Horse Chestnuts

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Nineteenth-century common folk believed so mightily in the curative powers of the horse chestnut that they claimed merely walking around with a nut in one’s pocket sufficed to ward off these ills and possibly many others. Doctors of the period did little to discourage such superstitions.

And so the horse chestnut became a token of good fortune, an amulet to keep in the pocket or purse at all times should the need for a bit of supernatural assistance suddenly arise. It could well serve a suitor, for example, upon proposing to his beloved. Or a tongue-tied foreigner during an encounter with a fire-breathing literary agent.

A few of the horse chestnut’s traditional uses have stood up to scientific scrutiny. The seeds contain a compound called aescin (sometimes spelled escin) that seems to promote the strength and tone of the veins. Researchers have developed nontoxic horse chestnut seed extracts with standardized levels of aescin, and clinical trials have shown these extracts to significantly alleviate the swelling, itching, and pain of varicose veins and hemorrhoids. A 1996 study in The Lancet found horse chestnut seed extract to work as well or better than compression stockings in relieving the symptoms of a syndrome known as chronic venous insufficiency. And unlike compression stockings, horse chestnut seed extract is easy to use. Even better, standardized oral preparations are now available that have had the toxins removed.

Researchers aren’t yet exactly sure how aescin works, but it appears to reduce the rate at which fluid leaks from irritated capillaries. Aescin also has anti-inflammatory properties, making it effective in reducing the swelling that follows sprains and bruises. Topical horse chestnut creams are prescribed in Europe for treating sports-related injuries.

Contemporary Italian herbalists praise the horse chestnut for cosmetic reasons as well. To restore the glow to a blotchy, red complexion, I read in the Italian cooking magazine Cucina Italiana, herbalist Lucia Angiolini advises her patients to use a horse chestnut facial mask: Peel and pulverize three boiled horse chestnuts and mix them with yogurt to obtain a paste. Apply the cream liberally to the face, leave to dry for twenty minutes, and then rinse with rosewater. And for an anti-cellulite bath, she recommends boiling a dozen horse chestnuts until tender, adding them to the bathwater and soaking the limbs for twenty minutes.

I found a hot bath with horse chestnuts unquestionably therapeutic after my trip to Milan, though I can’t vouch for what it did for my cellulite. As for my dreaded appointment, La Dragona unexpectedly found herself with a more pressing engagement and sent her assistant to meet with me in her stead. A tiny woman, quick to smile, she confided her great relief that I spoke Italian, as her English was rusty. She reported most favorably back to the Dragon Lady. I couldn’t believe my luck. Or maybe it was the horse chestnut in my pocket.

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