Butterbur Herb

LATIN NAME:

Petasites hybridus

Butterbur herb is also known as Common butterbur, Coughwort, Sweet Coltsfoot, and Pestilence wort.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION AND INFORMATION:

Butterbur is a robust perennial shrub with a creeping underground stem (rhizome) and very large leaves that are green above and woolly gray on the undersides. It has thick, reddish-brown leafless aerial stem and erect flowering shoots that emerge in the spring before the leaves and bear club-shaped clusters of reddish-violet tubular flowers. The name Butterbur came for the plants leaves, which were used to wrap butter in the days before refrigeration.

Butterbur herb has been as successful as the prescription drugs Allegra and Zyrtec in treating symptoms of hay fever and causes less drowsiness, which is a common side effect of antihistamine medications.

TARGET AILMENTS:

Take internally for:

* migraine headaches

* bronchial spasms

* asthma

* cough

* hoarseness

* whooping cough

* gastric ulcers

* intestinal colic

* irritable bladder

* urinary tract spasms

* stimulating menstruation

* relieve nerve pain

* relaxing muscles

* expelling parasites

Use externally for:

* wound dressing

* skin eruptions

* swellings

* swollen veins

* swollen glands

* rheumatic joints

PREPARATIONS:

This herb is available as standardized extract, tincture, dried and powdered root.

It can be used as a tea, decoction, infusion, and poultice.

Parts used: Rhizomes, leaves

Collection: The rhizomes are collected in the summer and the leaves can be collected throughout the growing season.

Constituents: Essential oil, mucilage, bitter glycosides, tannin, stimulant, analgesic

Actions: Anti-spasmodic, anti-inflammatory, diuretic, diaphoretic, stimulant, analgesic

Combinations: Butterbur can be combined with White Horehound or Marshmallow in cough remedies.

SAFETY AND SIDE EFFECTS:

* Regarded as safe when taken in the recommended doses.

* Large amounts of this herb should be avoided.

* This herb should not be used by children and pregnant or nursing women.

* Anyone who suffers from liver or kidney disease should not use this herb.