Periwinkle Cures and Natural Remedies

| Modified on Dec 12, 2018
Periwinkle offers a lovely little flower, but it is the leaves and the seeds that are used in folk medicine. The leaves and seeds are rich in the chemical vincamine, an alkaloid that has positive effects on memory and has long been used to combat the effects of aging. In the body, it metabolizes into the brain chemical, vinpocetine.

Lesser Periwinkle or common periwinkle (vinca minor) is most often the species within the periwinkle family that is used for natural medicinal purposes. It is known as an astringent agent and as good for controlling excessive blood flow. In that last roll, it is used to treat wounds and to reduce menstrual flow.

Diabetes: However, periwinkle is best known as a natural remedy to help those with diabetes. Periwinkle is said to control swings in blood sugar. There is only limited data to support to this contention, though it has a long history of use behind it for that purpose as an herbal remedy.

Periwinkle is often and most safely taken as a tea.




Cancer

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Posted by Jowie (Dubai, Philippines) on 07/04/2011
★★★★★

Yes it is very true and I just need to share my family's experience about this wonderful herb! My 2 cousins who had endometrial (stage 3) and cervical (stage 4) cancers were advised by my mother who was a herbalist to take periwinkle tea using its roots (OVER BITTER!!! ) at least for 3 cups a day or as much as they could and after 6 months their cancers went down to stage 1 after a year they were completely healed. It's been 20 years now and both my cousins are very healthy and still maintaining to drink their teas regularly. KUDOS to Periwinkle...

Replied by Serrell
(Los Angeles, California. Usa)
05/11/2013

Would like to try this as I have been on a high alkaline raw diet for 7 years and have held diagnosis of Non-Hodgkins Low-grade lymphoma at bay. Would like to try the periwinkle root tea. However, would also like to know how periwinkle is poisonous? Serrell :)

Replied by Dr Charles
(India)
06/15/2015
★★★★★

Rosy Periwinkle is a noteworthy medicinal herb, much more so than the other Vincas, though they also have a few medicinal qualities.Of the three different Periwinkles , Madagascar or "Rosy" Periwinkle is by far the most important plant medicinally, generating hundreds of millions per year in the pharmaceutical industry as a promising addition to the arsenal against childhood leukemia, Hodgkin's Disease, testicular cancer and cancerous tumors, high blood pressure, and uncontrolled bleeding, not to mention the fact that it has powerful tranquilizing properties. Unfortunately, this plant can also be poisonous if used inappropriately. Historically, Rosy Periwinkle has been used to treat high blood sugar in diabetics, and many cultures still drink teas made out of the plant for this purpose. I really want to say that it has worked on me and now my FATHER inlaw....But as the saying is what's good for the goose, might not be good for the gander.

Replied by Tj
(Ny)
12/03/2015

Hi, Do you take leaves or root? Where can I find the product? Thanks.

Replied by Jennifer
(St Lucia)
11/14/2016

You spoke about making a tea with the roots of the periwinkle ...what amount of roots and could it be done from any particular (pink or white?)

Replied by Tilley
(Papua New Guinea)
05/26/2017

All parts of periwinkle performs wonders. We are abundantly blessed here in Papua New Guinea. It's growth in all parts of Papua New Guinea.

Replied by Richard
(Spokane Wa)
06/26/2017

Where can I find periwinkle root, I can find no herbalist who sells it.

Replied by Iowama
(Usa)
06/27/2017

Hi Richard, You can find Periwinkle in your local garden center and it will grow well in a pot or in a shady spot in your yard. Common names can trip people up, so you want to make sure you search images of Vinca Minor before you purchase it, as that is the species EC is referring to in it's herbal remedy section. As to how the tea is prepared, I can offer no experience there. Vinca minor tends to naturalize easily across the US, and it is coming into bloom, so that if you study the images online, you can probably find it growing abundantly, possibly beneath a tree, in someone's yard in your area. Best of luck to you in this.

Replied by Vinita
(Mumbai)
03/06/2018

Hi,

Was just reading everyone's experience with the magical Periwinkle and it seems like I should try it too. My dog has been detected with liver cancer. The day we heard this we all were devastated. That's when my mom she told me about periwinkle and its benefits, however I do not know how to give him as a supplement. Can anybody suggest a way I can give him or if I can add something like honey or any other alternative? Please help me the amount of dosage as well, would be of a great help to me and my family.

Warren
(Tennessee, Us)
12/11/2018

@Vinita,

Whether or not you use Vinca for the dog's liver cancer, you should be giving it a bit of Milk Thistle powder AND Turmeric powder, daily. Both will heal and protect the liver from further damage and help fight off the cancer.

Replied by Prathi
(Mauritius)
03/08/2018

Hi, would like to know how to take it and which colour as in mauritius we have pink & white colour mum uses the leaf for infusion to drink, so I would like to have some advise from you, I'm suffering from endometriosis. Pls help thanks a lot


Cancer
Posted by Parla (Texas) on 05/06/2011

My grand-daughter had leukemia when she was 6. she is 23 now. they cured her with the periwinkle drug vincristine. The camp they send children with cancer is called "Camp Periwinkle".


