Herb of the Month

Oats (Avena sativa)

Marianne Hughes, with illustration by Hazel Brady

In Scotland we are lucky to have ready access to Oats (Avena sativa) to make porridge, oatcakes, and other tasty foods. Oats need more water and humidity than Wheat (Triticum aestivum), and dislike dry weather in early summer— so they’re a crop ideally suited to the Scottish climate, as elsewhere throughout the earth’s temperate zones. Medicinally, the whole plant (known as Oatstraw and gathered in August when the grains are ripe) is a good restorative tonic, ideal for depression and qi deficiency (Ody, 1993). This is perhaps why a bowl of Oat porridge every day during the dark winter feels so nourishing. Hippocrates (460 BC) advised ‘Let food be your medicine and medicine be your food’, and Oats can be described as a ‘nutraceutical’— an edible botanical that can have health benefits —as well as a prophylactic, that is a substance that prevents disease.

Medical herbalists, however, often refer to Oats as ‘nervine trophorestorative’. A trophorestorative is a herb that is nutritive and restorative, with a particular association or affinity for an organ, or organ system. In the case of Oats, the affinity is with the nervous system. Before considering the positive impact of Oats on the nervous system, it’s worth noting some other health benefits. Bartram (1998) lists the active constituents of Oats as glycosol flavones, proteins, Vitamin E and oil; and the corresponding actions as nerve restorative, anti-depressant, tranquilliser, brain tonic, cardiac tonic and thymoleptic (this is an older term for a substance that raises the mood and counteracts depression). Bartram suggests a number of preparations, but notes that ‘groats and oatmeal products are all beneficial but are not of the same efficacy as the fresh green plant’. He cites Vogel’s assertion that ‘Oats have the highest content of iron, zinc and manganese of all grain species.’

Research (e.g., Tiwari et al, 2011) suggests the consumption of Oats can lower cholesterol levels because of the beta-glucan content. This reduction in blood cholesterol can impact positively on heart function. Whole Oats also contain phenolic compounds and phytoestrogens that act as antioxidants, lowering the chronic inflammation associated with cardiovascular disease (Tang et al, 2015).

Culpeper (1649) observes that Oats can also be used externally: the meal of Oats boiled with vinegar and applied, takes away freckles and spots in the face, and other parts of the body. Indeed, Oats are often still used in poultices as an external emollient. The high silica content, the saponins, and the Vitamin E are ideal for soothing eczema, herpes, and shingles (Hoffman, 2002).

But what is it about Oats that impacts so positively on our nervous systems and earns Oats such a reputation as a nervine trophorestorative? In every 100 grams of Oats is 44% of our daily recommended intake of magnesium. Magnesium is a catalyst that helps the body utilise vitamins, minerals and

fats and is essential for the health of our heart muscles. It is also a natural sedative. In the same portion of Oats is 246% of our daily requirement of manganese— which nourishes nerves, brain, and muscles— and 52% of the phosphorus we need. Phosphorus works with calcium to aid nerve and brain functions (Clemens and Jan-Willem van Klinken, 2014), so perhaps keep adding that yoghurt or milk to your porridge.

In nineteenth-century America, Oatmeal was sold almost exclusively in pharmacies, and it was mostly suggested for consumption during recovery from illness. It wasn’t until the late nineteenth century that Ferdinand Schumacher, a German immigrant, helped promote Oatmeal to become the best-selling cereal in the USA. Over recent decades, however, the annual yield of Oats in the USA has fallen from seventeen million metric tonnes in 1960 to less than one million metric tonnes in 2012. The world-wide decline in the production of Oats is perhaps due to both climate change and the availability of subsidies for other crops such as soya and maize, which are often used for animal feed rather than direct human consumption. Here in Scotland, then, we should perhaps celebrate our Oat crop and sing its praises as a valuable companion that supports both our physical and mental health.

References

Bartram, T. (1998) Bartram’s Encyclopaedia of Herbal Medicine. Robinson: London

Bown, D. (2008) Encyclopaedia of Herbs. Royal Horticultural Society, Dorling Kindersley: London

Clemens, R. and Jan-Willem van Klinken, B. (2014) ‘Oats, more than just a whole grain: an introduction,’ in British Journal of Nutrition, 112 (52)

Hoffman, D. (2002) Holistic Herbal. Thorsons: London

Ody, P. (1993) The Complete Medicinal Herbal: A Practical Guide to the Healing Properties of Herbs. Skyhorse Publishing: New York

Potterton, D. ed., (1985/1649) Culpeper’s Complete Herbal. Foulsham and Co: Slough Tang, G. et al (2015) ‘Meta-analysis of the association between whole grain intake and coronary heart disease risk’, in American Journal of Cardiology, 115(5):625-9

Tiwari, U. and Cummins, E. (2011) ‘Metaanalysis of the effect of beta-glucan intake on blood cholesterol and glucose levels,’ in Nutrition, 27(10):1008-16