For several months I've been searching for medicinal uses of herbs and plants found in the wild. This article is what I've found so far. The type of effects is listed first, then the plants and appropriate recipes. GAS Sage tea. Cover a heaping teaspoon of sage leaves with one cup boiling water, let steep for five minutes until you have a light to bright yellow brew. Any darker is to bitter. Drink as is or add a little honey. Results in almost immediate relief of gas pains. Sweet anise tea. Cover one level teaspoon with one cup hot water and let brew for 10 minutes. Naturally sweet no it shouldn't need any honey added. Other herbs useful for getting rid of gas are: cinna mon, basil, nutmeg, marjoram, bay, and mace. COMMON Horseradish. Mixed half-and-half with catsup and served COLD over shrimp is probably the tastiest way to get rid of a cold. Serves to loosen phlegm in the head and chest, helps the body to sweat which combats fever, very high in Vit. C, draws blood to the surface it touches thereby aiding sore throats. Onion tea. 1/4 cup onion chopped very fine. Boil for 3 - 4 minutes in 10 ozs. water. Add a little sugar to taste. Great for infants with head colds. COUGH Thyme. 1/2 cup dried Thyme and pour one pint boiling MEDICINE water over it. Let sit for 20 minutes. Strain off the dark colored liquid and add 1 1/2 cups light colored & honey to the dark liquid. Gently heat untill the honey is disolved. Put the syrup in a sterilized, capped off UPSET jar and refrigerate. Take two tablespoons at a time STOMACHS several times a day. Acts as a cough suppresant and sooths upset stomachs. Ginger. Two capsules full of powedred ginger are twice as effective as Dramamine type pills. You can also add two freshly grated tablespoons of Ginger to the above cough medicine. Acts as an expectorant. STRESS Rosemary. If suffering from insomnia, a tea made form this herb, taken an hour before going to bed, beats a warm glass of milk any day. Has a mild diuretic property so it's best not to take this any sooner before sleeping. Rosemary has also been used to relieve stress induced hgeadaches and migraines. CONSTIPATION False Solomon's Seal - The reddish-purple splotched berries of this plant may be eaten with other fruit or honey to aid the problem of constipation. Collect berries in Mid-summer. GENERAL Cloves. Oil of cloves have been used to treat tooth- aches and can be used to rub onto sore muscles and joints. A teaspoon full in a cup of hot water makes a tea that stimulates and relives pain along the gastro- intestinal tract. Solomon's Seal Reputed to correct all kinds of female problems, serve as a soothing bath for poison ivy itch and as a poultice for external infections and wounds. Shepperd's Purse - Brewed as a tea, this plant may be used as a check against internal hemoraging and hemorrhoids. Stir a large teaspoon of leaves in a cup of boiling water for half an hour. Drink two or more cold cups per day. Gooseberry - Crush 1 teaspoon of berries and add to a cup of hot water. Helps reduce fevers. Capsicum (cayenne and any "hot" member of the hot pepper family). A sprinkle of capsicum in any warm drink will warm the body faster than the drink itself. Capsicum increases the circulation of blood without speeding the heart. This reaction makes a good stimu- lant, speeding up the body's natural immune defense & aiding recovery. When used with other herbs, this stimulant property helps other herbs to act faster. Cattail. The creeping white roots can be dug up in the winter and used as a treatment for diarrhea, gonorrhea, and worms. Garlic. Grind the bulbs to make a potent anti- bacterial. Consumption of garlic has been shown to help protect against Atherosclerosis. Also makes a great insect and people repellent. OAK. Oak bark tea provides an effective treatment for sore throats, coughs and colds. The tannins in the tea also dry and heal sores and rid wounds of excess secretions. Pine. The pitch of the Pine tree is useful for disin- fecting and protecting open sores. Use the young shoots by boiling them and taking the tea to prevent coughs and help relieve upset stomachs. Willow. The barks and roots contain a primal form of aspirin. Use either chewed or brewed as a tea. Chamomile. A tea made from this herb is good for calming upset stomachs. Can also be used as a mouth- wash. BURNS Aloe Vera. The gel inside the leafs provides a cooling medicinal salve. Great for sunburns, cuts, & minor burns. Cattail. Use the white starchy roots to make a salve for dressing burns. Pound the roots into a mush and mix with animal fat (lard or solid vegetable shrtng should work just as well) All the plant life above either grow wild or can be found in most grocery stores. An excellent book to help identify wild plants in Missouri is, "EDIBLE WILDS OF MISSOURI" by Jan Phillips. If buying in a store, be sure you get fresh ingredients. Some processed herbs do not have the full effect as if gotten fresh. You may wish to start a small herb garden at your house to have the ingredients on hand year round. If anyone has other recipes for herbal medicine, please send them to me. My Address is: P. O. Box 913 Moberly, MO 65270 Or leave a message on FREEDOM AMERICA Computer Bulletin Board. Phone (816) 263-8443 between 10:00pm and 10:00am 7 days a week. Will WrightSelected Seneca Herbal Medicines by R. H. Zander Buffalo Museum of Science Buffalo, New York The information on herbal medicines given below was taken from various literature sources written over a long time span, including observations by early explorers and missionaries, as well as that of ethnologists, both amateur and professional. The list is far from complete. Present-day uses of herbal medicines by the Seneca Iroquois may be different from that given below, and may vary in individual use. The Seneca plant names represent taxonomic concepts and entities not necessarily corresponding with classifications on a phylogenetic basis. The Latin names thus only approximate Seneca taxonomic constructs in the majority of cases. Until the relatively recent development of synthetic drugs, many Seneca herbs were extensively used by white physicians. Uses of these are noted for each after the word "official" if they have appeared in the Pharmacopoeia of the United States or the National Formulary, otherwise, after the notation of "White Medicine." Medicinal uses noted in the collections of A. C. Parker at Albany, New York are given by Dr. Hope Isaacs (6) and are here cited as "(Parker)." I thank Mrs. Rose Thompson of Dewittville, New York, for bringing the important Skinner manuscript to my attention. [Note: In this electronic version, certain of the diacritical marks are omitted from the Seneca terms. Please see the original publication for correct citations.] Acorus calamus. Sweet flag. O-weho-dah' (="pipe"). Old & New Worlds. Powdered into water for stomach aches (7). Official - carminative, stimulant, aromatic bitter tonic, flavoring (10). Adiantum pedatum. Maidenhair fern. Deganyendaaji's (=black shins") (4). N. Amer. Used as a hemostatic in women's disorders and for labor pains, also as tea for coughs, chest ailments (4). White Medicine - stimulant, expectorant, demulcent (9). Amelanchier canadensis. Juneberry. Ha-doon (7). E. N. Amer. Infusion given to lessen pain and control hemorrhage, in obstetrics (5,8). Apocynum androsaemifolium, A. cannabinum. Dogbane. N. Amer. "...for fiber and bloody flux (Kalm)" (4). Official - cardiac