People take cornflower tea to treat fever, constipation, water retention, and chest congestion. They also take it as a tonic, bitter, and liver and gallbladder stimulant. Women take it for menstrual disorders and vaginal yeast infections. In ancient Egypt, reproductions of cornflowers have been found dating back to the first half of the 4th millennium BC (Stone to Bronze Age). As a companion of cereal plants and probably also because of its similar colour to the blue lotus (Nymphaea coerulea), it soon became a symbol of life and fertility.