Indian Tobacco – NOT JUST ANY LOBELIA

I recently came across an article which is going the rounds extolling the virtues of a herb referred to only as Lobelia. Which is great, and it’s not that I want to corner the market in herbal remedies, BUT this article is incorrect in such a way as to be actively dangerous to the uninformed, and only goes to prove how important it is that those of us who know about herbs give the full facts.

I have put a botanical picture of Lobelia inflata at the top of this post, which I assume is the herb the lady in question was talking about. This herb also goes by the names Indian tobacco, pukeweed and asthma weed. I’m only guessing, of course, as there are several species of Lobelia that can be used for medicinal purposes, including L. cardinalis (Cardinal flower), L. dortmanna (Water Lobelia) and L. spicata (Pale Spike). There’s also L. syphilitica, which was once used by native Americans in the treatment of venereal disease, but is now generally only used in homeopathy, and L. radicans (syn. L. chinensis), used in Chinese herbalism.

There is also a very poisonous plant, Lobelia tupa, also known as devil’s tobacco. It’s so poisonous that people have been known to get sick just by smelling it. So that you don’t get mixed up and use that by mistake, I’m putting a picture of it in this post for you to see.

Indian tobacco (as opposed to its sibling devil’s tobacco) is a very useful plant, especially for those who are trying to give up smoking. However, it should not be taken in large amounts, because it contains lobeline (which has an effect similar to nicotine – which itself is extremely poisonous – and can be used as a tobacco substitute to aid withdrawal). It’s also useful for treating coughs and asthma, and similar symptoms often experienced by those who are trying to give up smoking.

Having said all this, Indian tobacco is not a remedy suitable for use without a herbalist’s supervision, and therefore, I’m not recommending that you grow it for home use. However, it does make a nice ornamental for bedding, and comes in a variety of colors bred specifically for this purpose.

Related Posts

No related posts found

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.