Gold balm – ingredients, effects and application

The taste of golden balm lies somewhere between mint and citrus fruits. It contains essential oils and flavonoids with healing properties similar to those of thyme. In North America it is popular both as a culinary herb and as a medicine; in this country we know it primarily from ornamental gardens.

Characteristics

• Scientific name: Monarda didyma
• Common names: Indian nettle, scarlet Indian nettle, horsemint, scarlet monard, monard, giant balm, bee balm, wild bergamot
• Family: Mint family (Lamiaceae)
• Distribution: North America, from New York and Michigan to Georgia and Tennessee. Introduced to Europe as an ornamental plant and left wild.
• Plant parts used: herb/leaves, flowers
• Ingredients: Essential oil with thymol, para-cymene, D-limonene, carvacrol, linalool and hydrothymoquinone, flavonoids such as rutin, hyperoside, quercitrin, luteolin and quercetin; Valeric acid, beta-sitosterol, camphenes, tannins and bitter substances
• Areas of application: expectorants, menstrual cramps, sweating and urination, sedation, stimulation, flatulence, colds, bronchitis, fever, headaches, coughs, insomnia, migraines, menopausal symptoms, stomach ailments, worm infestations, poorly healing wounds

Gold balm – an overview

• Gold balm tea is drunk for its taste as well as for medicinal purposes. Like thyme, it contains thymol, but in a lower concentration.
• Indigenous people in North America drank lemon balm tea regularly. The drink, which is reminiscent of Earl Grey, spread among European colonists after the Boston Tea Party and the boycott of the black tea traded by England.
• The fragrant leaves can be eaten raw or cooked. They are suitable, for example, for flavoring desserts and are used in a similar way to mint.
• Golden balm forms rhizomes, which is typical of mint family plants. These are not roots, but rather a “rootstock”, i.e. a system of shoot axes growing underground.
• Naturally, golden balm grows in moist soil in forests and riverside bushes.
• Gold balm is used as an ornamental plant, as a medicinal plant, as a fragrance and as a food. The unique scent and the scarlet flowers contrasting with the deep green of the leaves made the plant popular – far beyond its natural distribution.
• The natural habitat of the golden balm is similar to the climate of Central Europe. In this respect, it is easy to plant in the garden in this country.

ingredients

A Lithuanian comparative study came to the following conclusion in 2002: Monarda didyma has 22 components in the essential oil. These include thymol, para-cymene, D-limonene, carvacrol, linalool and hydrothymoquinone.

The following flavonols were found in the leaves and flowers: rutin, hyperoside, quercitrin, luteolin and quercetin. The amount in the flowers exceeded that in the leaves.

Other substances in golden balm are valeric acid and beta-sitosterol. Also camphenes, tannins and bitter substances.

An Indian study found in 2019 that the amount of individual substances in essential oil depends on the growth stage of the plant. The highest concentration of linalool was found in the pre-flowering period, while that of thymol was found during seed ripening.

Gold balm can trigger allergic reactions and contains plant hormones, so it is recommended to consult a doctor before taking it. (Image: Rita Priemer/stock.adobe.com/own editing heilpraxis.de)

Gold Balm – Medicinal Effects

Golden balm has proven biological effects similar to those of thyme. These include defense against fungi and bacteria.

There are also effects against inflammation and cell-changing oxidation processes (antioxidative). Since Indian nettle contains plant hormones, it regulates menopausal symptoms in women.

A recent study from Moldova highlighted the high proportion of thymoquinone in the related species Monarda fistulosa. According to the Moldovan researchers, this substance has effects against tuberculosis, fungi and cancer.

However, comparative studies on the thymoquinone content in Monarda fistusola and Monarda didyma are still pending.

Gold balm in American Indian medicine

American Indians have used golden balm as a medicinal plant for many centuries, as have related species. It grows in the eastern United States on river banks, riparian forests and other habitats with moist soil rich in nutrients.

The Oswego on Lake Ontario and the Winnebago in present-day Wisconsin and Illinois alike used the flowers, herb and leaves as tea. The Blackfeet used compresses with a paste made from the herb to treat skin inflammation.

