Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica)

The stinging nettle is a medicinal herb that everyone knows, but no one likes. This is because skin contact with the stinging hairs leads to the well-known painful wheals. Yet the nettle is characterised by a unique combination of active plant substances.

The vital nettle is rich in vitamins (A, carotene, B2, panthotenic acid, C, K1, folic acid), enzymes, tissue hormones, silicic acid as well as iron, potassium, calcium and sodium.

In the Middle Ages, the plant was used to make “nettle cloth”. Today, modern medicine uses the roots to make preparations against prostate disorders and the herb mainly against rheumatism and joint complaints. Nettle is also valued for its pancreas-stimulating, mildly blood pressure-lowering, anti-inflammatory, metabolism-cleansing and milk-forming effects. It is also used for eczema, anaemia and general states of exhaustion. In veterinary medicine and animal nutrition, the special metabolism-stimulating properties of this medicinal plant are used. In the case of animals, it is primarily a matter of the versatile anti-inflammatory qualities of the nettle, the stimulation of the anabolic forces as well as the stimulation of the kidney activity and thus the forced excretion of metabolic waste products.