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venus flytrap tincture

Millipede

Millipede

look at this ridiculous item for sale:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Eclectic-Instit...66:2|39:1|72:1205|240:1318|301:0|293:1|294:50


(edit) im posting a picture of it in case the link dissapears. seems like this thread may go on for a while

Product Description: Eclectic Institute Venus Fly Trap, 2 fl oz
Venus Fly Trap, 2 fl oz
ECL-38853-l.jpg

Suggested Use:
(shake well before using) Mix 15-30 drops in warm water and take this tea 1-3 times daily. Discontinue if unusual symptoms occur.
Consult your health care advisor regarding the use of herbs during pregnancy, with infants or with prescription drugs

Supplement Facts:

Other Ingredients:

Fresh, Venus Fly Trap (Dionaea muscipula) whole plant. Filtered water.
Organic grape alcohol content: 25%. Fresh Herb Strength: 1:1.

Warning:
Keep out of reach of children
 
thats one of the stupidest things I've ever seen.

props.
 
It said they use Venus Flytraps (whole plant)... o.0 I don't think VFTs would make a really good tea..
 
I was waiting to see what it is supposed to "cure" - apparently nothing...
 
The bottle says its a dietary supplement...stupid, but w.e, it might work someone. Who knows
 
For a second, I thought it was a VFT fertilizer. That´s kind of weird, but hey, some droseras are used in medication, so VFT might have medical properties.
 
Didn't the description say something about some sort of alchohol-related drink? Wonder if the person was using it when he posted it! Totally wierd, I agree.

Happy Growing!
Aslan
 
  • #10
They sell Drosera tinctures and capsules on ebay too. I think it's supposed to help with respiratory complaints. Not sure what Fly Trap is supposed to cure, "thick wallet syndrome" maybe? :D

Aslan, an "herbal tincture" is plant alkaloids extracted with an alcohol base. You soak the plant material in 100 proof alcohol for 2 weeks, shaking the container periodically and then strain out the plant material and allow most of the alcohol to evaporate off. This leaves you a dark awful tasting liquid but it has all the soluble chemicals contained in the plant which is the point of a tincture. There isn't enough alcohol in an entire 1 oz tincture bottle to get you loaded. When you use a tincture you only use a few drops into a glass of water or tea.
 
  • #11
Oh, thanks for correcting me. I don't know about much herbal medicine, I just thought it was interesting it had alchohol in it, not knowing it usually is in these things. :headwall: Still, I wonder how VFT extract helps you? Definitely thins you're wallet :D It might also act like digestive tract worms, the digestive juices from the VFT neutralizes your own digestive juices. :puke2: LOL! That might've been too far..

Happy Growing!
Aslan
 
  • #12
I'm not a big herbal medicine user myself but I find it interesting to study as this is the first step in creating many "real medicines" used today. Often times medicines are simply synthesized plant alkaloids - this is because drug companies can not patent a naturally occurring alkaloid but they can patent the synthesis. So you can make for yourself some useful/interesting medicines from natural sources with alcohol based tinctures if you know what you're doing. Saving much money to make your own anti-depressants, sleeping medicines, etc. However you need to know what plant you're using and why. Some plants are useful, some useless and others downright poisonous, or poisonous only in large doses or if used when you eat certain foods (just like the "FDA approved" counterparts of certain anti-depressants). So modern photo illustrated herbal books are essential before experimenting.

Imagine how many people died in the old days trying to make medicines using the old medieval herbals with wood cut illustrations which almost never looked like the plant they were supposed to be! Who knows what this plant is? I don't think I've ever seen anything that looks like that.
imat1-1.gif


But none of the herbals I've ever seen mentioned VFTs. Perhaps there is something in Dionaea but they are so low-bulk you'd clear out a field to make one concentrated jar. For a 1 oz jar of 5x extract you'd want 5 dried ounces of fly traps - how many plants would that equal? Take the weight of a wet flytrap plant and divide by 10 to give the weight of a dried flytrap. One jar would contain hundreds of traps no doubt. For 1 oz of a 10x extract you'd want 10 oz of dried fly traps and so on increasing in strength. If it's not highly concentrated it's hardly worth using as the effects (if any) would be minimal to non-existent. Concentration of the active principles (alkaloids) is what makes them "work" or "do" whatever it is the specific alkaloids are supposed to do. Given that, I doubt there's more than a drop of "flytrap" in these jars. 99.99% alcohol base 0.01% flytrap alkaloids!

In the early 19th century they sold "Mummia" which was just powdered Egyptian mummies to add to your drink! It was supposed to cure everything from baldness to impotence and anything else you care to name. "Can I innarest you in tall cool glass of mummy tang?" :D
 
  • #13
"Discontinue if unusual symptoms occur." :-))
 
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