Pickles are a popular craving for pregnant women. A new clinical trial suggests that an ingredient used in pickles could provide more than just satisfying a craving.
This study published in the Journal of Herbal Medicine evaluated an herbal tea made with dill (Anethum graeolens) seed for reducing pain experienced during the early stages of labor pain.
A popular prescription drug used during labor is oxytocin. Unfortunately, some women do not respond well to oxytocin for labor pain as several side effects can occur including high blood pressure, slow heart rate, headache, nausea, slowing of contractions, and even rupture of the uterus.
A natural alternative popular in Iran is dill tea. Many benefits have been reported for dill including promoting appetite, stimulate milk flow, diuretic properties, reducing gastrointestinal gas and upset stomach.
A popular way to make this herbal tea is to crush 1-2 teaspoons of dill and mix with boiling water. The infusion is allowed to sit for 10 minutes before drinking. This infusion time will allow the good phytochemicals to be released into the tea.
The results of this clinical study found:
- The active phase of labor pain in the ‘Dill group’ was 4.21 hours compared to 6.01 hours in the ‘No Dill group’.
- Pain intensity was not different between the two groups.
Take away message: Dill herbal tea is one of the most popular herbal teas for reducing labor pain in Iranian women. This retrospective study suggests that Dill herbal tea could reduce the length of labor pain. Further studies are needed to assess the safety and efficacy of Dill for reducing labor pain. *Before consuming an herbal tea during pregnancy please consult your health care professional.
Journal of Herbal Medicine Volume 5, Issue 1, March 2015, Pages 26–29
His research on plant medicine has led to more than 45 publications and abstracts.This research has been presented at international meetings in the USA, France, Turkey, Peru, Israel, Austria, and Italy.
Categories: Clinical Trials, Pain
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