- Origin
- North America (Mexico)
- Other names
- Maïsbaard
Central America and the Caribbean · Food · № 266
Zea mays
Food · Central America and the Caribbean
Maize
Zea mays
Traditionally attributed effects: diuretic, heals the urinary tract lining, tonic, soothing.
Safety notes
Traditional use is no proof of effectiveness; if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, taking medication or have a medical condition, consult a doctor or pharmacist.
Cautions by tradition (3)
- Chinese materia medica: With diabetes, do not adjust medication yourself.
- Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) medicine: None.
- Cherokee (Tsalagi) medicine: Kidney stones need a doctor.
Preparation
The dried silk as tea; the kernels as food. No dosage is given here.
Use in traditions
Maize was domesticated from teosinte in Mexico some 9,000 years ago. In the Maya creation story Popol Vuh people are formed from maize dough. Indigenous peoples of North America used corn silk for bladder and kidney complaints, and this use passed into Western herbalism. In Chinese medicine corn silk is called yu mi xu. In herbal magic associated with prosperity, health, fertility and security.
Applications
Use by tradition
How different herbal traditions describe this herb. Amounts are traditional guidelines checked for obvious errors; they are not medical advice. For poisonous plants no dosage is given on purpose.
Herbal medicine worldwide
Attributed effects
Diuretic, heals the urinary tract lining, tonic, soothing.
Preparation and amount
Styles ('corn silk').
Natural skin and hair care
Attributed effects
Exfoliates; binder.
Preparation and amount
External: cornmeal in exfoliants; cornstarch in cucumber eye gel.
Chinese materia medica
- Nature and taste
- sweet, bland, neutral
- Meridians
- liver, bladder, small intestine
Attributed effects
Corn silk (yu mi xu) promotes urination in oedema, liver cirrhosis and painful urination from infection or stones, promotes bile flow in jaundice, is used for unbalanced blood sugar and stops bleeding gums and nosebleeds.
Preparation and amount
Traditional dosage: 6–20 g a day, usually in a decoction. Preferably fresh.
Caution: With diabetes, do not adjust medication yourself.
Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) medicine
Attributed effects
The foremost of the Three Sisters, thanked with ceremonies of its own. A healer could dream the right medicine with a sick person's clothes and corn from an unusual ear under his pillow.
Preparation and amount
White corn as soup, bread and hominy; the husks braided into mats, dolls and masks.
Caution: None.
Cherokee (Tsalagi) medicine
Attributed effects
Corn (selu) is the sacred plant of Selu, the Corn Mother, and the Green Corn festival gives thanks for the new harvest. An infusion for 'gravel' in the kidneys, parched kernels for long wind; the Cherokee made dolls from the husks.
Preparation and amount
A tea of corn silk.
Caution: Kidney stones need a doctor.
Folklore and herbal magic
Symbolic meanings from folk use and modern herbal magic. These are handed-down associations, not effects.
Prosperity, health, fertility, certainty, cycles.
Home, kitchen and folk use
Preparation and amount
Polenta (polenta with herbs).
- Ways to prepare herbs
- Tea (infusion)DecoctionPowder and kitchen
Sources
- en.wikipedia.org
- Michael & Lesley Tierra, Chinese Traditional Herbal Medicine, vol. II: Materia Medica and Herbal Resource (1998)
- Penelope Ody, The Complete Medicinal Herbal (1993; 2017)
- Stacey Dugliss-Wesselman & Susan Gregg, Herbal Remedies Made Simple (2018)
- James W. Herrick, Iroquois Medical Botany, ed. Dean R. Snow (1995)
- Paul B. Hamel & Mary U. Chiltoskey, Cherokee Plants and Their Uses: A 400 Year History (1975)