Lomatium Health Article

Description

The name lomatium generally refers to Lomatium dissectum, one of the numerous species and varieties of the Lomatium genus that is native to western North America. Lomatium is a member of the Apiaceae (carrot) family and grows in the northwestern United States and southwestern Canada. Like many wild plants that have attracted the attention of commercial interests, lomatium is presently threatened with extinction over parts of its range.

In the wild, lomatium grows in rocky soil and reaches a height of 3 ft (0.9 m). The entire lomatium plant is edible, and numerous Native American groups regarded the lomatium plant as a food source and medicinal remedy. For cultivation as an herbal remedy, lomatium roots are unearthed during the months between early spring and fall. Roots are washed and dried for several days. The roots are then sliced and allowed to dry again. When dried correctly, lomatium is said to keep its medicinal properties for 2–3 years. Lomatium's antimicrobial activity is due to the tetronic acids and glucoside of lute-olin that it contains. Other ingredients include the resin, which causes rash in some people, and coumarins, which could possibly cause rash as well. The coumarins, however, are being investigated for their possible usefulness in treating HIV infection.

Lomatium is also known as Indian biscuit root, biscuit root, desert parsley, desert parsnip, fern-leafed lomatium, ferula dissoluta, Indian desert parsnip, Indian parsnip, leptaotaenia dissecta, tohza, toza, and wild carrot.

General use

Many Native American groups recognized the value of lomatium as a source of nourishment and medicinal remedy. Lomatium root was peeled, dried, and ground into flour to make sweet-tasting biscuits. Lomatium seeds were eaten raw or roasted, or ground into flour for baking.

Native Americans chewed on the root to treat a range of respiratory infections. Lomatium was used for conditions including cold, flu, bronchitis, tuberculosis, hay fever, asthma, and pneumonia. Lomatium was also used in a tobacco mixture. The herb was smoked during rituals, and healers used the smoke to treat respiratory infections. Lomatium was used when the Native Americans were exposed to tuberculosis and other diseases that Europeans brought to North America.

When the world faced the influenza pandemic of 1917–18, Americans tried remedies such as castor oil, tobacco, aspirin, and morphine. American herbalists recommended use of lomatium, and the remedy was used with reported success, especially in the Southwest.