stimulant, diuretic, cathartic, diaphoretic, emetic, expectorant (10). Contains a caridac glycoside, which increases blood pressure (9). Aralia nudicaulis. Sarsaparilla. Jo-wank-sis-ah (="little stalk") (2,7). E. N. Amer. Aralia racemosa. Spikenard. Jo-wank-sis-jo-wah (="giant stalk") (2,7); ge-wah-gen-goo-wah (7). Both species used in remedies for tuberculosis, blood remedies, colds (4,7). Spikenard is also used to treat stomach ailments and worms (7); indigestion, internal soreness, fevers (Parker); cold blood in growing children, childhood bronchitis (6). Official - both species used for stimulant and diaphoretic purposes (10). Arctium spp. Burdock. Onondowa'nes (="big comb") (5); -n ht(a)- (6). Eur., Asia, introd. N. Amer. As a poultice for sore and painful areas (7). For rheumatism and scrofula (Parker); carbuncles, boils, constipation (6). Official - Arctium lappa used as a diuretic, diaphoretic (10). Arisaema triphyllum. Jack-in-the-pulpit, Indian turnip. ga'osha` (5). Used for treating sore throat (6). Official - stimulant expectorant, irritant, diaphoretic (10). Asarum canadense. Wild ginger. Da-u-dah-shah (7); oskwai'da` (4). E. N. Amer. Taken as a tea for colds, fever, as a stomach tonic (7). Used for sore throat (Parker) (6). Official - stimulant, carminative, tonic, diaphoretic; contains antibiotic substances (10). Asclepias spp. Milkweed. Oo-nos-ga (7). N. Amer. For kidney trouble and dropsy (Parker); diabetes, warts, hemorrhages (6). Official - roots diaphoretic, expectorant, emetic, purgative (10). Betula nigra. Water birch. Da-yaa-go-ne-na-wen-yea (7). E. N. Amer. As a tea for fever and other ills (7). Caltha palustris. Marsh marigold. Ga-no-wah-oos (7). N. Amer., Eur., Asia. Boiled young sprouts used to treat rheumatism and neuritis (8). Used as a "preventative" (Parker) (6). Chimaphila maculata. Prince's pine. O-neh-das-sus (7). N. Amer., Eur., Asia. Tonic, blood purifier, stomach and kidney trouble (7). For kidney trouble, weakness, nervousness, dyspepsia (Parker) (6). Official - astringent, tonic, diuretic (10). Cichorium intybus. Chickory. Ga-sah-yen-da-qua (7). Eur., Asia, introd. N. Amer. Entire plant used a poultice for a lame back. (7). White Medicine - diuretic, tonic, stomachic, depurative (9). Cicuta maculata. Water hemlock. O n 'sh (3). E. N. Amer. Used as a liniment for sprains and inflammations; also, as a poison for suicide (4,11). Clintonia borealis. Corn lily. Thah-do-ah-oess-hah (7). E. N. Amer. Used as a poultice for rupture; also, good for corns (7). Coptis trifolia. Goldthread. N. Amer. Used for sore throat, sore mouth, poor appetite (Parker) (6). Official - tonic, stomachic (10). Cornus amomum. Kinnikinnik. N. Amer. Used as an emetic (4). White Medicine - used for diarrhea, dropsy, dyspepsia, tooth powder (bark) (9). Cornus canadensis. Bunchberry. O-se-gwe-out-o-nah (7). Northern N. Amer. Entire plant made into tea, taken for scarlet fever (7). Epigaea repens. Trailing arbutus. Ow-wen-oo (7). E. N. Amer. Used to treat arthritis, backache (7). For weakness, malaria (Parker) (6). Euonymous atropurpureus. Wahoo. Oo-si-sta-oo-yen (7). E. N. Amer. For colds, kidney problems, constipation, enuresis (Parker) (6). Official - a mild purgative, with a mild cardiac action similar to that of digitalis (10). Eupatorium perfoliatum. Boneset. Da-gah'-nay-yoh'-hon-toh. N. Amer. For colds and fevers (4,5,11). For pneumonia medicine (2). Malaria, rheumatism, colds, fever, digestive disorders (Parker); emetic, cathartic, stimulant, diuretic (6). Official - stimulant, diuretic, emetic, cathartic (10). Gaultheria procumbens. Wintergreen. (?O)jista; ke;a? (6). E. N. Amer. For the blood, kidneys (4). For rheumatism, as a dressing (8). For bad blood, colds (Parker); bad breath, dirty teeth, indigestion, sluggishness (6). White Medicine - antiseptic, antirheumatic (9). Gentiana andrewsii. Closed gentian. O-a-e-da-ge-wah-ga (7). E. N. Amer. Entire plant, taken as a tea, to treat yellow jaundice (7). Official - species of the genus have been used as a bitter tonic (10). Geranium maculatum. Cranesbill. N. Amer. For summer complaint (4). White Medicine - styptic, tonic, astringent (9). Gillenia trifoliata. Bowman's root. O-dick-deack-gwat-doh (7). E. N. Amer. Root used as a remedy for gall bladder and gall stones (7). Official - emetic (10). Hamamelis virginiana. Witch hazel. Takwasy :nih (6). E. N. Amer. For pain, nervous upsets (Parker); for skin diseases, bad blood, arthritis, rheumatism (6). Official - astringent, hemostatic (10). Hepatica spp. Hepatica, liverleaf. Ga-nuh, wen-da-gwa (7). E. N. Amer. Entire plant used to treat stomach and liver ailments (7). For weakness (Parker); constipation, children's fevers (6). Official - tonic, stimulant (10). Impatiens biflora. Touch-me-not. E. N. Amer. For treating poison ivy (Parker) (6). Inula helenium. Elecampane. A-wah-oh-son-ta (7); gawe' osoontha' (4). Eur., Asia, introd. N. Amer. Root used for fever and lung trouble (7). White Medicine - cough medicines, asthma, whooping cough, lung ailments, skin diseases (9). Ipomoea pandurata. Man root, Old-man-of-the-earth. Och-ta-a-wah-neh (7). E. N. Amer. Root used for catarrh, rheumatism, fever, burns, disordered stomach (7). Official - a powerful cathartic (10) Iris versicolor. Blue flag. Da-ga-on-duh (7). E. N. Amer. Used a strong cathartic (7). Official - cathartic, emetic, diuretic (10) Juglans cinerea. Butternut. Gu-nu-gwa (7); jo:nyo? (6); djonot'gwes (5). E. N. Amer. For constipation (Parker); for boils, impetigo (6). Official - a mild cathartic. Larix laricina. Tamarack, larch. Ga-nan-dens (7). E. N. Amer. "...given to horses affected with the heaves" (7). White Medicine - bark is altera- tive, laxative, diretic (9). Lobelia cardinalis. Cardinal flower. Gies-da-ga-ah (7). E. N. Amer. Roots taken to reduce fever (7). White Medicine - emetic, expectorant, nauseant (9). Mentha spp. Spearmint and peppermint. Geh-nuh-nos-ta (7). Eur., introd. N. Amer. Both species used for headaches and stomach upsets, as a tea (7). White medicine - carminative, stimulant (9). Mitchella repens. Partridgeberry. Oshaista 'wayas (5); oshaista' wa:ya:s (1). N. Amer. Used to hasten labor (5,8). Official - astringent, tonic, diuretic (10). Nepeta cataria. Catnip. Eur. introd. N. Amer. For children's complaints (Parker) (6). Official - carminative, stimulant, diaphoretic, tonic (10). Panax trifolium. Dwarf genseng. dj '(4). E. N. Amer. Used for weakness (Parker); childbirth pains (6). Phytolacca americana. Pokeweed. O 'shea one ' ta (="crimson leaves") (5); os-hay-ya (7). E. N. Amer. Used for rheumatism (7). White Medicine - emetic, alterative, purgative (9). Polygala senega. Seneca snakeroot. ?ohsikwe t?oti:nyos (6). E. N. Amer. Used for snakebite, palsy, nervousness (Parker) (6). Official - expectorant, cough medicine, stimulant, irritant, emetic, diuretic (10). Polygonatum biflorum. Soloman's seal. Da-ga-na-ya-hont-tah. (7). E. N. Amer. Whole plant used as a poultice for broken bones (7). Prunus serotina. Wild cherry. A-------e------- (7); e:i? (1). E. N. Amer. Used for sore chest, fevers, coughs (Parker); colds, sprains, strains, diarrhea, dysentery (6). White medicine - bark is tonic, sedative (9). Rhus spp. Sumach. De-gin-da-e-hoo-da (7); o'tgo da (8); otko?ta? (1). Used for measles and sore throat (11). Used for sore throat (Parker); sprains, strains, spinal paralysis, itch (6). Rubus spp. Blackberry. Oot-ga-sah (7); ?otka:sha? (1). Root used to treat wounds (Parker); pneumonia, diabetes (6). Rumex spp. Yellow dock. E-jay-et (7). Root used to treat asthma (7). Official - spp. used to treat skins diseases, also as alterative, laxative, tonic (10). Sambucus canadensis. Elderberry. Otko?ta (6). E. N. Amer. Used to treat bad blood and fever (Parker); skin erruptions, poisoning (6). For fever (5). Official - mild stimulant, carminative, diaphoretic (10). Sanguinaria canadensis. Bloodroot. Oo-na-qua (7). E. N. Amer. Root used to stop bleeding of fresh cuts, also to treat tuberculosis (7). As an emetic (8). Used to treat impetigo (6). Official - stimulant, emetic, tonic, alterative (10). Sassafras albidum. Sassafras. Ono'hsta?sh (4). E. N. Amer. Used to treat venereal diseases, rheumatism, as a diuretic, and as a tonic after childbirth (4). Used to treat bad blood and colds (Parker) (6). Official - carminative, stimulant, flavoring (10). Solidago spp. Goldenrod. Jitkw c ? (6). Used to treat colds, fevers, headaches (Parker); diabetes, gallstones, pneumonia (6). Official - S. odora cited as stimulant, carminative, diaphoretic (10). Taraxacum spp. Dandelion. Odjissonda (5); ga-je-son-don-ta (7). N. Amer., Eur., Asia. Used as a tonic for the stomach and liver (7). Official - root used as diuretic, tonic, mild laxative (10). Tilia spp. Basswood. O-o-sah (7). Used to treat kidney trouble (Parker) (6). Tsuga canadensis. Hemlock. O-nen-da (7). E. N. Amer. Used to treat scurvy and as a cold preventative (Parker) (6). Official - externally in a plaster as counterirritant, also as an astringent (10). Typha spp. Cattail. Ge-gon-sas-senh-gen-saw-ah (7). Used as a remedy for the gall (7). Ulmus rubra. Slippery elm. Oos-kah (7). E. N. Amer. Used in childbirth (4). To treat weakness and throat disorders (Parker) (6). To treat inflammations, blood poisoning (7). White Medicine - a demulcent in diarrhea, dysentery; also, as a poultice for abscesses (9). Veratrum viride. Indian poke, False hellebore. Oos-kah-ah (7). E. N. Amer. Used to treat catarrh (4). Official - hypotensive, cardiac depressent, sedative (10). Veronicastrum virginicum. Culver's root. Och-ge-jo-wah (7). E. N. Amer. Used in a tuberculosis remedy formula; also, as a laxative and to treat rheumatism (7). Used as a cathartic (4). Official - cathartic, emetic, alterative, for liver disorders (10). Vitis spp. Wild grape. Oo-nun-gwe-sa (7); oniung'wisa (5); o:ny kwi?sa? (1). Used to treat poison ivy (Parker) (6). Zea mays. Maize, Corn. Ona'o (5); on ? (1). E. N. Amer. Smoke from the burning husks used to facilitate delivery of the placenta in childbirth; ashes of the cob were used to make a lye used to induce vomiting and to treat cases of stomach worms and dyspepsia (5). Used to treat dysentery (Parker) (6). Official - corn silk as diuretic, corn oil as a solvent, corn starch as nutrient, demulcent, protective, absorbent (10). References (1) Chafe, W. L. 1963. Handbook of the Seneca Language. N. Y. State Mus. & Sci. Serv. Bull. 388. (2) Fenton, W. N. 1940. An herbarium from the Allegany Senecas. In Doty, et al., eds., Historical Annals of Southwestern New York. New York. (3) _____. 1941. Iroquois suicide: a study in the stability of a culture pattern. Bur. Amer. Ethnol. Bull. 128, Anthropol. Pap. 14, pp. 79-137, pls. 6-8. (4) _____. 1942. Contacts between Iroquois herbalism and colonial medicine. Ann. Rep. Smithsonian Inst. 1941: 503-526, 5 pls. (5) _____, ed. 1968. Parker on the Iroquois... Syracuse, New York. (6) Isaacs, H. 1972. Iroquois herbalism - the past hundred years. Unpublished Mimeogr. Paper, Dept. Anthropology, State Univ. of New York at Buffalo, 28 pp. (7) Skinner, D. P. (Undated.) Seneca notes... Pennsylvania Historical Survey, Federal Works Agency. (8) Stone, E. 1934. Medicine among the Iroquois. Ann. Med. Hist., n.s. 6(6): 529-539, 6 figs. (9) Uphof, J. D. T. 1968. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Cramer, Lehre. (10) Vogel, V. J. 1970. American Indian Medicine. Univ. Oklahoma Press: Norman, Oklahoma. (11) Wallace, A. F. C. 1970. The death and rebirth of the Seneca. A. A. Knopf, New York. ---- This article was originally published as Notes from the Clinton Herbarium, No. 5, March 1977, and is reprinted with permission of the author. ------------------------------------ HERBS AND HERBALISM: The Medicine Plants by Dan Salzler Traditional herbal medicines have been a part of civilization since the time of early man. Early medicine men held important positions in tribal communities as sages of wisdom as they blended herbal remedies with religious beliefs. Although little is known about the actual beginnings of herbal medicine, the earliest evidences come from China and India. Chinese Emperor Chin Nong is thought to have written about herbs in a medicinal context about 2700 B.C. Later, Egyptian civilizations offered an extensive utilization of herbs for medicinal purposes. Archeologists have found writings from about 2000 B.C. that list series of medicinal prescriptions. In later Egyptian civilizations, Throth was believed to have kept an active file of herbal formulas for healing and for maintaining general healthful vigor. Throth was represented as holding the symbol of life in his left hand and a staff with a serpent coiled around itself in his right hand - the symbol of physicians today. The ancient Greeks advanced the use and knowledge of herbal medicine through the works of men like Hippocrates (470-377 B.C.), the father of medicine, who established a scientific system of medicine without the inclusion of religious beliefs. Today, pharmaceutical medicines have taken the place of herbal remedies. Accompanying this increased use has come a heightened awareness and fear of the side effects of taking pharmaceutical medicines. In the not-too-distant past, families relied on favorite home remedies to control small medical problems and to prevent minor ailments from becoming chronic in nature. For example, willow bark, which was used for thousands of years by the American Indian as a pain killer and anti-inflammatory, was used by our grandparents (or great-grandparents) who lived throughout rural America, for the same purposes. It took nearly fifty years of research by a German scientist to isolate the active compound and learn its chemical code. In the lab it is known as salicylic acid (from Salix, the genus of the willow); its discovery and synthesis earned a fortune for Bayer; we know it today in a slightly modified form as aspirin. For generations, Grandma's chicken soup has been the home remedy for colds, fever and stuffy nasal discomfort. Common folk swore by it, but for years skeptics questioned this remedy as an old wives' tale until recent findings offered a new evidence for the debate. Most chicken soup is heavily seasoned with the herb thyme (Thymus vulgaris). Research has discovered that thyme contains a substance known as thymol, which acts as a decongestant. Although the debate about chicken soup continues, thymol, in its natural or synthetic form, is found in most pharmaceutical decongestant medicines on the market today. Legitimate herbal research is breaking new ground in areas of herbal medicine from cancer to head colds. Leading universities of the world are advancing our knowledge and understanding of herbs. Advance your knowledge of this interesting area of herbalism by reading one of the following books or others on the same topic: Herbally Yours by Penny C. Royal; Natural Healing with Herbs by Humbart Santillo; Magic and Medicine