- The toxins contained in periwinkle
- The periwinkle as a medicinal plant - with severe restrictions
- The danger for pets in the house and garden
The affiliation to the dogbane family (Apocynaceae) already makes it clear: the lesser periwinkle (Vinca minor), like the greater periwinkle Vinca major, contains toxins in not insignificant amounts.
Vinca Minor is toxic but also has healing properties
The toxins contained in periwinkle
The periwinkle Vinca minor contains more than 40 different alkaloids in all parts of the plant. Mainly substances such as vincamine and the poison eburnamenin become effective when absorbed into the body. Since 1987, preparations made from periwinkle have been largely banned in Germany because animal experiments have shown blood damage. Certain homeopathic preparations and products are exempt from this ban. In any case, you should refrain from experimenting with the active ingredients of periwinkle.
The periwinkle as a medicinal plant - with severe restrictions
The Immergün Vinca minor used to be considered a medicinal plant with a soothing effect on the following complaints, for example:
- tonsillitis
- boil
- stomach inflammation
- circulatory problems
- high blood pressure
Substances extracted from periwinkle are still used today in the treatment of leukemia. Here, however, serious side effects of the only slightly poisonous plant are accepted by medicine. Periwinkle should no longer be considered as a medicinal plant in natural medicine, since the vincamine it contains reduces the number of leukocytes and thus increases the susceptibility to infections.
The danger for pets in the house and garden
In principle, periwinkle can also have a toxic effect on the organism of dogs and cats. However, in addition to many far more poisonous garden plants, it rarely happens that animals ingest significant amounts of poisonous parts of plants. This is only conceivable, for example, if the periwinkle is cultivated as a potted plant in the house and, for example, a house cat has no cat grass available. But at least be aware of the potential danger and be vigilant as a pet owner.
tips
Due to the long and flexible shoots, parts of the periwinkle are often used for wreaths after pruning. Since the mere touching of the parts of the plant usually does not result in any negative effects, no special protection against the toxic ingredients of the periwinkle is necessary here, as with other care measures.