birch leaf essences are a boon for the whole body. These stimulate lymphatic flow and dissolve tissue “junk”. This makes birch one of the most valuable drug providers in the fight against cellulite.
Since within the holistic approach, the impact caused by the appearance of cellulite is also associated with a mental attachment and solidification, the purifying power of birch also helps on an emotional level by releasing old restrictions and life patterns that are not good. for you.
The healing properties of birch
The essential oils from the bark and the juice are characterized by their antiseptic and wound-healing properties. In facial care creams, they beautify not only the appearance of skin that needs regeneration, mature skin, but also bacterial acne, eczema and other skin irritations.
Birch is also extremely popular in hair care. Shampoos and conditioners that contain ingredients from this tree give hair a new shine and strength, but it also works great against dandruff.
Some companies also sell birch toners against hair loss. However, it is still disputable how much these products really help. Due to its cooling properties, birch extracts are also applied in foot creams.
Uses of birch in the kitchen
From the bark of the birch, you can obtain a substitute ingredient for traditional and refined sugar, which is just as sweet and delicious. Birch sugar looks and tastes like normal sugar, but has 40% fewer calories, counteracts cavities, and can be safely consumed by diabetics.
Since birch sugar does not contain colorants or preservatives, it can work as a healthy alternative to traditional sugar, which can be consumed hot or cold and therefore used in baking and to preserve jams.
The birch leaves are edible unlike most tree leaves.
You can use them for a cheap and well-working detox treatment. The young, tender leaves detoxify the bodily vessels without burdening the kidneys or liver and can be added to breakfast in the morning. The older the leaves, the harder the surface of the leaf, and the more bitter it tastes.
How to use birch leaves to profit
Collect a few birch leaves, let them dry in an airy place and store them in a container in the dark; Or you can also go to your health food store and get the ones you need.
Once you have your leaves dry, you can try the following methods and get the benefits you want:
Birch leaf bath:
Add 250 g of dried and chopped birch leaves to two liters of boiling water and leave it like that for ten minutes. Then strain the leaves and pour the water into your tub to have a hot bath. Try not to let your bath last more than 15 minutes. By taking this bath you can relieve body pain or simply purify yourself.
Birch leaf conditioner that strengthens hair:
Add two tablespoons of finely chopped birch leaves to one liter of fruit vinegar. Leave the container in a warm place for two weeks. Then filter the mixture. To use it you will have to mix one part of the fruit vinegar with three parts of water. When you shower, apply this mixture to your hair after washing it.
Benefits and Disadvantages of Birch Sugar
Birch sugar is a natural sugar alcohol that Finnish researchers have discovered as a substitute for sugar.
Profits:
The benefits of this sweetener are many:
- The body recognizes birch sugar and can metabolize it, which makes it different from other artificial sugar substitutes.
- Birch sugar has 240 kcal per 100 grams and therefore approximately 40 percent fewer calories than classic table sugar. The carbohydrate content is about 75 percent lower.
However, the sweetening power is almost the same, and the taste and flavor of sugar and Xucker hardly differ. - The sugar substitute is also suitable for diabetics because it is degraded independently of insulin.
Disadvantages:
Like most of the substances that are supposed to replace sugar, birch sugar also has its disadvantages:
- Since our intestines can only absorb very small amounts of xylitol, birch sugar has a laxative effect. Scientists recommend consuming no more than 0.5 grams per kilogram of body weight per day, otherwise flatulence and diarrhea may be experienced.
- Like other sweeteners, birch sugar is suspected of promoting food cravings.
- Although it is a natural product, many chemical processes are used to make birch sugar that can spoil the beneficial contribution of this food.