Yellow Jasmine

Scientific Names

Jasminum officinale L.
Oleaceae
Olive family

Common Names

Jasmine plant
So-hsing (Chinese name)
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Description of Plant(s) and Culture

Jasmine is a vinelike plant that has opposite, dark green, pinnate leaves and sweet-smelling white flowers.
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Where Found

Grows in warm parts of the eastern hemisphere and now cultivated in gardens in the southern United States.
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Jasmine, originating in the Near East, takes its name from the Persian word jesamin. Its beautiful white flower is most famous for the perfumes made from its oil. In the first century AD, Dioscorides, a Greek physician and author of the famous book on medical herbs De Materia Medica, tells us that the Persians used jasmine oil to perfume the air at their banquets. To the Chinese the jasmine symbolizes womanly sweetness. In medieval Christian art, jasmine was associated with the Virgin Mary. Dreaming of jasmine is supposed to portend good fortune, especially in love.

According to folk lore, rubbing the body with the oil of jasmine can be sexually arousing.
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Uses

According to old herbals, jasmine flowers calm the nerves. However, others suggest that the scent arouses erotic interests, and a few drops of jasmine oil (if you can afford it) massaged on the body with some almond oil may help overcome frigidity. In India, jasmine is used as a remedy for snakebite, and the leaves are used for eye problems.

Other varieties: The Yellow Jasmine (Gelsemium sempervirens) is considered an analgesic, reduces blood pressure, is a sedative, and eases neuralgia. But caution should be noted. An overdose can cause nausea and double vision. One reference states this herb is a powerful CNS-depressant and is a deadly poison. Eating a single flower has resulted in death. It can also cause contact dermatitis.

Jasmine flowers (J. grandiflorum) (Sanskrit name is Jati) is used for emotional disturbances, headaches, fever, sunstroke, conjunctivitis, dermatitis, cystitis, bleeding disorders, bacterial infections, viral infections, cancer of the lymph nodes, cancer of the bones, and Hodgkin’s disease.
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Formulas or Dosages

Infusion: steep 1 to 2 tsp. jasmine flowers in 1 cup water. Take 1 cup per day.
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How Sold

Many jasmine teas are sold today. Drink 1 cup per day.
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Warning

Use this herb under medical supervision.
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Bibliography

Earl Mindell's Herb Bible, by Earl Mindell, R.Ph., Ph.D., Simon & Schuster/Fireside, Rockefeller Center 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10020

Indian Herbalogy of North America, by Alma R. Hutchens, Shambala Publications, Inc., Horticultural Hall, 300 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, 1973

Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants, by Steven Foster and James A. Duke., Houghton Mifflin Company, 215 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10000

The Yoga of Herbs, by Dr. David Frawley & Dr. Vasant Lad, Lotus Press, Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, Second edition, 1988.

Webster's New World Dictionary, Third College Edition, Victoria Neufeldt, Editor in Chief, New World Dictionaries: A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc., 15 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10023, 1984

The Rodale Herb Book, edited by William H. Hylton, Rodale Press, Inc. Emmaus, PA, 18049., 1974