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Alternative Names: Common parsley, Rock parsley, Garden parsley, Hamburg parsley, Persely, Persil.
Parsley is one of the best known and most widely used herbs.
History
Parsley seeds were used traditionally as a carminative to decrease flatulence and colic pain. The root was used as a diuretic and the juice to treat kidney ailments. Parsley oil also was used to regulate menstrual flow in the treatment of amenorrhea and dysmenorrhea, and is purported to be an abortifacient. Bruised leaves were used to treat tumors, insect bites, lice and skin parasites, and contusions. Parsley tea once was used to treat dysentery and gallstones. Other traditional uses include the treatment of diseases of the prostate, liver, and spleen, anemia, and arthritis; as an expectorant, antimicrobial, aphrodisiac, hypotensive, laxative; and as a scalp lotion to stimulate hair growth.
Reasons For Use
Parsley Root helps bladder, kidney, liver, lung, stomach, and thyroid function; it helps clear uric acid from the urinary tract, contains a substance that prevents the multiplication of tumor cells, expels worms, relieves gas and stimulates normal activity of the digestive system. It reduces nausea due to upset stomach, is used to treat urinary tract infections, helps dissolve and expel gallstones and gravel, is used to prevent kidney stone formation, acts as a diuretic, increases urine volume, and is used to treat digestive weakness and bronchial and lung congestion.
It may also be used to treat edema and high blood pressure. Other uses include the treatment of constipation and female problems such as not having a monthly period. Parsley may be used to treat cuts, insect bites (rubbing crushed parsley onto mosquito bites relieves the itching), lice, and dry or chapped skin.
Side-Effects; Counter-Indicators and Warnings
Adverse effects from the ingestion of parsley oil include headache, giddiness, loss of balance, convulsions, and renal damage.
Stop taking your medicine right away and talk to your doctor if you have any of the following side effects. Your medicine may be causing these symptoms which may mean you are allergic to it:- Breathing problems or tightness in your throat or chest
- Chest pain
- Skin hives, rash, or itchy or swollen skin
- Itching, redness, blistering of skin after picking/handling parsley in sunlight. The psoralen compounds found in parsley have been linked to a photodermatitis reaction found among parsley cutters. This skin reaction is usually only evident if the areas that have contacted the juice are exposed to strong sunlight.
- Blood, kidney, or liver problems
Parsley should not be used by women who are pregnant (because of its potential uterotonic effects), breastfeeding or expecting to become pregnant, by those who have other health problems such as high blood pressure or cardiovascular disease, or by individuals with liver or kidney problems.
Do not use large amounts of Parsley. Parsley seed oil is very strong and contains chemicals that may cause serious side-effects.
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Parsley can help with the following:
KEY | | Likely to help |  | | Avoid absolutely |
GLOSSARY
Abortifacient
A drug or chemical agent that induces abortion.
Amenorrhea
Absence or suppression of menses. Primary amenorrhea is the failure to begin menses by age 16, secondary amenorrhea is tardy menses (from pregnancy, stress, dieting, illness or intensive physical training) in the previously menstruating woman.
Anemia (Anaemia, Anemias)
A condition resulting from an unusually low number of red blood cells or too little hemoglobin in the red blood cells. The most common type is iron-deficiency anemia in which the red blood cells are reduced in size and number, and hemoglobin levels are low. Clinical symptoms include shortness of breath, lethargy and heart palpitations.
Antimicrobial
Tending to destroy microbes, hinder their multiplication or growth.
Aphrodisiac
Substance increasing or arousing sexual desire.
Arthritis (Arthritic)
Inflammation of a joint, usually accompanied by pain, swelling, and stiffness, and resulting from infection, trauma, degenerative changes, metabolic disturbances, or other causes. It occurs in various forms, such as bacterial arthritis, osteoarthritis, or rheumatoid arthritis. Osteoarthritis, the most common form, is characterized by a gradual loss of cartilage and often an overgrowth of bone at the joints.
Bruise (Bruised, Bruising)
Injury producing a hematoma or diffuse extravasation of blood without breaking the skin.
Cardiovascular
Pertaining to the heart and blood vessels.
Carminative
Agent relieving flatulence or gas.
Chapped
Roughened, reddened, or cracked skin, especially as a result of cold or exposure.
Colic
Cramping or spasms of a smooth muscle tube, such as the uterus (menstrual cramps) the ureters (passing kidney stones) or the stomach (stomach ache).
Constipation (Constipated)
Difficult, incomplete, or infrequent evacuation of dry, hardened feces from the bowels.
