There are more than one hundred species of pine trees worldwide, and most have registered medicinal uses. Cultures around the world have used needles, inner bark and resin for similar ailments. Internally, pine is a traditional remedy for coughs, colds, allergies and urinary tract and sinus infections. There are more than 100 species of pine trees worldwide, and most have registered medicinal uses.
Cultures around the world have used needles, inner bark and resin to treat various ailments. Internally, pine is a traditional remedy for coughs, colds, allergies and even urinary tract infections. Topically, pine is used to treat skin infections and to reduce joint inflammation in arthritic conditions. Most conifers are not only edible, but are also medicinal.
Every part is useful, including bark, needles, resin, nuts and cones. Many cough drops and syrups contain pine extract because of its ability to open the lungs, improve breathing, kill bacterial infections, and eliminate congestion. In folk medicine, pine bark and needles have been used for respiratory problems. In Native American healing traditions, pine was valued as sacred and nutritious.
They use pine needles and resin to prepare steamed herbs and incense to relieve asthma and bronchitis and to open the sinuses. They also used them to prevent scurvy and strengthen the immune system, since it has an abundant amount of vitamin C. As a tincture, they used pine to treat stomach aches and fever. With just three hands full of needles from each healthy, mature tree, and gathering half a pot of needles together, add enough water to fill the pot and let it simmer.
A powder made from the outer bark of pine trees is even sold as a modern dietary supplement, which according to the manufacturer “can contribute to healthier cardiovascular and circulatory function”. Externally, pine needles are added to skin care ointments “because pine is astringent, reduces pore size and fine wrinkles. Pine resin oil warms and can be applied to sore muscles, cold extremities, aching joints or as a relaxing chest massage. Harvesting, even just a little, scares the tree for life, and harvesting too much will kill it completely.
Most species of pine and other conifers can be used interchangeably, with slight variations in energy qualities or actions. The first step in identification is to ensure that you have real pine (from the genus Pinus) and then reduce it to the exact species. Interestingly (at least for me), Chinese medicine also uses pine to relieve stress, anxiety, fatigue, nervous tension and mental clarity, as well as for memory loss. Especially important now, since pine is a powerful tool for treating viruses, colds, coughs, bronchitis and sore throats.
All are considered safe to use and, as with pine, all parts can be used for medicinal purposes, including resin. Other conifers have cones that are sometimes confused with pine cones, so make sure you have a real pine tree and not an evergreen one. Anyway, when I place my hands on a healthy and sturdy pine tree and silently communicate with the tree and feel its energy, I can feel the tree expelling my anxious energy and refreshing me with its own fresh, calming and invigorating energy. Renowned Alabama herbalist Tommie Bass reported that “country people used to drink pine-cup tea every spring and fall to prevent colds.
Of course, nothing is 100% certain and everyone reacts to plants in different ways, but there is no evidence that pine needles cause problems in pregnant people (at least that's what I can find when reviewing studies on pine needles and abortions). .
