Pine

Other Names: Dwarf-Pine, Essence d’Aiguilles de Pin, Huile d’Aiguilles de Pin, Huile Essentielle de Pin, Huiles de Pin, Monterey Pine, Pin, Pin Écossais, Pin de Montagne, Pin de Monterey, Pin de Russie, Pin Sauvage, Pin Sylvestre, Pine Essential Oil, Pine Needle Oil, Pine Oils, Pini Atheroleum, Pini Turiones, Pino, Pinus radiata, Pinus sylvestris, Pix Liquida, Pumilio Pine, Scotch Fir, Scotch Pine, Swiss Mountain Pine.
Pine is actually a broad term that encompasses more than 170 different species of coniferous trees that fall within the Pinaceae family. People use the sprouts, needles, and bark to make medicine.
See also :

• Pine Bark
• Pine Pollen
• Pine Nut

Special Precautions of Pine

• Don’t confuse pine with fir shoots (Picea abies or Abies alba) or man-made “pine oil.”
• The potent mix of chemicals and active ingredients in pine can be dangerous for pregnant women, as it has been known in some situations to cause miscarriages.
• A few varieties of pine can be toxic when consumed, so always get your pine needles and bark from a certified herbalist and avoid picking needles in the wild, as you can’t be sure what other environmental or atmospheric factors may have contaminated the needles or roots.
• Because Monterey pine may lower blood pressure, it may have harmful effects when taken in combination with blood pressure medications.
• Asthma, allergy: Pine pollen can cause an increase in allergic symptoms, even in people who test negatively to pine skin tests.

Benefits and uses of Pine are

Also known as Pinus radiata, Monterey pine is said to contain high amounts of antioxidants. Research uncovered the presence of healing nutrients in pine needles (which is present in pine tree oil) such as flavonoids, procyanidins, and proanthocyanidins, which native people groups have been utilizing for centuries (without actually knowing these nutrients’ names) to treat conditions such as poor circulation, joint pain, and vision problems.

• for upper and lower respiratory tract swelling (inflammation), stuffy nose, hoarseness, common cold, cough or bronchitis, fevers, tendency towards infection, and blood pressure problems.
• Some people apply pine directly to the skin for mild muscle pain and nerve pain.
• Heart Health : A combination of Monterey pine and vitamin C may help reduce risk of heart disease, according to a pilot study published in Phytotherapy Research in 2003. For the study, 24 healthy adults took Enzogenol every day for 12 weeks. By the study's end, participants showed a significant improvement in several measures of cardiovascular health (including blood pressure and percentage of body fat). In addition, a small study published in Free Radical Research in 2006 indicates that Enzogenol may benefit smokers by reducing oxidative stress. In an experiment involving 44 chronic smokers, those given the combination of Monterey pine and vitamin C for 12 weeks experienced greater improvements in oxidative stress (compared to those given vitamin C alone for the same time period).
• Brain Function : Enzogenol may help fight age-related cognitive decline, suggests a small study published in Phytotherapy Research in 2008. For the study, 42 men (ages 50 to 65) were given either vitamin C or the combination of Monterey pine and vitamin C for five weeks. At the end of the study, those given Enzogenol performed better on cognitive tests and showed a greater improvement in blood pressure (compared to those solely given vitamin C).
• Immune System: Whether you consume the dried bark peels of pine trees or brew a tea from the pine needles, you will be able to access a considerable amount of vitamin C, an unusually high amount for a tree species, actually. Vitamin C is an essential element of our immune system, as it stimulates the production of white blood cells and has antioxidant qualities that help prevent chronic illness and disease. Furthermore, vitamin C is a crucial component of collagen, which is necessary to create new cells, muscles, tissues, and blood vessels.
• Vision Health: There is also a high level of vitamin A and various carotenoids found in pine needle tea and pine bark. Carotenoids act as antioxidants in the body, particularly for the eyes, preventing the development of cataracts, increasing vision strength, and slowing the onset of macular degeneration. By reducing oxidative stress in the ocular system, pine needle tea can keep your vision strong well into your old age.
• Skin and Hair Benefits: Vitamin A does a bit more than help your vision; it also prevents oxidative stress in your skin, helping to keep your skin looking young and wrinkle-free by eliminating free radicals. Furthermore, the vitamin C helps to speed the healing process and vitamin A reduces the appearance of blemishes and scars, even from skin conditions like acne. In terms of your hair, vitamin A and C both help give a rich luster to your locks and prevent hair loss and dandruff.
• Pathogen Protection: There are natural antiseptic qualities in pine needle tea, so after brewing and steeping the pine needles, you can allow the tea to cool and then use it as a wash or mix it with carrier oils to apply to the skin, particularly on wounds to prevent infections or pathogens from entering the body. This ability also helps to eliminate pathogens and microbes within the body when the tea is consumed directly.
• Cancer :
  • A paper published in the journal Prostate back in 2008 found that oligomeric proanthocyanidin complexes, or OPCs, taken from maritime pine bark target a prostate cancer cell line known as LNCaP. Not only did the LNCaP cells cease to spread as a result of the pine, but they also ended up dying.
  • Another study published several years prior in the journal Nutrition and Cancer found that pine needles of the Pinus densiflora variety inhibit many of the processes by which cancer forms in the body. This same pine variety was also found to directly block the growth of a multiple cancer cell lines, including MCF-7, SNU-638, and HL-60.
  • In in vivo anti-tumor studies, freeze-dried pine needle powder supplements (5%, wt/wt) diet was fed to mice inoculated with Sarcoma-180 cells or rats treated with mammary carcinogen, 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA, 50 mg/kg body weight). Tumorigenesis was suppressed by pine needle supplementation in the two model systems.”
  • The oil of terebinthine pine, also known as “terebinthe,” is another recognized anti-cancer elixir. It’s a stimulant both of the prostate gland and the uterus, and it also helps mitigate adrenal fatigue and balance hormone production. And if the name sounds similar to turpentine, that’s because it is: turpentine pine resin is among the most regarded anti-cancer remedies in ancient folklore, demonstrating benefits in cancers of the liver, breast, spleen, rectum, tongue, and more.