of Plants edited by Reader's Digest; Growing and Using the Healing Herbs by Weiss and Weiss. ----- Reprinted with permission of the author from the Cattaraugus County Independent, Nov. 2, 1986. Dan Salzler is the owner of Herb Hollow Farm located on Safford Road, East Otto, New York. ------------------------------------ CLINTONIA Magazine of the Niagara Frontier Botanical Society, Inc. An Affiliate of the Buffalo Society of Natural Sciences Vol. 3, Issue 3, May 5, 1988 * * * Annual Meeting Issue * * * (Electronically Published Version: May 6, 1988) NOTE TO USERS: This manual is best viewed by using a uniform-spaced font (such as Courier or Monaco) and setting a width of 80 characters. HERBAL-MEDICAL CONTRAINDICATIONS by Michael Moore Synergistic and iatrogenic potentials when certain herbs are used concurrent with medical treatment or medical health care. Copyright 1995 by Michael Moore. Use it, share it, just don't sell it or change it in any way (unless you get my permission) THE REASON FOR THIS LIST: A list of side-effects written by a toxicologist or a pharmacognosist will deal ONLY with potential problems that a particular constituent may cause, and seldom treats a plant as a Gestalt. They don't understand HERBS. A list of side-effects written by most herbalists will deal with side effects from over-dosage or adulteration, and will seldom consider the implications for drug or procedural medicine. They don't understand MEDICINE. I feel fairly secure in both worlds, so this list of potential synergies and contraindications is meant to honor BOTH approaches. I am talking strictly to the working practitioner; these are PRACTICAL concerns, not theoretical ones. THE FOCUS OF THIS LIST: My intent in this list is to wed both approaches: A. What herbs may present overt drug reactions. B. What herbs may present synergistic effects to 1. a person undergoing a particular metabolic stress 2. a person undergoing drug therapies C. What herbs have side-effects BUT that are frequently used without adequate warnings, marketed with an anti- medical bias, or taken unwisely by those that feel NO herb can be harmful because it is natural. PHILOSOPHICAL CONSIDERATIONS: If you are used to viewing biologically active agents as analogs to drugs, you need to suspend those standards when dealing with most herb preparations. Some of these plants CAN be reduced to the pharmacology of specific constituents, and they are so noted. The majority of potential reactions occur when an herb STIMULATES metabolic processes that are already in an excited state. The usual models of drug toxicology will fail to predict such reactions; these are NOT, strictly speaking, drug reactions, but often predictable idiopathic synergies. Predictable, that is, if you are willing to view most herbs as multi-systemic wholistic medicines, offering a "profile" of effects that can help OR aggravate, depending on the PERSON using them. Herbs should be free of side effects within their therapeutic window and when used by a person whose constitution is complimented, not antagonized by the herbs. Whether or not you accept any value to Botanical Medicine, this is Conventional Wisdom amongst herbalists. Side effects from herbs are unwanted, both by herbalists wishing to strengthen, not denigrate homeostasis, and by skeptics who doubt any value to herbs except from placebo or accidental drug effects. On the other hand, a careful evaluation of potential drug therapy starts with the basic understanding that drugs HAVE side effects at the proper dose, and the value must be weighed against the detriment. Most possible problems I have listed will only occur in potentiated states, and may be subtle enough to be ignored by Believers (Don't be so defensive!), magnified totally out of proportion by Skeptics (Don't be so judgmental!). We all tend to be too isolated in our peer groups, always preaching to our particular choir. Some physicians feel any self-treatment with biologically active agents is dangerous. Many people consider this either professional arrogance or the attempt to stifle competition. I have nearly always observed the attitude to derive from a very real concern; a physician's biochemical tools are drugs. By extension, docs may rightly presume that any agent capable of promoting change probably has similar potential for side effects. Carried to an irrational extreme, some medical folks feel that anything WITHOUT potential side effects is quackery. This, of course, leaves any alternative approach in a Catch-22 bind. There is little intrinsic danger in using herbs, since few have the potential for DRUG side effects. The side effects are usually idiosyncratic or idiopathic, and not predictable by drug standards. This brings me back to why I have assembled this list. NOTES: [1] Some of these plants are illegal, not from the pseudo-scientific rationale of law-inforcement (except Cannabis and Lophophora) but for the practical legality that THEY AREN'T SAFE. Nonetheless they still find their way into personal use. I have developed the libertarian attitude that permeated 19th and early 20th century pharmacy: "Let them take what they want to...it's a Free Country. If they don't know any better, let's thin the herd!". We, however, have a generation or two of people that EXPECT a warning label on everything, and that have come to doubt common sense. Of course many dangers in modern life do not warn by taste, smell or appearance...radiation, pollution, etc. Given this, plant drugs like Yohimbe and even Ma Huang should, in my opinion, not be available in the same marketplace as Peppermint and Sarsaparilla. But they are. [2] Some of these herbs are only encountered in "ethnic" use, but, with most ethnic groups suffering diminished coherence of tradition, a Wise Woman or folk herbalist may not be around to give appropriate advice. [3] A few of these herbs are seldom encountered in the herb trade but rather are wildcrafted and used inappropriately. Some of this may be MY fault, since I write about the use of plants that are low-dosage botanicals and presume that the reader has Common Sense...not always a reality. Many of us distrust ANY authoritative limits...this anti-author- itarianism may be encountered in the way some people use even sensible herb books. [4] Herbal Cure-Alls and thinly-veiled Phytopharmaceuticals are a growing part of the health-food industry. In Europe they are usually dispensed under medical supervision; they have no place in American Standard Practice but instead have entered the alternative health marketplace as "Herbs". They are more concentrated, more refined, have little of the biochemical buffering or "fuzz" that whole plants offer, and are NOT metabolic tonics but substances intended for specific subclinical pathologies...Little Drugs if you will. Their use is intended for conditions that have been medically diagnosed...not for self-treatment based upon sometimes inaccurate self-diagnosis. It's one thing to take aspirin for a headache or use a bitter to trigger improved upper digestive function. It's another thing to take proven immunostimulant or anti- oxidant substances (even if derived from plants) if based on "I get sick a lot" or "I bet my liver needs cleansing". Not only is this an entirely new realm of potential iatrogenesis, but it has a corruptive influence by my way of thinking. It centralizes the MARKETING of herbs into the hands of a few, but without offering guide- lines for