Contusion (Contusions)
A bruise; an injury in which the skin is not broken.
Diuretic (Diuretics)
An agent increasing urine flow, causing the kidneys to excrete more than the usual amount of sodium, potassium and water.
Dysentery
An inflammatory disorder of the lower intestinal tract, usually caused by a bacterial, parasitic, or protozoan infection and resulting in pain, fever, and severe diarrhea, often accompanied by the passage of blood and mucus.
Dysmenorrhea
Difficult or painful menstruation.
Edema
Abnormal accumulation of fluids within tissues resulting in swelling.
Essential Oil (Essential Oils)
Volatile terpene derivative responsible for the odor or taste of a plant.
Expectorant (Expectorants)
A substance that promotes the removal of mucous from the respiratory tract.
Flatulence
Abnormal amount of gas in the stomach and intestines.
Gallstone (Biliary Calculus, Gall Stone, Gall Stones, Gallbladder Attack, Gallbladder Attacks, Gallstones)
Stone-like objects in either the gallbladder or bile ducts, composed mainly of cholesterol and occasionally mixed with calcium. Most gallstones do not cause problems until they become larger or they begin obstructing bile ducts, at which point gallbladder "attacks" begin to occur. Symptoms usually occur after a fatty meal and at night. The following are the most common ones: steady, severe pain in the middle-upper abdomen or below the ribs on the right; pain in the back between the shoulder blades; pain under the right shoulder; nausea; vomiting; fever; chills; jaundice; abdominal bloating; intolerance of fatty foods; belching or gas; indigestion.
Herbs (Herb, Herbal)
Herbs may be used as dried extracts (capsules, powders, teas), glycerites (glycerine extracts), or tinctures (alcohol extracts). Unless otherwise indicated, teas should be made with one teaspoon herb per cup of hot water. Steep covered 5 to 10 minutes for leaf or flowers, and 10 to 20 minutes for roots. Tinctures may be used singly or in combination as noted. The high doses of single herbs suggested may be best taken as dried extracts (in capsules), although tinctures (60 drops four times per day) and teas (4 to 6 cups per day) may also be used.
Kidney Stone (Kidney Gravel, Kidney Stones)
A stone (concretion) in the kidney. If the stone is large enough to block the tube (ureter) and stop the flow of urine from the kidney, it must be removed by surgery or other methods. Also called Renal Calculus. Symptoms usually begin with intense waves of pain as a stone moves in the urinary tract. Typically, a person feels a sharp, cramping pain in the back and side in the area of the kidney or in the lower abdomen. Sometimes nausea and vomiting occur. Later, pain may spread to the groin. The pain may continue if the stone is too large to pass; blood may appear in the urine and there may be the need to urinate more often or a burning sensation during urination. If fever and chills accompany any of these symptoms, an infection may be present and a doctor should be seen immediately.
Kidneys (Kidney, Renal)
Bean-shaped organs, each about the size of a fist. They are located near the middle of the back, just below the rib cage. The kidneys are sophisticated reprocessing machines, each day handling about 50 gallons of blood to sift out about half a gallon of waste products and extra water. The waste and extra water become urine, which flows to the bladder through tubes called ureters. The actual filtering occurs in tiny units inside the kidneys called nephrons. Every kidney has about a million nephrons. In a nephron, a glomerulus -- which is a tiny blood vessel, or capillary -- intertwines with a tiny urine-collecting tube called a tubule. A complicated chemical exchange takes place, as waste materials and water leave your blood and enter your urinary system. The kidneys recycle chemicals such as sodium, phosphorus, and potassium and thus regulate their levels. Renal: Pertaining to the kidneys.
Laxative (Laxatives)
A substance (food, herb, chemical) that stimulates evacuation of the bowels. Examples include cascara sagrada, senna, castor oil, aloe vera, bisacodyl, phenolphthalein and many others.
Liver (Hepatic)
The largest and one of the most complex organs of the body, the liver is responsible for much of the metabolism of fats, proteins and carbohydrates. It is the site of much of the body's detoxification. It is connected very closely with digestion and the regulation of blood sugar, among many other functions. Found behind the ribs on the right side of the abdomen, it has many important functions such as removing harmful material from the blood, making enzymes and bile that help digest food, and converting food into substances needed for life and growth. Hepatic: Pertaining to the liver.
Lung (Lungs, Pulmonary)
Organ of the body, located in the chest cavity which is designed to bring oxygen from the air into the blood stream, while also expelling carbon dioxide and other waste gases out of the body. Pulmonary: Related to the lungs.
