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Chaparral: Herbal Medications, What Does Not Work
Chaparral (Larrea tridentata and other species), or creosote bush, is a desert shrub that was a traditional Native American remedy for rheumatism and other illnesses. Chaparral would in itself be a misnomer, as chaparral refers literally to dwarf evergreen oak, and broadly to the brushy areas where they and other desert shrubs grow. In California, the creosite bush is one of many common desert shrubs. Its primary active constituent, NDGA, is a powerful antioxidant that has been valued commercially for its preservative properties. More recently, chaparral has been investigated for possible anticancer activity, but that research is inconclusive.
In the 1990s, isolated reports began to appear about liver disease from chaparral. Thirteen cases showed evidence of liver toxicity, with symptoms appearing three to fifty-two weeks after ingestion, usually resolving one to seventeen weeks after intake of the herb stopped. Four individuals progressed to cirrhosis, and two required liver transplants. While chaparral may indeed cause liver damage, its toxic impact is not well established. In some of the reported cases, the people were also taking drugs with established negative effects on the liver, and others had a history of liver disease.
For a time, the American Herbal Products Association requested its members to voluntarily stop selling chaparral. Then, after a medical review of cases of liver dysfunction, they merely suggested that chaparral products be labeled with the appropriate cautions, and with a phone number for reporting adverse effects.
From THE
BEST ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE: WHAT WORKS? WHAT DOES NOT? by Dr. Kenneth R.
Pelletier.
Copyright © 2000 by Dr. Kenneth R. Pelletier,
Inc.
Reprinted by permission of Simon &
Schuster, Inc., New York, New York.
Unless otherwise indicated,
Dr. Kenneth R. Pelletier. All Rights Reserved.
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