Also to speed up the healing of small wounds. They also drank the tea to treat inflammation in the mouth, throat and gums.

Gold Balm – Medical Uses

A tea made from golden balm can be used against coughs and colds. It loosens thick mucus, making it easier to cough up and clearing the airways.

To do this, pour a cup of boiling water over around a teaspoon of the herb, flowers or leaves. You can use the plant parts dried or fresh.

After five minutes you can drink the tea. The tea not only loosens mucus, it also causes sweat and is therefore effective against fever.

It strengthens digestion and helps against stomach problems such as nausea and stomach pain. It is drunk to treat headaches and make it easier to fall asleep.

Applied externally, the lukewarm tea is used as a means to promote blood circulation in the skin: as a wash, compress or bath. This primarily serves to promote wound healing.

In the USA, the tea is often drunk as a home remedy, especially for flu-like infections with a mucous cough. For such an application, around three small cups of tea per day is the usual dose.

Instead of tea, you can also make a cold extract. Here, a teaspoon of the herb is not poured with boiling water, but with a quarter liter of cold water. The liquid is left for a day and is briefly heated in the evening before medicinal use.

A tincture can also be made from Indian nettle. To do this, golden balm flowers are mixed with forty percent alcohol, stored in a sealed container, placed in the sun for around four weeks and shaken daily.

The mixture is then filtered and poured into a dark bottle. The tincture can remain concentrated or diluted with boiled water. You can take up to 20 drops of the undiluted tincture per day.

Undesirable side effects

Gold balm is considered to be well tolerated. However, if you are allergic to mint plants, you should not use the plant.

Ingredients irritate the skin in higher concentrations. Therefore, when using the tea externally, you should make sure to stick to the guideline of one to two teaspoons of the herb per cup.

There are currently no relevant studies on dosage, effectiveness and use in Europe. Therefore, risk groups such as pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers and small children should avoid therapies with Indian nettle extracts.

What characterizes the golden balm?

Gold balm is an impressive flowering plant that grows almost as tall as a man. From June to September it produces several tiers of scarlet flowers that contrast with the deep green leaves.

In the soil it develops dense fine roots that form a network of yellowish-brown root hairs. Gold balm is perennial. Its stems have a square profile, are greenish-reddish and furrowed when old.

The shape of the tapered leaves is reminiscent of elongated eggs. They are up to 13 centimeters long, grow opposite from the stem, and their edge is slightly toothed.

In autumn, nuts form from the flowers. These contain tiny round seeds that are brown-black in color.

Planting and caring for golden balm

Since the natural distribution in the USA is similar to the climate of Central Europe, golden balm can be easily cultivated in the garden here. The prerequisite is moist soil that allows water to pass through and provides lots of nutrients – just like in a riparian forest.

Gold balm can cope with sun as well as partial shade, but not full shade. Despite its preference for moisture, it also doesn’t like waterlogging: golden balm is a resident of riparian forests, but not of swamps.

In the pot as well as outdoors, the golden balm needs sufficient nutrients to thrive. Leaf mulch or organic compost, which is similar to what collects on the ground in forests, is suitable for this.

Although it is at home in riparian forests, it comes from regions where it does not rain for several weeks when it is moderately warm. At cooler temperatures it does not need any extra water.

However, if there is prolonged dryness and heat, you should water the plants regularly in the evening. And plenty of it.

Gold balm can be grown well in pots. This is even recommended because it is a neophyte that is able to displace weakly competitive native plants.

A pot should have a volume of at least ten liters, and the soil needs fertilizer once a month. Due to its small volume, potting soil dries out quickly.

That’s why you have to water Indian nettles in pots regularly. Gold balm is hardy.

Gold balm in the kitchen

Gold balm is very suitable for the kitchen with an aroma that is reminiscent of citrus fruits as well as mint. In the USA it is used in a variety of dishes and drinks.

It flavors potatoes, soups and sauces. It is prepared solo as iced tea or added to green and black tea.

The flowers decorate fruit salads and there are special desserts such as lemon balm savayon. The young leaves are added to green leaf salads.

The blossoms…