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Bilberry as an Herb
(Vaccinium myrtillus)
Bilberry, a relative of blueberry, belongs to the heath family. A small shrub with sweet black berries, it grows in heaths and woods of northern Europe, as well as western Asia, and the Rocky Mountains of western North America.
An ancient food plant of Europe, bilberry emerged as a medicinal herb in the sixteenth century. The leaves were used for their astringent, tonic, anti-inflammatory, and antiseptic qualities.
Medicinal Uses of Bilberry
The dried berry tea was used as an astringent for diarrhea and dysentery, a diuretic, and a cooling nutritive tonic; also to prevent scurvy (vitamin C deficiency) and to stop bleeding. It is also used as an astringent and disinfectant for mouth inflammations.
During the Second World War, pilots in the British Royal Air Force reported improved night vision after eating bilberry jam. In the 1960s, these reports led Italian and French scientists to research the berries for their effects on vision problems.
In Europe, herbal preparations of bilberry fruit are used to enhance poor microcirculation, thus improving eye conditions such as night blindness and diabetic retinopathy. Bilberry is recommended for managing varicose veins and hemorrhoids, and rebuilding healthy connective tissue, but unfortunately most studies have involved animals or only a small number of humans. In Germany, the dried berries are sold for the traditional use of treating mild diarrhea and minor inflammations of the mucous membranes of the throat and mouth. More studies are needed.
The fruit is helpful in scurvy and urinary complaints, and when bruised with the roots and steeped in gin has diuretic properties valuable in dropsy and gravel. A tea made of the leaves is also a remedy for diabetes if taken for a prolonged period.
Tablets and capsules of the dried fruits are available.
Culinary
Stewed with a little sugar and lemon peel in an open tart, Bilberries make a very enjoyable dish.
Before the War, immense quantities of Bilberries were imported annually from Holland, Germany and Scandinavia. They were used mainly by pastry cooks and restaurant-keepers.
Owing to its rich juice, the Bilberry can be used with the least quantity of sugar in making jam: half a pound of sugar to the pound of berries is sufficient if the preserve is to be eaten soon. The minuteness of the seeds makes them more suitable for jam than currants.
Recipe for Bilberry Jam
Put 3 pounds of clean, fresh bilberry fruit in a preserving pan with 1-1/2 pound of sugar and about 1 cupful of water and bring to a boil. Boil rapidly for 40 minutes. Apple juice made from windfalls and peelings, instead of the water, will improve this jam. To make apple juice, cover the apples with water, stew down, and strain the juice through thick muslin. Blackberries may also be added to this mixture. If the jam is to be kept long it must be bottled hot in screw-top jars, or, if tied down in the ordinary way, more sugar must be added.
Cautions
No side effects, contraindications, or interactions with other drugs have been reported.
DISCLAIMER: These pages are presented solely as a source of INFORMATION and ENTERTAINMENT and to provide stern warnings against use where appropriate. No claims are made for any historical herbal treatment. In no way can the information provided here take the place of the standard, legal, medical practice of any country. Some plants are extremely toxic and should be used only by licensed professionals. Some plants used for illness in the past have proven to be ineffective for the problems to which they were applied.