Vegetative balms (СО2- extracts) and their using in medicine
LLC "Fito-Aromat"
As is known, the aim of processing of plants in Hermes’s medicine was not to use physical properties of a vegetative juice by the most favourable method, but to draw out a vital force of a plant, its essence, soul or Balm. (from Greek: “Balsamon” is aromatic resin). Ancient Hermes’s followers spoke, that the balm was an oily main essence of a plant, it was neither ordinary oil, no salt, no water, no ground, but it was something rather ether, - balm is a carrier of astral body of a plant. As a matter of fact, the medicinal force of a plant is contained in its spirit. The primary substance extracted from a plant is a nutritious remedy. It mostly has the form of oil containing the main stock of vital forces. The vegetative resins don’t turn rancid, don’t rot, don’t go bad, and they have the specific, pleasant odour. Some resins dry up at evaporation of volatile substances, others keep liquid or semiliquid consistence for a long time – the last are called “balms”. Due to resins the odour of aromatic plants more stable than the odour of essential oils.
Now, the modern technology of processing of vegetative raw material (СО2-extraction) allows to get aromatic resins (balms) almost from any plant.
It is well known that any plant comprises a set of biologically active substances in some amount and structure. There exist various methods of their obtaining. Extraction - obtaining by volatile solvents, maceration - obtaining by non-volatile solvents (spirit), enfleurage is a sorption method (obtaining by oils). Each method has merits and demerits.
The main point of the СО2-technology is extraction of molecules of various substances from medicinal and aromatic plants by a non-polar solvent - liquid carbon dioxide (CO2). The СО2-extraction technology allows to keep intact thermo- and oxy-labile substances in extraction product - that is because of low-temperature modes of raw material processing and extraction in an inert gas environment. The СО2-extraction technology is ecological pure process, because a liquid edible carbon dioxide is used as a solvent.
The advantage of the СО2-technology is that selectivity and high diffusion properties of a liquid carbon dioxide allow to control properties and structure of СО2-extracts being got. The extracts are original and ready to use products, not requiring additional processing. Along with volatile components traditionally designated as "essential oils", extracts contain non-volatile fraction, which includes lipo-vitamins, hormonal waxes, bitter substances etc.
СО2-extracts well harmonize with other lipophil components of mixtures, to which they are added. Besides, they are more convenient and more effective, than infusions and essential oils. СО2-extracts are compact to storage and transportation and stable at long-time storage.
There are complex of compounds, extracted from vegetative raw material with a liquid carbon dioxide, such as: aromatic, flavouring, wax-like and resinous substances, partly lipoids, and a group of “biologically active compounds”. The last includes liposoluble vitamins and pro-vitamins, hormonal substances, phytoncides (representing large group of vegetative antibiotics), antioxidants, bactericidal and bacteriostatic compounds and complexes from them.
The group of liposoluble biologically active substances is rather extensive and in СО2-extracts it represented by vitamins and pro-vitamins: E, F, D, K, and by carotinoids. They are vegetative biocatalysts. Most of СО2-extracts from herbs have anti-inflammatory, bacteriostatic or bactericidal properties. Biologically active substances, obtained by СО2-extractions, are in their natural environment consisting of resins, oils, and wax - this allows them to keep the heightened activity. So, this fact proves the great efficiency of medical using of СО2-extracts.
The liquid carbon dioxide does not support vital functions of microorganisms - thus, СО2-extracts are self-sterilized.
It is necessary to mark that the effect of single vitamins is amplified in combination with other vitamins. Along with substances relating to vitamins, many others organic compounds (sapogenins, azulenes and phytohormones) evince their biological activity.
Phytohormones of hop, which are drawn out to СО2-extract as a hormonal oils, are very interesting for practical using. A silver fir balm has very good perspectives. The value of silver fir balm is in its volatile fractions (phytoncides), which are activators of a man’s most important physiological processes and affect similar to vitamins and pro-vitamins. A man being within an aeration area of silver fir balm feels positive psychological emotions due to an influence of volatile phytoncides, negative ions of oxygen (ozone) and rather low bacterial infectiousness of environmental air. It is ascertained that in a man’s organism, under influence of volatile phytoncides at natural concentrations, the processes of accumulation and thriftier spending of vitamin С take place. Also positive oxidizing reactions take place, which have salutary influence on cardiovascular system, phagocytosis, activation of fermentative activity etc.
The silver fir balm has become generally used in herbal therapy in Russian health resorts of Pyatigorsk. The dispersion of the silver fir balm in a dose of 1 ml/m3 leads to destruction more than 80 % of diphtheritic and whooping-cough sticks, and 63 % of hemolytic streptococcuses during 30 minutes. The Moscow centre of non-traditional medicine has developed a lot of effective medical procedures using the silver fir balm.
Many of СО2-extracts have antioxidizing effect. For example, it is ascertained, that the extract of hips slows down an oxidation of hydrogenated fats and increases their stability to oxidation in 1,3 -1,6 times for 0,2 % concentration, and in 1,5-2,0 times for 0,5% concentration.
Selectivity of a liquid carbon dioxide and the soft modes of extraction process allow to get extracts, which are rich not only by essential oils, but number of other biologically active substances. For example, tanning agents, ascorbic acid, riboflavin (vitamin B), glycosides, gums and starch are drawn out by carbon dioxide extractions in addition to essential oils.
Institute of physical culture, medical institute and pharmacists’ scientific society of Krasnodar (Russia) have obtained very interesting data about medical properties of СО2-extracts. As a result of experimental observations, salutary therapeutic and anti-scald effects of St-John's-wort and milfoil balms have been discovered; also antibacterial and anti-fungus effects of horsemint balm have been discovered. The research of chemical structure of hip and St-John's-wort balms, fulfilled by laboratory of Almaty (Kazakhstan) pharmaceutical factory, is worth to be mentioned. For example, concentration of the hypericin, the most important substance in a St-John's-wort herb, usually equal 0,15%, but in St-John's-wort balm its concentration is 0,28 %. This fact allows to produce medical preparations based on St-John's-wort balm with purposeful, adjustable dose and with less amount of raw material; besides, the technological process in this case is much simpler.
The Foodstuffs Institute of Krasnodar also has interesting information for further medicinal developments about flagroot balm. About 90 % of essential oil of flagroot are substances with molecular masses 204 and more, and their general amount is more than 50. At least 19 sesquiterpene-hydrocarbons belong to them.
Also USA, England, Germany, Switzerland, Holland and China are interested in CO2-extraction as a very perspective technology – today all this countries are leading research in this direction. Besides, some companies in USA, England and Germany already produce CO2-extracts, mainly extracts of hop and spices. But their technology of extraction (supercritical extraction) is much more difficult and expensive, than “subcritical” technology, used by “Fito-Aromat” company. Nowadays, “Fito-Aromat” produces 24 kinds of CO2-extracts, all of them have the quality certificate.
The using of CO2-extracts in medicine, food, chemistry, perfumery, cosmetic, and others industries is a qualitative jump, allowing to get a new, ecologically pure and full of nature’s vital forces product with salutary effect.