DIAGNOSIS. And it seduces folks from the sensible heart of self-treatment...self-knowledge. One-size-fits-all is not self-empowerment TABLE OF CONTENTS PREGNANCY TERATOGENIC/MUTAGENIC UTERINE VASOCONSTRICTORS UTERINE VASODILATORS CATHARTICS/SACRAL IRRITANTS OXYTOCIN SYNERGISTS OVERT DRUGS MISCELLANEOUS WlERDNESS MAY BE PRESENT IN MILK NEUROENDOCRINE SYMPATHOMIMETICS PARASYMPATHOMIMETICS ANTICHOLlNERGlC VASOPRESSOMIMETlC THYROID STlMULATlNG THYROID DEPRESSING ALDOSTERONE SYNERGISTS FLAVIN-MAO-INHIBITING METABOLIC "ANABOLIC" ANTICOAGULANTS/"BLOOD THINNING" CYANOGENIC POTENTIAL ALLERGIC/ATOPIC POTENTIAL HYPO-HYPERGLYCEMIC (REACTIVE) CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM CARDIOGLYCOSIDE POTENTIATING BRADYCARDIC/HYPOTENSIVE TACHYCARDIC HYPERTENSIVE POTENTIAL PHARMACOKINETICS HERBS THAT CAN ALTER LIVER METABOLlSM OF DRUGS HERBS THAT CAN ALTER GI ABSORPTION IMMUNOSTIMULANT HERBS THAT CAN RAISE WBC COUNT HEPATIC HERBS THAT CAN ALTER SGOT/SGPT READINGS PYRROLIZIDINE ALKALOID HERBS HERB-SPECIFIC PROBLEMS WITH MISCONCEPTIONS WITH HIDDEN or THRESHOLD EFFECTS LACKING ANY SOCIALLY REDEEMING VALUE INDEX OF COMMON NAMES ///////////////////////////////// PREGNANCY /////////////////////// ///////////////////////////////// Some of these herbs are relatively harmless, but considering the highly reactive state of pregnancy, and the fact that fetal growth is a template that can manifest pharmacokinetics VERY differently than for an adult, they are mentioned. Others are obviously inappropriate because of their neuroendocrine, autonomic or vascular implications. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< PREGNANCY: TERATOGENIC/MUTAGENIC <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< PODOPHYLLUM. (American Mandrake) BAPTISIA (Wild Indigo)...theoretically <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< PREGNANCY: UTERINE VASOCONSTRICTORS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ARCTOSTAPHYLOS (Uva Ursi, Manzanita, Coralillo) if use is continued for more than 3-4 days EPHEDRA VULGARIS (Ma Huang, Chinese Ephedra) USTILAGO (Corn Smut) A feeble ergot analog VINCA MAJOR (Periwinkle) Idiosyncratic vasoconstrictor VISCUM ALBUM (European Mistletoe) May incorrectly be American Mistletoe in commerce, a very vasoconstricting plant. XANTHIUM (Cadillos, Cocklebur) More than 6-8 burrs a day can cause potential placental separation <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< PREGNANCY: UTERINE VASODILATORS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ACTEA RUBRA (A. arguta, Baneberry) ALOE (Aloes Socrotine, etc.) ANGELICA SINENSIS (Dong Quai, Tang Kwei) APOCYNUM CANNABINUM (Dogbane, Canadian Hemp) ARISTOLOCHIA SERPENTARIA (Virginia Snakeroot, Serpentaria) ARISTOLOCHIA WATSONll (Indian Root, Raiz del Indio) ARNICA (A. montana. A. cordifolia. A. latiflora. etc.) ARTEMISIA ABSINTHIUM (Wormwood) ARTEMISIA TRIDENTATA (Sagebrush) ARTEMISIA VULGARIS (Mugwort. California Mugwort) ASCLEPIAS ASPERULA (Inmortal, Antelope Horns) ASCLEPIAS TUBEROSA (Pleurisy Root) BRYONIA (Bryony) CACALIA DECOMPOSITA (Maturin. Maturique) CHAMAELIRIUM (Helonias. Unicorn Root ) CHENOPODIUM (Epazote. Wormseed) CIMICIFUGA RACEMOSA (Black Cohosh) CORYNANTHE (Pausinystalia Johimbe. Yohimbe) CROCUS (True Saffron, "Azafran") Azafran is the usual name for Safflowers DAUCUS CAROTA (Carrot, Wild Carrot) The seeds. EUONYMUS (Wahoo, Burning Bush) FOUQUIERIA SPLENDENS (Ocotillo) GALEGA (Goat's Rue) HEDEOMA (American Pennyroyal, Poleo Chino) IRIS VERSICOLOR, I. MISSOURIENSIS (Blue Flag) JUNIPERUS (Juniper. Sabina, Sabino Macho, "Cedar") LILIUM TIGRINUM (Tiger Lily) LOPHOPHORA (Peyote. Mescal Buttons) PETROSELlNUM (Parsley) PODOPHYLLUM (American Mandrake, May Apple) POLYGALA SENEGA (Senega Snakeroot, Milkwort) POLYMNIA UVEDALIA (Bearsfoot, Leafcup) RUTA GRAVEOLENS (Rue, Ruda) SANGUINARIA (Bloodroot) SPIGELIA (Pink Root) STILLINGIA SYLVATICA (Queen's Root) TANACETUM (Tansy, Ponso, Tanse) THUJA (Arbor Vitae, Flat, Red or Yellow Cedar) TURNERA DIFFUSA (Damiana) XANTHOXYLUM (Prickly Ash) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< PREGNANCY: CATHARTICS/SACRAL IRRITANTS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ALOE (Aloes Socrotine. etc.) CASSIA MARlLANDICA (American Senna) CHENOPODIUM (Epazote, Wormseed) HELIOPSIS LONGIPES (Raiz del Oro, Chilcuan) IRIS VERSICOLOR, I. MISSOURIENSIS (Blue Flag) LEPTANDRA (Veronicastrum, Culver's Root) PODOPHYLLUM (American Mandrake) RHAMNUS CALIFORNICA (California Buckthorn) RHAMNUS FRANGULA (Buckthorn) RHAMNUS PURSHIANA (Cascara Sagrada) RHEUM (Chinese or Turkey Rhubarb) SENNA (Cassia angustifolia, Te de Sena ) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< PREGNANCY: OXYTOCIN SYNERGISTS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ASCLEPIAS ASPERULA (Inmortal, Antelope Horns) CAPSELLA BURSA-PASTORIS (Shepherd's Purse, Bolsa de Pastor) CAULOPHYLLUM (Blue Cohosh) GOSSYPIUM (Cotton, Algodoncillo) Root Bark LEONURUS CARDIACA (Motherwort) LOPHOPHORA (Peyote, Mescal Buttons) SCOPARIUS (Cytisus scoparius, Broom Tops) USTILAGO (Corn Smut) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< PREGNANCY: OVERT DRUG PLANTS (and primary compounds) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ACONITUM COLUMBIANUM (Aconite, Monkshood) Aconitine APOCYNUM CANNABINUM (Dogbane. Canadian Hemp) Feeble digitaloid CHENOPODIUM (Epazote, Wormseed) CINCHONA (Peruvian Bark. Quinine Bark) Quinines CONVALLARIA (Lily of the Valley) Feeble digitaloid CORYNANTHE (Pausinystalia Johimbe, Yohimbe) Yohimbine AND some reserpine relatives..an indole stew DATURA (Jimson Weed. Toloache, Estramonio) Atropine effects EPHEDRA VULGARIS (Ma Huang, Chinese Ephedra) Ephedrines GARRYA (Silk Tassel, Cuauchichic, Quinine Bush) Garryine, Cuauachichicine - anti-cholinergics GELSEMIUM (Yellow Jasmine) Gelsemine...an indole alkaloid and CNS irritant HYOCYAMUS NIGER (Henbane) Atropine effects LOPHOPHORA (Peyote, Mescal Buttons) NICOTIANA (Punche, Tobacco) PEGANUM HARMALA (Syrian Rue) Harmine (indole alkaloid, MAO inhibitor) PILOCARPUS (Jaborandi) Pilocarpine and other muscarinics SCOPARIUS (Cytisus scoparius, Broom Tops) Cytisine, sparteine (simultaneous Hypo-Hypertensives) VERATRUM (Green, False or American Hellebore) Cardiac depressant <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< PREGNANCY: MISCELLANEOUS WlERDNESS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ACONITUM CARMICHAELI (CURED) (Fu-tse, Fo-tzu) Peculiar adrenergic, wrong in TCM, and biologically too potent. ACORUS CALAMUS (Calamus, Sweet Flag) Mildly co-carcinogen (Eurasian strain), and may interfere with normal PG inter-reactions AESCULUS CALIFORNICA (California Buckeye) see below --AESCULUS GLABRA (Ohio Buckeye) see below --AESCULUS HIPPOCASTANUM (Horse Chestnut) All stimulate myenteric plexus, with unpredictable vascular effects. AMYGDALIS PERSICA (Peach Tree) Cyanogenic, unless prepared perfectly ANEMONE HIRSUTISSIMA (Pulsatilla, Pasque Flower) anti-dopimergic BAPTISIA (Wild Indigo Root) CAN mimic Scoparius CORYDALIS AUREUS (Golden Smoke) --DICENTRA CANADENSIS (Turkey Corn) --DICENTRA FORMOSA (Bleeding Heart) --ESCHSCHOLTZIA CALIFORNICA (California Poppy) Above four have mixed protopines GINKGO BlLOBA (Maidenhair Tree) Many subtle effects, unpredictable GLYCYRRHIZA GLABRA (Licorice) Minerocorticosteroid effects GUAIACUM OFFICINALE (Lignum Vitae, Guayacan) Unpredictable vasodilation, feebly muscarinic HELENIUM HOOPESll (Yerba del Lobo) Contains PAs; potential