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Common Name
Thyme
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Botanical Name
Thymus vulgaris
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Part Used
Herb
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Clinical Summary
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Monograph
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Alcohol
35%
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Dose
15 to 80mL weekly
Thyme has acquired such a wide medicinal, and culinary, reputation that it is a mainstay of the modern herbal materia medica. It has a long history as a treatment for coughs and makes a good carminative for use in dyspepsia and sluggish digestion.
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Traditional Use
Thyme is traditionally part of every herb garden, even the most modest. It was used medicinally by Hippocrates ("the father of medicine") over 4,000 years ago, and later by the first Century Greek physician Dioscorides, as a treatment for respiratory disorders. It continues to be one of the most recommended herbs in Europe for this indication. The 17th Century herbalist Nicholas Culpeper recommended thyme for whooping cough, gout, stomach pains and shortness of breath. The Eclectic physicians considered thyme an emmenagogue, antispasmodic and diaphoretic, and they used it for dyspepsia, hysteria, dysmenorrhea, flatulence, colic, headache and neuralgia. The British Herbal Pharmacopoeia recommends its use in children for diarrhoea and enuresis.
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Actions
Expectorant, antispasmodic, antitussive, antibacterial, carminative, antifungal, antiviral, antioxidant, astringent, anthelmintic, anti-inflammatory, analgesic
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Indications
• Respiratory tract problems including bronchitis, coughs, pertussis (whooping cough), pleurisy, asthma, emphysema, sinusitis and laryngitis
• Infections including streptococcal throat, tonsillitis, lung and kidney infections
• Digestive problems including dyspepsia, gastritis, diarrhoea, spasmodic conditions of the gastrointestinal tract, adjunct in treatment of peptic ulcer
• Skin disinfection (topically) - minor wounds, fungal and bacterial skin disorders, as a mouthwash to reduce oral bacteria, herpes simplex virus -
Energetics
Hot, dry
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Use in Pregnancy
Likely safe when used in amounts commonly found in foods. Use medicinal amounts of thyme cautiously in women who are pregnant, or trying to become pregnant, due to possible antifertility and abortifacient effects. Traditionally, thyme has been used as an aid in labour and delivery.
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Contraindications & Cautions
Contraindicated in patients with a known allergy, or hypersensitivity, to thyme, its constituents or members of the Lamiaceae (Labiatae) family.
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Drug Interactions
Caution with anticoagulant/antiplatelet drugs (such as warfarin)
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Dietary Information
Vegan friendly. Gluten and dairy free
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Substitutes
Rosemary, Hyssop, Garlic, Elderberry, Angelica, Aniseed, Elecampane, Grindelia, Ribwort, White Horehound, Fennel, Ivy Leaf, Liquorice, Mullein, Thuja, Adhatoda, Red Clover