When winter is about to end, snowdrop starts bearing lovely flowers. It’s for the herb’s truly eye-catching blooms why many consider it as an ornamental plant. However, snowdrop actually possesses impressive medicinal properties! Aside from being a thing of beauty, snowdrop is also an uncompromising defender of the health.

So much so that picking snowdrop in the wild is considered illegal in many areas where it is native to. That’s because it is almost an endangered plant due to overharvesting by many pharmaceutical companies.

For years now, snowdrop is being used for the production of drugs that help normalize chemicals in the brain of people who suffer from Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. However, scientists have discovered a way to create a synthetic form of the beneficial compound in snowdrop (galantamin), thus giving the lovely plant the opportunity to flourish.

What you may do if you want to take advantage of the various medicinal perks offered by snowdrop is buy it from a garden center in your area, and then have it planted in your backyard. Given the right conditions such as damp soil and ample shade, it’s rather easy to make snowdrop grow and thrive even if you do not have a green thumb — just like in the wild, snowdrop can have itself propagated and spread in your garden without trouble.

Let’s now take a look at some of the most incredible medicinal benefits offered by snowdrop:

Improved Brain Functioning

The buds of snowdrop is said to be consumed by the elderly fresh from the plant in order to keep the brain’s cognitive functioning optimal. The fact that snowdrop is being harvested by pharmaceutical companies for manufacturing Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease drugs is a clear testament to its effectiveness.

Reduced Nerve Pain

Traditional healers recommend snowdrop for dealing with nerve pain. For such, the buds of snowdrop may be consumed orally, or crushed and applied directly on affected areas of the body.

Alleviation of Chilblain or Frostbite

Snowdrop commonly thrives in colder areas of the planet, and that’s a good thing because it can actually be employed for managing the symptoms of chilblain, which is characterized by pain and itchiness of the hand and foot when exposed to very low temperatures. Snowdrop is also a well-known herbal remedy for frostbite.

Normalized Menstrual Cycle

Women who are bugged by irregular periods may also take the buds of snowdrop to attain relief from such. But women who are in the family way should stay away from snowdrop because it is known to cause abortion.

Managed Multiple Sclerosis Symptoms

Some traditional healers claim that snowdrop can actually be used for dealing with the various unfavorable symptoms of multiple sclerosis. They say that snowdrop can be turned into tinctures that can prove to be very helpful for those who suffer from the chronic disease that affects the brain, spinal cord and nerves.

Controlled Glaucoma

Extracts of snowdrop bulbs is known to be effective for the management of glaucoma, a condition that is marked by an increased pressure in the eyes, causing gradual loss of vision.

CAUTION: Just like when attempting to use any herb for therapeutic or medicinal purposes, employ snowdrop only under the supervision of a trained and experienced herbalist. If you have a known medical condition, see to it that you let your doctor know about your plan on using snowdrop. Never use snowdrop or any other herbal preparation containing it if you are pregnant because it is said to induce abortion.

Don’t forget to repost this article on social media to let your family and friends know that even though snowdrop is often seen as an ornamental plant only, it is actually a very powerful medicinal herb!