liver irritant HYDRASTIS (Golden Seal) Mucosa stimulant, may age placenta LARREA (Chaparral. Gobernadora, Hediondilla) Quirky anti-oxidant, w/hemolytic potential LOMATIUM DISSECTUM (Leptotaenia) Too bioactive to chance MARRUBIUM (Horehound, Marrubio) Mildly hypertensive under some conditions MENTHA ARVENSIS (Brook Mint, Poleo) Has some Pennyroyal constituents OPLOPANAX HORRIDUM (Echinopanax, Devil's Club) --PANAX GINSENG (Asian Ginseng) --PANAX QUINQUEFOLIUM (American Ginseng) Above three are anabolic/hypothalamic PHYTOLACCA (Poke) Idiosyncratic, poorly documented muscarinic effects PRUNUS (Wild Cherry, Choke Cherry) Cyanogenic when gathered incorrectly PTYCHOPETALUM (Muirapuama. Raiz del Macho) Idiosyncratic motor/sacral stimulant SENECIO AUREUS (Life Root, Squaw Weed) May be unintentionally mixed with toxic Senecios SILYBUM MARIANUM (Milk Thistle) May inhibit hepatocytes in excess; pregnancy may unpredictably alter therapeutic window SOLANUM DULCAMARA (Bittersweet Twigs) Too bioactive to risk SYMPHYTUM (Comfrey) Some hybrids in commerce contain root PAs TRlBULUS (Puncture Vine, Goat's Head) Ayurvedic Medicine advises not to use in pregnancy VISCUM ALBUM (European Mistletoe) May be unintentionally adulterated with American Mistletoe: even if correct, it is too bioactive <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< PREGNANCY: MAY BE PRESENT IN MILK <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ACORUS CALAMUS (Calamus. Sweet Flag) AlLANTHUS ALTlSSIMA (Tree of Heaven) ALLIUM SATIVUM (Garlic) ALOE (Aloes Socrotine, etc.) ARISTOLOCHIA SERPENTARIA (Virginia Snakeroot, Serpentaria) ARISTOLOCHIA WATSONll (Indian Root, Raiz del Indio) ARTEMISIA ABSINTHIUM (Wormwood, Agenjo) ARTEMISIA TRIDENTATA (Sagebrush, Chamiso Hediondo) ARTEMISIA VULGARIS (Mugwort, Altamisa) CACALIA DECOMP0SITA (Maturin, Maturique) CANNABIS SATIVA (Marijuana, Hemp) CASSIA MARlLANDICA (American Senna, Te de Sena) CHENOPODIUM (Epazote, Wormseed) COMMIPHORA (Myrrh Gum, Mirra) CONVALLARIA (Lily of the Valley) DAUCUS CAROTA (Carrot, Wild Carrot) Seeds DRACONTIUM (Symplocarpus, Skunk Cabbage) FOUQUIERIA SPLENDENS (Ocotillo) GALEGA (Goat's Rue) GINKGO BILOBA (Maidenhair Tree) JUNIPERUS (Juniper. Sabina, "Cedar") LIGUSTICUM PORTERI (Osha, Chuchupate) PlLOCARPUS (Jaborandi) RHEUM (Chinese or Turkey Rhubarb) SANGUINARIA (Bloodroot) SENNA (Cassia angustifolia, Te de Sena ) RUTA GRAVEOLENS (Rue, Ruda) TANACETUM (Tansy, Tanse, Ponso, "Altamisa") THUJA (Arbor Vitae, Flat, Red or Yellow Cedar) XANTHOXYLUM (Prickly Ash) ///////////////////////////////// NEUROENDOCRINE ////////////////// ///////////////////////////////// <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< NEUROENDOCRINE: SYMPATHOMIMETICS w/PRIMARY CONSTITUENT <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ACONITUM CARMICHAELI (CURED) (Fu-tse, Fo-tzu) ??? ACORUS CALAMUS (Calamus. Sweet Flag) ASARONE CAFFEA ARABICA (Coffee) CAFFEINE COLA NITIDA (Kola Nut) CAFFEINE CORYNANTHE (Pausinystalia Johimbe. Yohimbe) YOHIMBINE EPHEDRA VULGARIS (Ma Huang, Chinese Ephedra) EPHEDRINE GELSEMIUM (Yellow Jasmine) GELSEMINE LOPHOPHORA (Peyote, Mescal Buttons) MESCALINE PEGANUM HARMALA (Syrian Rue) HARMINES PAULLINIA (Guarana) CAFFEINE, HYPOXANTHINES PTYCHOPETALUM (Muirapuama, Raiz del Macho) ??? SCOPARIUS (Cytisus scoparius, Broom Tops) CYTISINE, SPARTEINE, etc. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< NEUROENDOCRINE: PARASYMPATHOMIMETICS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< AESCULUS CALIFORNICA (California Buckeye) AESCULUS GLABRA (Ohio Buckeye) AESCULUS HIPPOCASTANUM (Horse Chestnut) ANEMONE HIRSUTISSIMA (Pulsatilla, Pasque Flower) APOCYNUM CANNABINUM (Dogbane, Canadian Hemp) ARNICA (A. montana, A. cordifolia. A. latiflora. etc.) ASCLEPIAS ASPERULA (Inmortal, Antelope Horns) ASCLEPIAS TUBEROSA (Pleurisy Root) BRYONIA (Bryony) CACALIA DECOMPOSITA (Maturin, Maturique) CORYNANTHE (Pausinystalia Johimbe, Yohimbe) EUONYMUS (Wahoo, Burning Bush) IRIS VERSICOLOR, I. MISSOURIENSIS (Blue Flag) LEPTANDRA (Veronicastrum, Culver's Root) LOBELIA INFLATA (Lobelia, Indian Tobacco) PHYTOLACCA (Poke) PlLOCARPUS (Jaborandi) PISCIDIA (Jamaica Dogwood, Jabin) POLYGALA SENEGA (Senega Snakeroot, Milkwort) SANGUINARIA (Bloodroot) SOLANUM DULCAMARA (Bittersweet Twigs) SPIGELIA (Pink Root) VERATRUM (Green, False or American Hellebore) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< NEUROENDOCRINE: ANTICHOLlNERGlC <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< DATURA (Jimson Weed, Toloache, Estramonio) GARRYA (Silk Tassel, Cuauchichic, Quinine Bush) HYOCYAMUS NlGER (Henbane) SOLANUM DULCAMARA (Bittersweet Twigs) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< NEUROENDOCRINE: VASOPRESSOMIMETlC <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< CORYNANTHE (Pausinystalia Johimbe, Yohimbe) LOPHOPHORA (Peyote, Mescal Buttons) TRIBULUS (Puncture Vine, Goat's Head) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< NEUROENDOCRINE: PITUITARY/HYPOTHALAMIC "POTENTIATING" <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< CENTELLA ASIATICA (Hydrocotyle asiatica, Gotu Kola) OPLOPANAX HORRIDUM (Echinopanax, Devil's Club) PANAX GINSENG (Asian Ginseng) PANAX QUINQUEFOLIUM (American Ginseng) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< NEUROENDOCRINE: THYROID STlMULATlNG <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ACONITUM CARMICHAELI (CURED) (Fu-tse, Fo-tzu) CENTELLA ASIATlCA (Hydrocotyle asiatica, Gotu Kola) CORYNANTHE (Pausinystalia Johimbe, Yohimbe) EPHEDRA VULGARIS (Ma Huang, Chinese Ephedra) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< NEUROENDOCRINE: THYROID DEPRESSING <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< CHLOROPHYLLIN (Sodium Copper Chlorophyllin, Chlorophyll "JJ") LEONURUS CARDIACA (Motherwort) LYCOPUS (Bugleweed) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< NEUROENDOCRINE: ALDOSTERONE SYNERGISTS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< GLYCYRRHIZA GLABRA (Licorice) MARRUBIUM (Horehound, Marrubio) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< NEUROENDOCRINE: FLAVIN-MAO-INHIBITING <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ACONITUM CARMICHAELI (CURED) (Fu-tse, Fo-tzu) CORYNANTHE (Pausinystalia Johimbe, Yohimbe) HYPERICUM (St. Johns Wort) LOPHOPHORA (Peyote, Mescal Buttons) PEGANUM HARMALA (Syrian Rue) ///////////////////////////////// METABOLIC /////////////////////// ///////////////////////////////// <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< METABOLIC: "ANABOLIC" <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ANGELICA SINENSIS (Dong Quai, Tang Kwei) OPLOPANAX HORRIDUM (Echinopanax. Devil's Club) PANAX GINSENG (Asian Ginseng) PANAX QUINQUEFOLIUM (American Ginseng) PTYCHOPETALUM (Muirapuama, Raiz del Macho) SMlLAX (Sarsaparilla) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< METABOLIC: ANTICOAGULANTS/"BLOOD THINNING" <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< BETULA (Birch) CEANOTHUS (Red Root, New Jersey Tea) CHRYSANTHEMUM PARTHENIUM (Feverfew) GINKGO BILOBA (Maidenhair Tree) LEUCANTHEMUM (Chrysanthemum leucanthemum, Oxe-Eye Daisy) MELILOTUS (Sweet Clover) POPULUS TREMULIODES (Aspen) SALIX (Willow) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< METABOLIC: CYANOGENIC POTENTIAL <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< AMYGDALIS PERSICA (Peach Tree) PRUNUS (Wild Cherry, Choke Cherry) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< METABOLIC: ALLERGIC/ATOPIC POTENTIAL <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ALLIUM SATIVUM (Garlic) ASAFETIDA (Ferula asafetida, Devil's Dung, Stinkasant) ASPIDIUM (Dryopteris filix-mas, Male Fern) CAFFEA ARABICA (Coffee) LINUM (Flaxseed) PANAX GINSENG (Asian Ginseng) PROPOLlS (Beehive scrapings, gathered from trees) SOLANUM DULCAMARA (Bittersweet Twigs) YUCCA (Amole, Spanish Bayonet) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< METABOLIC: HYPO-HYPERGLYCEMIC (REACTIVE) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ACONITUM CARMICHAEL (CURED) (Fu-tse. Fo-tzu) BERBERIS (Barberry) CORYNANTHE (Pausinystalia Johimbe, Yohimbe) HYDRASTIS (Golden Seal) MAHONIA (Oregon Grape, Berberis aquifolium) PEGANUM HARMALA (Syrian Rue) ///////////////////////////////// CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM (CVS) ///// ///////////////////////////////// <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< CVS: CARDIOGLYCOSIDE POTENTIATING <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< APOCYNUM CANNABINUM (Dogbane, Canadian Hemp) ASCLEPIAS ASPERULA (Inmortal, Antelope Horns) ASPIDOSPERMA (Quebracho Bark) CONVALLARIA (Lily of the Valley) SCOPARIUS (Cytisus scoparius, Broom Tops) VERATRUM (Green, False or American Hellebore) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< CVS: BRADYCARDIC/HYPOTENSIVE <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ACONITUM COLUMBIANUM (Aconite, Monkshood) ACTEA RUBRA (Baneberry, Yerba del Peco) ANEMONE HIRSUTISSIMA (Pulsatilla, Pasque Flower) ARNICA (A. montana, A. cordifolia, A. latiflora. etc.) ASCLEPIAS ASPERULA (Inmortal, Antelope Horns) ASCLEPIAS TUBEROSA (Pleurisy Root) BRYONIA (Bryony) CAPSELLA BURSA-PASTORIS (Shepherd's Purse) CEREUS GRANDIFLORUS (Selenicereus, Peniocereus, Night-Blooming Cereus) CIMICIFUGA RACEMOSA (Macrotys, Black Cohosh) CRATAEGUS (Hawthorn) ESCHSCHOLTZIA CALIFORNICA (California Poppy) GARRYA (Silk Tassel, Cuauchichic, Quinine Bush) LOBELIA INFLATA (Lobelia, Indian Tobacco) PILOCARPUS (Jaborandi) PRUNUS (Wild Cherry, Choke Cherry) VERATRUM (Green, False or American Hellebore) VINCA MAJOR (Periwinkle) VISCUM ALBUM (European Mistletoe) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< CVS: TACHYCARDIC <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ACONITUM CARMICHAEL (CURED) (Fu-tse. Fo-tzu) COLA NITIDA (Kola Nut) CORYNANTHE (Pausinystalia Johimbe. Yohimbe) EPHEDRA VULGARIS (Ma Huang, Chinese Ephedra) LOPHOPHORA (Peyote, Mescal Buttons) NICOTIANA (Punche, Tobacco) PANAX GINSENG (Cured or Red Chinese, Korean) SCOPARIUS (Cytisus scoparius, Broom Tops) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< CVS: HYPERTENSIVE POTENTIAL <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ACONITUM CARMICHAELI (CURED) (Fu-tse. Fo-tzu) ASPIDOSPERMA (Quebracho Bark) CINCHONA (Peruvian Bark, Quinine Bark) COLA NITIDA (Kola Nut) CORYNANTHE (Pausinystalia Johimbe. Yohimbe) EPHEDRA VULGARIS (Ma Huang, Chinese Ephedra) GLYCYRRHIZA GLABRA (Licorice) HYDRASTIS (Golden Seal) LOPHOPHORA (Peyote, Mescal Buttons) NICOTIANA (Punche. Tobacco) PTYCHOPETALUM (Muirapuama, Raiz del Macho) SCOPARIUS (Cytisus scoparius, Broom Tops) ///////////////////////////////// PHARMACOKINETICS (PhKs) ///////////////////////////////// <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< PhKs: HERBS THAT CAN ALTER LIVER METABOLlSM OF DRUGS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ARISTOLOCHIA SERPENTARIA (Virginia Snakeroot, Serpentaria) ARISTOLOCHIA WATSONll (Indian Root, Raiz del Indio) ARTEMISIA TRIDENTATA (Sagebrush) BERBERIS VULGARIS (Common Barberry) CEPHALANTHUS (Button Bush) CHELIDONIUM (Greater Celandine) CHELONE (Balmony,. Turtlehead) CHIONANTHUS (Fringetree) EUONYMUS (Wahoo, Burning Bush) HYDRASTIS (Golden Seal) IRIS VERSICOLOR, I. MISSOURIENSIS (Blue Flag) LEPTANDRA (Veronicastrum, Culver's Root) MAHONIA (Oregon Grape, Algerita) PODOPHYLLUM. (American Mandrake) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< PhKs: HERBS THAT CAN ALTER GI ABSORPTION <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< AESCULUS CALIFORNICA (California Buckeye) AESCULUS GLABRA (Ohio Buckeye) AESCULUS HIPPOCASTANUM (Horse Chestnut) ALOE (Aloes Socrotine, etc.) ARCTOSTAPHYLOS (Uva Ursi, Manzanita, Bearberry) CAPSICUM (Cayenne, African Bird Peppers) CHLOROPHYLLIN (Sodium Copper Chlorophyllin, Chlorophyll "JJ") EPHEDRA VIRIDIS (Mormon Tea, American Ephedra, Canutillo, Popotillo) FRANGULA (Rhamnus frangula, Buckthorn) MIRABILIS MULTIFLORUM (Maravilla) PTELEA (Wafer Ash, Hop Tree) RHAMNUS CALIFORNICA (California Buckthorn) RHAMNUS FRANGULA (Buckthorn) RHAMNUS PURSHIANA (Cascara Sagrada) SENNA (Cassia angustifolia, Te de Sena ) YUCCA (Amole, Spanish Bayonet) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< PhKs: IMMUNOSTIMULANT HERBS THAT CAN RAISE WBC COUNT <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ARISTOLOCHIA SERPENTARIA (Virginia Snakeroot, Serpentaria ) ARISTOLOCHIA WATSONll (Indian Root, Raiz del Indio) BAPTISIA (Wild Indigo Root) COMMIPHORA (Myrrh Gum) GUAIACUM OFFICINALE (Lignum Vitae, Guayacan) POLYMNIA UVEDALIA (Bearsfoot, Leafcup) ///////////////////////////////// HEPATIC ///////////////////////// ///////////////////////////////// <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< HEPATIC: HERBS THAT CAN ALTER SGOT/SGPT READINGS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ANAGALLIS (Scarlet Pimpernel) EUONYMUS (Wahoo, Burning Bush) LINARIA (Toad Flax. Butter-and-Eggs) MAHONIA (Oregon Grape, Algerita) SILYBUM MARIANUM (Milk Thistle) <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< HEPATIC: PYRROLIZIDINE ALKALOID HERBS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< CACALIA DECOMPOSITA (Maturin, Maturique) CNICUS BENEDICTUS (Blessed or Holy Thistle) (if adulterated) CYNOGLOSSUM OFFICINALIS (Hound's Tongue) HELENIUM HOOPESll (Yerba del Lobo, Orange Sneezeweed) SENECIO AUREUS (Life Root, Squaw Weed) (if adulterated) SYMPHYTUM (Comfrey) (certain hybrids) ///////////////////////////////// HERB-SPECIFIC PROBLEMS ////////// ///////////////////////////////// <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< HERBS WITH MISCONCEPTIONS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ALETRIS FARINOSA (Star Grass, "True" Unicorn Root) Confused with Helonias (Chamaelirium), an HCG agonist and reproductive stimulant. Aletris is only a digestive stimulant ANGELICA SINENSIS (Dong Quai, Tang Kwei) NOT a source of exogenous estrogen, it instead increases utilization of ENDOGENOUS estrogens ARNICA (A. montana. A. cordifolia, A. latiflora. etc.) Unsafe for internal use, it can be confused with HETEROTHECA (Mexican Arnica) CAPSICUM (Cayenne, African Bird Peppers) Not a tonic or immunostimulant, it acts as a peripheral vasodilator, increasing blood supply to the skin and mucosa. It is NOT appropriate for active inflammation. CEREUS GRANDIFLORUS (Selenicereus, Peniocereus, Night-Blooming Cereus) NOT a digitalis-like cardioactive, it moderates SA-AV depolarization and lessens adrenergic or drug tachycardia. NOT for organic disease CORYNANTHE (Pausinystalia Johimbe, Yohimbe) An especially pernicious herb with simultaneous sympathetic AND parasympathetic actions. It will mimic vasopressin and can irritate the kidneys; it increases pelvic blood supply and can aggravate reproductive, GU, and descending colon irritations; it can irritate arterial endothelium and contribute to or cause vasculitis. Lousy for the prostate, it CAN trigger a few and