Jesuit's tea, Mexican-tea, payqu (paico), epazote, mastruz, herba sanctæ Mariæ... this "invasive" beauty was (is) the world's #1 pervasive carminative (fart killer) which was globally used as the most effective intestinal worms and parasites before capitalism put it in a pill form, made us forget it was useful, and identified it as a "pesky weed." And although I've since realized that it's National "Scavenger Hunt" Day—and not "Scavengers" which I interpreted as "Forager's" and got excited to talk about foraging medicines—let's take a shallow dive into this stinky sweat to tempt you into a deeper dive in the form of a paid presentation from yours truly.
Kids like farts; adults don't. So to all of my 9 adult subscribers, I can say with 100% confidence that you could walk outside right now and find this potent gas assassin (gassassin?...yes, gassassin)... and find this potent gassassin™ in a nearby field or, as they prefer, upturned soil prepped for a new (probably unnecessary) construction.
WHAT'S IN A NAME
The name in english is "wormseed," but let's be honest, if you know this herb at all, you don't know it by it's english name.
The word "epazote" comes from the nahuatl word epazōtl which means "stinky sweat"in reference to it's smell which is akin to a skunk's spray. The freshly picked branches also look like skunk tails as they begin to droop. I couldn't find a picture of this online and all my epazote is semi-dehydrated at the moment, so just take my word for it...
MEDICINAL USES
Epazote helps break the wind of the magical fruit (beans) by dismantling the harder to digest compounds in some foods. In general,
Carminatives are herbs that help promote digestion and relieve bloating and flatulence. The word carminative comes from the Latin meaning to “comb out”. The ancient Greeks stated carminatives “help to relax the gross humours from whence the wind arises, combing them out like knots in wool.”1 This is a long way of saying carminatives relax smooth muscles to relieve cramping and help expel gas.
Carminatives contain essential oils that impart their medical effects. After consuming a carminative, one detects a pleasant aromatic taste followed by increased circulation to the digestive tract. Within a few minutes, smooth muscles and sphincters relax relieving cramping pains and often releasing trapped gas resulting in eructation and/or flatulence. The precise mechanism of carminatives is unknown, but the essential oils have an irritant effect on mucous membranes causing capillaries to dilate and increase blood flow. In addition, these oils normalize peristalsis (the rhythmic movement of the intestines) and relax sphincters, thereby facilitating the passage of food and also make it easier to expel gas.
But let's not bury the leed; this shiz does more than make in-person status report meetings more comfortable for everyone. This champion helps with:
Amenorrhea
Dysmenorrhea
Malaria
Chorea
Hysteria (huh?)
Expectorant
Catarrh
Asthma
Flatulence
Colic
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
Indigestion
Colitis
Gastric ulcer
It also causes contractions in the uterus wall, so whatever is attached to it won't be attached to it for long after a nice, strong tea made out of this terpentine-smelling marijuana look-alike. (So take precaution, or take more tea, depending on what's clinging to said wall and whether or not you'd like it to stay there). Seriously though, if you're traveling to Latin America, be sure to avoid refried beans and chilaquiles with salsa verde—they generally have epazote. Alternatively, stock up in your ninth month to make a nice afterbirth tea.
That's all you get for free today. I got a job I gotta do. Google the rest OR consider taking a deep dive into epazote and other herbs with a paid membership to Pinchido. Did that sales pitch work? Let me know when you or a group of you and your friends would like to begin a custom series of workshops and cooking classes at tim@pinchido.com.
XOT!
Comments