Menstruation (Menses, Menstrual, Menstrual Cycle, Menstrual Cycles, Menstrual Flow, Menstrual Phase, Monthly Cycle)
The periodic discharge of blood, tissue fluid and mucus from the endometrium (lining of the uterus) that usually lasts from 3 - 5 days. It is caused by a sudden reduction in estrogens and progesterone.
Nausea
Symptoms resulting from an inclination to vomit.
Parasite (Parasites, Parasitic, Parasitical)
An organism living in or on another organism.
Prostate
The prostate gland in men that surrounds the neck of the bladder and the urethra and produces a secretion that liquefies coagulated semen.
Psoralen
A chemicals which can cause toxic effects when exposed to sunlight.
Spleen (Splenectomy)
The largest organ of the lymphatic system in the body, located between the stomach and the diaphragm (the muscle below the lungs which provides the motion for breathing). It destroys old red blood cells, produces lymphocytes and plasma cells, and stores blood. It also has other as yet unknown functions. A splenectomy is the surgical removal of the spleen.
Stomach
A hollow, muscular, J-shaped pouch located in the upper part of the abdomen to the left of the midline. The upper end (fundus) is large and dome-shaped; the area just below the fundus is called the body of the stomach. The fundus and the body are often referred to as the cardiac portion of the stomach. The lower (pyloric) portion curves downward and to the right and includes the antrum and the pylorus. The function of the stomach is to begin digestion by physically breaking down food received from the esophagus. The tissues of the stomach wall are composed of three types of muscle fibers: circular, longitudinal and oblique. These fibers create structural elasticity and contractibility, both of which are needed for digestion. The stomach mucosa contains cells which secrete hydrochloric acid and this in turn activates the other gastric enzymes pepsin and rennin. To protect itself from being destroyed by its own enzymes, the stomach’s mucous lining must constantly regenerate itself.
Thyroid (Thyroid Gland)
The thyroid gland is an organ with many veins, anchored around the front of the throat near the voice box. It is essential to normal body growth in infancy and childhood. It absorbs iodine from the diet and releases thyroid hormones - iodine-containing compounds that help govern the rate of the body's metabolism (its total life processes), affecting body temperature, and regulating protein, fat and carbohydrate catabolism in all cells. They keep up growth hormone release, skeletal maturation, and heart rate, force, and output. They promote central nervous system growth, stimulate the making of many enzymes, and are necessary for muscle tone and vigor. To a high degree, metabolism is regulated by the hormone thyroxine, which can be made by the thyroid if enough organic iodine is available. An enlarged thyroid gland that is not cancer is sometimes called goitre.
Uric Acid (Hyperuricemia)
The final end product of certain native or dietary proteins, especially the nucleoproteins found in the nucleus of cells. Unlike the much smaller nitrogenous waste product urea, which is mostly recycled to form many amino acids, uric acid is an unrecycleable metabolite that must be excreted: nucleoprotein to purine to uric acid to the outside in the urine or the sweat. Hyperuricemia: Having elevated blood uric acid, either from a rapid rate of cell breakdown and synthesis (such as might occur from fasting, heavy training, trauma or any number of major diseases), a high consumption of organ meats, glandular supplements or spirulina, or the inability (usually hereditary) to excrete uric acid in the urine as fast as it is produced, even though production itself is not elevated.
Urinary Tract (UT)
The kidneys and the lower urinary tract, which includes the ureters, bladder, and urethra.
Urticaria (Hives)
Commonly known as hives, urticaria is one of the most common dermatological conditions seen by allergists. Urticaria is not just an allergic disease, however. It can be caused by metabolic diseases, medications, infectious diseases, autoimmune disease, or physical sensitivity. Traditional allergies to foods or medications as well as viral illness are frequent causes of acute urticaria which usually lasts only a few hours but may last up to 6 weeks. Chronic urticaria (lasting more than 6 weeks) is more complex, given the vast number of potential triggers. Symptoms include sudden onset; initial itching; then swelling of the surface of the skin into red or skin-colored welts (wheals) with clearly defined edges; welts turn white on touching; new welts develop when the skin is scratched; usually disappear within minutes or hours. Welts enlarge, change shape, spread or join together to form large flat raised areas.
Uterus (Uterine)
The part of the female reproductive system specialized to allow the implantation, growth and nourishment of a fetus during pregnancy.
Last updated: May 26, 2008
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