Chamomile or Matricaria recutita is the name given to a group of daisy flowering plants that have a wide scope of usage in medicine. These plant are native to Europe and Asia but are now grown around the world during the mid summer season. It is a flowering plant having flowers which have white petals which are connected through yellow coloured central disc florets. Fully grown Chamomile plant ranges between 25 to 40 centimetres. The chief constituents of Chamomile include a-bisabolol, bisabolol oxide A, a-pinene, camphene, myrcene, y-terpinene etc. Chamomile is rich in enzymes that have anti allergic and anti inflammatory effect which makes them a perfect constituent in medicines.
Chamomile is proved beneficial in the cases of fever, sore throat, insomnia, skin infection, swelling etc. It is also helpful in relaxing mind and reducing tension. It also relaxes body muscles and is also applied on hair as well. It is also a remedy for gastric and other stomach problems. It helps in menstrual cramps and also as a relaxing component. Before you start using chamomile shampoo, lotion, oil or chamomile tea, you should read this article to the end.
Even though it has wide range of healing effects still there are some side-effects as well. Even though Food and Drug Administration (FDA) treats Chamomile as a safe herb still some precautions have to be taken while consuming it. The side effects of chamomile are few but real. Most of the side effects due to consumption of Chamomile are allergic reactions but the problem with allergy is that you don’t know what thing you are allergic to. Hence the side effect of Chamomile is not universal and is particularly restricted to those who are prone to allergies. Some of the common symptoms which can alert you of being allergic to Chamomile include itching of eyes and skin, rashes, dizziness etc. Some of the severe symptoms include shortening of breath and constant sneezing.
Consumption of Chamomile in any form is generally not advised for pregnant woman. Many researchers have been carried out to prove that consumption of Chamomile during pregnancy causes unwanted effects in body like thinning of blood, stomach ache etc. Doctors do not recommend its consumption during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
Regular and heavy dosage of Chamomile can cause vomiting and dizzying effect in body as the presence of camphene chemical causes imbalance in the body if its quantity increases in body. Excess usage of chamomile on face causes extra softening of skin which leads to development of rashes and the skin pigments start losing colour. People who are allergic to ragweed plant family are also not advised to consume Chamomile as it is also a part of ragweed family. Allergic people can develop some body disorder like excessive headache, skin irritation etc. One severe side effect of Chamomile includes thinning of blood. Hence consumption of Chamomile is avoided for people who have bleeding disorders. People generally take bath with water mixed with chamomile leaf. Proper care should be taken as any contact of Chamomile water with eyes can cause irritation and itching of eyes. Strong Chamomile dosage to infants and children can lead to side effects and cause sedation, dizziness and vomiting.
One more thing that should be kept in mind is that if you are taking any other medical dose then lot of care should be taken to make sure that Chamomile consumption may dilate the effect of the other medicines. One should always consult a doctor to get expert advice over the exact dose and side effects of consumption of Chamomile.
Generally herbs are not as dangerous still it is always good to take precautions. Over dose of any herb should be avoided and if there are any symptoms of side effect then the patient should immediately consult a doctor.
