Melilotus officinalis is a tall herbaceous plant of the legume family, growing from 50 cm to 1.5 m or more. Its stem is dense, branched, and becomes woody at the base, while the leaves are trifoliate, petiolate, with a blue-green hue on top and paler underneath—hence its common name, "trifoliate." The flowers are yellow, small, arranged in upright racemes, blooming from June to September, with seeds harvested in August. The root is taprooted and branched, and the fruit is an oblong pod with a beak.
Melilotus contains active substances: coumarin and dicoumarin, which have anticoagulant properties; melilotin, melilotic and coumaric acids, melilotose glycosides; essential oil (about 0.01%); as well as proteins (up to 21%), fiber (up to 25%), and fat-like substances. These components provide anti-inflammatory, spasmolytic, vasodilator, and blood-thinning effects.
The medicinal value of Melilotus is shown in its wide range of applications: it improves blood circulation, relieves spasms, and aids in blood thinning, making it effective for varicose veins, thrombosis, atherosclerosis, and hypertension. In folk medicine, fresh grass, infusions, powder, and decoctions are used to treat upper respiratory tract diseases, lung conditions, gynecological problems, flatulence, rheumatic pain, gout, hemorrhoids, digestive disorders, insomnia, neurasthenia, heart, and headaches. Melilotus is also used as an antispasmodic, wound-healing, anticonvulsant, and galactagogue agent.
Thus, Melilotus officinalis is a versatile plant with a rich chemical composition, which has a beneficial effect on the cardiovascular system, nervous system, and overall body condition, as well as a wide range of therapeutic properties.