Diabetes

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Posted by Shad (Houston, TX) on 01/28/2009
★★★★★

My deceased father used to take 2 flowers (10 petals) first thing in the morning and breakfast after 30 minutes, it kept his diabetes in control. Before using this traetment his diabetes was uncontrolled.

Replied by Looi
(Penang, Malaysia)
06/29/2016

What colour flower did your father eat? Does colour matter? Hope you will reply me.Tqs.

Replied by Deependra Gautam
(Nepal)
09/10/2016

It is better to use white flower then pink. According to my grandfather, he got better result while using white flower. He said me that should give priority to the white flower, then after pink then leaves.


Diabetes
Posted by Hariom (Sampla[rohtak], Haryana INDIA) on 08/27/2008
★★★★★

SADABAHAR
Comman Name: Sadabahar Sadaphul, Sadasuhagan
English Name: Tropical Periwinkle

It is a perennial herb, erect, much branched. 70-80 cm high. Leaves alliptic to obovate, rounded retuse or mucronulate at apex acute at base. Flowers in 1-4 flowered cymes. Calyx segments subulate. Corolla whitish or pinkish. Follicles 2-3 cm long, pubescnt.

Parts used : Leaves and roots

Diabetes-If anyone is suffering from diabetes [sugar] can be cured by sadabahr flower.

Take five to seven pinkish [not white] fresh flower. Boil two cup of water. in one cup add the flower and keep covered. after some time about 30 mintue throw the flower and drink the water. after that drink the second cup of water. do not eat any thing for 30 mintue do for seven days. after seven days stop for seven days then repeat again for seven days. keep checked your sugar.


Periwinkle Feedback

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Posted by HARIOM (SAMPLA, HARYANA [INDIA]) on 09/10/2008

From: http://kyamera.blogspot.com/2006/09/rosy-periwinkle.html

A flower, that looked very familiar, but seen in the premises of Jungle Lodges at BR Hills , it caught my attention. Took the usual snaps, expecting to label it with Kehimkar's Indian Wild flowers book. The flowers were not seen in the book, surprise, and somehow I stumbled upon the label Rosy Periwinkle, a plant from Madagascar that has given some major cancer saving drugs. I can't believe it, I seem to notice this plants almost everywhere now.....

Traditional healers in Madagascar used this plant for treating diabetes. Curious with this, western researchers, dug in, and studied the effects of the chemicals in the leaves on rats, they noticed that the blood sugar levels of the animals were not affected but rather their white blood cell counts had decreased, thus its anti-cancer properties were discovered. Vincristine and Vinblastine are powerful anticancer agents, and are two of the most important medicinal compounds found in plants in the last 40 years. Vincristine is a standard treatment for Hodgkin's disease, and vinblastine for childhood leukemia. Although extracts from Madagascar periwinkle have been shown to lower blood sugar levels, simple preparations of the whole plant may not be effective.

Long before modern researchers learned of the plant's valuable and varied properties, folk healers in faraway places were using the Madagascar periwinkle for a host of medicinal purposes. In India, they treated wasp stings with the juice from the leaves. In Hawaii, they prescribed an extract of the boiled plant to arrest bleeding. In Central America and parts of South America, they made a gargle to ease sore throats and chest ailments. In Cuba, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, and other islands, an extract of the flowers was commonly administered as a soothing eyewash. Periwinkle is used in folk medicine in the Philippines as a remedy for diabetes. Most of these practices are still followed.

Rosy periwinkle grows up to two and a half feet tall. Leaves are oval and have a glossy surface. The five-lobed flowers are usually white or light pink. Note the leaves in this pic. Periwinkle was called "sorcerers violet" by the French, in reference to its use in charms and love potions. Europeans also believed that periwinkle had the power to exorcise evil spirits. Medieval Europeans used rosy periwinkle frequently in garlands to protect the bearer. The Italians placed garlands of the plant on the graves of infants, calling it the flower of death. During the Enlightenment in Europe, the French considered periwinkle an emblem of friendship. Low light conditions, some of the flowers have come out bright!!!!

Lets look at Vinblastine in detail. Vinblastine has become a widely applied drug, and is today used primarily in the treatment of the following conditions by interfering with glutamic acid metabolism (specifically, the pathways leading from glutamic acid to the Krebs cycle and to urea formation).

Hodgkin's disease
Lymphocytic lymphoma
Histiocytic lymphoma
Advanced testicular cancer
Advanced breast cancer
Kaposi's sarcoma
Letterer-Siwe disease

Vincristine is interesting too. This vinca alkaloid is a spindle inhibitor and is a cell specific agent, blocking cells in the metaphase of mitosis. During mitosis, the DNA of a cell replicates, dividing into two new cells. The vinca alkaloids therefore affect all rapidly dividing cell types, including cancer cells but also as intestinal epithelium and bone marrow.