relatively useless erections, followed by rebound re-flaccidity. DIOSCOREA VlLLOSA (Wild Yam) It has NO PROGESTERONE, or any other steroid hormone. The first generation of synthetic steroids was made using diosgenin (from MEXICAN Yam) and the Marker Degradation Method. By the mid-1950's stigmasterol (a soy-derived lipoid) took its place, and other methods are now used. It contains NO "precursors"...the only true human steroid precursor is low-density cholesterol OR some other steroid hormone. Wild Yam creams usually contain synthetic Natural Progesterone. EPHEDRA VULGARIS (Ma Huang, Chinese Ephedra) Although a useful and less edgy source of ephedrine, it is almost totally used these days as an "anorectic" or "safe" stimulant. Most people view CNS stimulants by comparison with caffeine sources...a 3-4 hour buzz. Ephedrine lasts 7-8 hours, is more adrenergic, and it is easy to overlap the doses without being aware of the vascular and pulmonary stress. In addition, with extended serum levels, tolerance to CNS effects can be quick (although other effects stay somewhat level) and an individual can quickly creep up in dosage. Dangerous in this context. GINKGO BILOBA (Maidenhair Tree) A peripheral and cerebral vasodilator, it helps those with impaired circulation. It is often sold, however, as an aid to "intelligence" and is often used by students when cramming for tests, etc. Under these misguided uses it causes many headaches HETEROTHECA (Camphor Weed, Mexican Arnica) See ARNICA HYPERICUM (St. John's Wort) Several preliminary tests implicated it as an anti-viral for HIV. These were overturned in subsequent tests but the reputation still lingers. It IS useful for helping some of the CNS symptoms of AIDS, but because of it's antidepressant effects, NOT because it is antiviral. LARREA (Chaparral, Gobernadora, Creosote Bush) It should not be considered as a liver irritant, despite several inexplicable cases. It IS an hepatic depressant (excessive antioxidant activities) and CAN cause hemolytic-type responses if it is used well above it's therapeutic window. LOBELIA INFLATA (Lobelia, Indian Tobacco) Fresh preparations of this herb show broad, many-layered stimulus of adrenergic-suppressed parasympa- thetic functions. Dry, but unheated Lobelia retains some of this function. By the time it is used for tea ONLY the emetic alkaloids are still intact, and it has little other value. PHYTOLACCA (Poke) Although useful (with a skillful touch) in depressed metabolism and edematous adipose tissues (the "Pillsbury Dough Person" syndrome), it has NO fat-reducing effects, is easily toxic, and it's reputation comes from being used for hypothyroid, goitrous conditions 100 years ago...in the Goiter Belt. SENECIO AUREUS (Life Root, Squaw Weed) This native Eastern United States wildflower seems to be beneficial for functional hypoestrogenic states, and has a reliable place, at least in herbal therapy. It is also fairly unique as a Senecio: it is devoid of toxic pyrrolizidine alkaloids. MOST of the herb on the market, however, is either S. vulgaris or a similar Senecio. I don't know how the confusion came about. They are not particularly similar in appearance, but many otherwise reliable texts consider them interchangeable. In fact they are VERY dissimilar in constituents. The OTHER Senecios are VERY high in the toxic group. Know the plant or the picker, otherwise avoid this remedy and stick with something like Dong Quai. SILYBUM MARIANUM (Milk Thistle) There are HUNDREDS of reliable biologic and medical studies that support this plant's seeds' value for Amanita mushroom poisoning, lessening the toxicity of heavy metals (if taken soon enough) and quickening CNS and hepatic regeneration in solvent or alcohol detox. Like Ginkgo, however, you NEED a problem to get benefit. Without an ongoing stress, using Silybum or it's extracted silymarins on general principle can actually depress normal liver function VISCUM ALBUM (European Mistletoe) Without attempting to comment on the European use (from the Rudolph Steiner hospitals) of Mistletoe (I don't know enough), the fact is that the dried herb is SOMETIMES not European but American Mistletoe (Phoradendron spp.), a VERY different plant altogether (at least pharmacologically), with almost pernicious vaso-constrictive effects. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< HERBS WITH HIDDEN or THRESHOLD EFFECTS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< CANNABIS SATIVA (Marijuana. Hemp) It can be a strong estrogen-synergist, shortening the estrus cycle in women, antagonizing testosterone in men (or being synergistic with adipose estradiols)...bad for any prostate condition. DAUCUS CAROTA (Carrot, Wild Carrot) Sometimes used as a contraceptive, it contains aromatics that, in large enough quantities, can exaggerate uterine inflammation. EQUISETUM ARVENSE (Horsetail) If growing in areas downstream of commercial farming, inorganic nitrates are metabolized into abnormal nicotine- like alkaloids. HYDRASTIS (Golden Seal) A mucus-membrane stimulant, useful for congested and subacute stages, it can CAUSE inflammation if not needed, can prematurely age the placenta, and, since it is threatened in the wild and cultivation is still marginal, its use is rarely moral. VALERIANA (Valerian) The dried plant, used consistently for a period of time, can induce "Valerianism", a state of emotional lability similar to what was formerly encountered with bromide abuse. The condition reverses quickly if the Valerian is stopped. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< HERBS LACKING ANY SOCIALLY REDEEMING VALUE <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< ARTEMISIA ABSINTHIUM (Wormwood) CINCHONA (Peruvian Bark. Quinine Bark) CORYNANTHE (Pausinystalia Johimbe, Yohimbe) EPHEDRA VULGARIS (Ma Huang. Chinese Ephedra) GALEGA (Goat's Rue) RUTA GRAVEOLENS (Rue, Ruda) TANACETUM (Tansy) POST NOTE: These opinions are mine; they reflect my experiences with these plants, as a merchant, wildcrafter, author and teacher. They are not exhaustive, many are disagreed with by other herbalists, naturopaths and those in pharmacy...I have enemies in ALL the camps. Crudely put, there is no better method to "Brown Nose" a group of medical professionals than by offering long lists of "Side Effects", thereby confirming their worst fears about what herbs do. The major medical journals (NEJofM and Lancet excluded) jerk the chains of readers by offering ill-researched, anecdotal and slanderous "exposes" of herbs and natural healing, using the shoddiest of peer-review procedures. Not only are there frequent REAL mistakes (wrong botany, pharmacy, etc.), but the normally fastidious standards of medical reporting are completely ignored in many of these articles. It is as if the MEANS are unimportant, as long as the RESULTS meet political-medical preconceptions. Politics be damned; there are potential dangers mixing herbs and medicine. Unfortunately, as previously mentioned, they often have little relationship to those that could be expected from purely chemical causes. I am trying to be practical and realistic. Although, as an herbalist, it is obvious where my heart lies, I am making NO attempt to slant my list towards either end of the Wholistic vs Medical dialectic. I am concerned about the patients. SOUTHWEST SCHOOL OF BOTANICAL MEDICINE 122 Tulane SE, Albuquerque, NM 87106 (505) 255-9215 FAX (505) 268-0196 Michael Moore, Director Donna Chesner, Administrator