Sage plant

Salvia: The Sage Plant

Salvia, also referred to as the sage plant, is a small shrub-like plant that grows all over the world. The mature leaf size of the plant ranges from one and a half inches to two inches, and it grows to a height of around one foot. Additionally, the normally green leaves have a white, wool-like covering that turns gray in dry weather. The sage plant's blooms are typically grouped together at the top of a budding stalk, and they can be a variety of hues, most frequently violet-blue, white, or pink. These flowers have a height of just over one inch (Rogers 1).

The plant is cultivated in different areas of the world, including but not limited to Europe, the Middle East, America, and Asia. The best conditions for planting the sage herb include a soil temperature of between sixty and 70 Fahrenheit. The soils should also be considerably nutrient rich to ensure the plant grows properly. After sowing the seeds, the plant takes approximately two to three weeks to germinate and may need mulching in the colder climates. After reaching maturity, the sage plant should be harvested by pruning the top. The leaves and the flowers are usually dried and used for different purposes.

Historical Uses of Sage

Historically sage has been used for a variety of purposes. However, most ancient societies used sage as medicine for treating a variety of ailments. The Egyptians, Chinese, Americans, and Europeans are among some of the major communities that used sage extensively for medicinal reasons. For instance, sage was used to treat abdominal discomfort, mouth, and teeth disorders, menstrual problems, and wounds. Apart from being used as medicine, sage has been used as a preservative. The Romans often used sage as a meat preservative. In addition, Sage was also used cosmetically. The plant was recommended to people with oily skins. Others used sage extracts to soothe the skin after shaving. Ancient societies also used sage for culinary purposes. The Italians fried whole leaves of sage and eat. To date, sage maintains most of its purposes even though the society has refined the plant (Avogel).

Religious, Superstitious, and Mythical Beliefs

Due to the numerous uses of sage, people began attaching religious, superstitious, and mythical value to the plant. Some communities considered the plant sacred and it was used in religious as well as traditional ceremonies for purification. People also told mythical stories of how the sage came to have its curative properties with some indicating that God blessed the plant, thus giving it the ability to heal and treat different diseases. Magicians and witches also believed that the sage plant was magical and it was connected to Jupiter and the air. All these beliefs ensured that sage gained a good reputation among different societies in the world.

Scientific Research on Sage

As the society advanced, the modern man developed science and had to separate myth and superstition from reality. Hence, they carried out scientific research to determine the chemical composition of the sage plant as well as the uses of these components in curing diseases. Different scholars carried out research to determine the medicinal value of sage (Hamidpour et al.; Keshavarz, et al.; Khalil and Li). It was proven that sage had healing effects as well as disease mitigating effects. For instance, the plant's extracts could be used to prevent the proliferation of cancerous cells and improve memory in people suffering from mild Alzheimer's. This project seeks to discuss the sage plant. As such, it affords focuses on the common uses of the plant, the myths, stories, and superstition that accompany the sage plant and scientific evidence on curative capabilities of Sage.

Conclusion

Even though the value of the sage plant is not overstated in all accounts, other people attached stories and superstition to plant. This research shows that some communities believed that the plants thrived in gardens where the woman was the head of the household. In France, people believed that it could be used to reduce grief. These myths and superstition only served to distract from the real value of the sage plant. Evidence from the research has shown that the sage plant has extensive uses, including medical, culinary, aesthetic, and cosmetic application. The common culinary application includes the use of the sage leaves as spices, which enrich the taste of food. Some people use sage in poultry stuffing. The plant is rich in vitamins, particularly vitamin K, B and C. In addition, it contains traces of calcium, which is useful in bone development. Apart from the culinary use, some people in the ancient society often used the plant to preserve their foods. The dry herbs of the plant have antibacterial attributes, which inhibit the growth of food spoiling bacteria.

Sage's medicinal value can also not be underestimated. Both traditional and modern medicine has shown that the sage plant can be used in treating wounds, abdominal disorders, and circulatory challenges. The healing effect of the sage plant has been attributed to the chemical compounds found in the plant. Approximately 20% of the plant chemical composition is camphor, which is the key component of the essential oil. The study also showed that sage has 28 other compounds, such as camphene, borneol, salvianolic acid, caffeic acid, and rosmarinic acid. These chemical components play a major role in curing diseases. For instance, rosmarinic and caffeic acid are strong antioxidants, which provide the body the ability to deal with oxidative stress. Extensive clinical trials have been carried out and scholars have concluded that sage can be used in treating diabetes, reducing proliferation of cancer and improve memory.

Based on the finding in the study, it would be recommendable if the scientific research conducts further research to determine if sage has other medical values. The ability of the medicine to reduce the metastasis of cancerous cells shows that it can be a solution to dealing with cancer, which has become a major killer in the contemporary society. Therefore, this paper recommends that cancer patients utilize the sage plant to reduce the rapid spread of cancer. The research also proposes the use of this natural solution in dealing with diabetes.

Works Cited

Avogel. Salvia Officinalis L. 2013. 7 July 2017. .

Hamidpour, Rafie, et al. "Chemistry, Pharmacology and Medicinal Property of Sage (Salvia) to Prevent and Cure Illness Such as Obesity, Diabetes, Depression, Lupus, Dementia, Autism, Heart Disease, and Cancer." Global Journal of Medical Research Pharma, Drug Discovery, Toxicology and Medicine 13.7 (2013).

Keshavarz, Maryam, et al. "Anti-Tumor Activity of Salvia officinalis is Due to Its Antiangiogenic, Anti-migratory and Anti-proliferative effects." Cell Journal 12.4 (2011): 477-482.

Khalil, Rami, and Zheng-Guo Li. "Antimicrobial activity of essential oil of Salvia officinalis L. collected in Syria." Journal of Biotechnology 10.2 (2011): 8397-8402.

Rogers, Maureen. "Sage." 2014. herbalpedia. 7 July 2017. .