Vincristine is used primarily to treat

Acute leukemia
Rhabdomyosarcoma
Neuroblastoma
Hodgkin's disease
Lymphomas
Breast cancer
Multiple myeloma.
Well, I don't know most of the listed cancer disorders, anyways these two alkaloids are impressive. Herz the chemical structure of these two guyz.

So, Rosy Periwinkle, you can't miss this plant. Look for it, and take your hats off to it ;-))


Periwinkle Feedback
Posted by Rafael (Miami, FL) on 05/06/2007
★★★★★

Just to let you know of a few cures that periwinkle flower work. My mother is from Cuba and most of the remedies when i was a kid were from plants i used to make fun, especially taking periwinkle flowers boiling them and used as an eyewash for eye infections. She said the white flower periwinkle, but who knows if the other colors work. But let me tell it works and now i found out the there is chemotherapy for leukemia made from this flower so i guess mom was right. Also used as a mouth gargle for strep.

Replied by HARIOM
(SAMPLA, Haryana INDIA)
09/04/2008

IN india it is called "SADABAHAR" beacause it flower is bloom throughout year.
Comman Name: Sadabahar Sadaphul, Sadasuhagan
English Name: Tropical Periwinkle

It is a perennial herb, erect, much branched. 70-80 cm high. Leaves alliptic to obovate, rounded retuse or mucronulate at apex acute at base. Flowers in 1-4 flowered cymes. Calyx segments subulate. Corolla whitish or pinkish. Follicles 2-3 cm long, pubescnt.

Parts used : Leaves and roots

Diabetes-If anyone is suffering from diabetes [sugar] can be cured by sadabahr flower.

Take five to seven pinkish [not white] fresh flower. Boil two cup of water. in one cup add the flower and keep covered.after some time about 30 mintue throw the flower and drink the water.after that drink the second cup of water.donot eat any thing for 30 mintue do for seven days. after seven days stop for seven days then repeat again for seven days. keep checked your sugar.

Replied by HARIOM
(SAMPLA, Haryana, INDIA)
09/04/2008

If we want to cure our obesity take five to seven white flower [not pink] in morning empty stomch for seven days then stop for seven days.again repeat same ways you will loose extra weight in few days and also feel good."

The plant contains very precious alkaloids ' vincristine' and 'vinblastine' which are used in allopathic medicine as anti-cancer injections. The herb leaves are very useful in controlling the diabetes. The herb leaves are mixed with other herbs to get good results.

Replied by Diana
(Clarendon, Jamaica)
05/17/2014

If periwinkle is such a healer, why don't doctors recommend it for cancer and diabetes?

Replied by Qoolmama
(Mobile, AL)
07/25/2014

Diane, that is because they are in with the pharmaceutical companies. They get incentives for pushing to drugs. Big business - big money. That is why they scare people away from herbal remedies.


Weight Loss

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Posted by Hariom (Sampla[rohtak], Haryana INDIA) on 08/28/2008
★★★★★

Sadabahar: If we want to cure our obesity take five to seven white flower[not pink] in morning empty stomch for seven days then stop for seven days.again repeat same ways you will loose extra weight in few days and also feel good.

Replied by Tirzah
(So Oc, US)
11/03/2014

Hi, Such an interesting thread. Wondering if some are consuming the actual flowers, or only in tea? Also, does anyone have a reference source for whether flowers or leaves or better for various things, and if color makes a real difference.

Thank you.

Replied by Anton
(Hong Kong)
08/10/2016

Please be very careful, posters are confusing two very different plants here. The is about Vinca minor and major, not Catharanthus roseus whose compounds are used to treat cancer. Both are commonly called periwinkles. Both are used "medicinally" but Catharanthus roseus is highly toxic and should not be used to make tea or for any home remedies! Isolated pure compounds taken from Catharanthus roseus are used to treat various forms of cancer, this is an aggressive chemotherapy, controlled poisoning, treatments with serious side effects. The plant is toxic and can kill depending on the amount ingested both humans, livestock.

Vinca minor and major however are not toxic and none of their compounds are used in chemotherapy. Any medicinal properties have not been verified outside of folklore.

"The 16th century book entitled ‘the boke of secretes of Albertus Magnus of the vertues of Herbes, Stones and certaine beastes', talks of the power of periwinkle (Vinca minor) to produce love between a man and his wife. It must be powdered and mixed with leeks and earthworms and then added to the couple's meals."

Enjoy! Remember to cook those earth worms well as they carry parasitic organisms. Leave Catharanthus roseus to pharmaceutical companies and medical experts.

Always use Latin names to verify and avoid potentially life threatening confusion. Toxic plants should never be experimented with as home remedies.

It is true many toxic plants are used around the world in primitive societies as medicine but knowing exact dossage and the risks involved is a very fine art passed down through generations of traditional herbalists. Even then results are not always predictable. Modern medicine is often not available to those communities so the high risks involved are often only on a locally tolerated threshold. Yes they might have been for literally thousands of years. These same high risks are much rarer in Western medicine, and not seen as widely accceptable.

Replied by Abdul R.
(Pakistan)
09/11/2016

Peace be upon you... Thank you for article. When we take breakfast after eating flowers, tell me how much time.