* Please Note: This information is based partly on Traditional Medicine which uses natural materials to support health. This information has not been evaluated or approved by the FDA. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). These products are intended to support general well being and are not intended to treat, diagnose, mitigate, prevent, or cure any condition or disease. If conditions persist, please seek advice from your medical doctor.
Description
Goldenseal Hydrastis canadensis L. Ranunculaceae, Buttercup family.
Other Common Names: Yellow Root. Yellow Puccoon. Orange Root, Yellow Indian Paint, Indian Turmeric, Jaundice Root, Eyebalm, Ground Raspberry.
Golden Seal is a perennial plant found in rich, shady, upland woods over limestone from New York west to Minnesota and Ontario, and south to Georgia and Missouri. Because of intensive gathering, it is now rare in any of its range.
The mature plant consists of a single forked stem supporting a large leaf on one branch and a small leaf with a flower on the other branch, and is usually one foot tall. The bright yellowcolor of the roots extends partly up the leaf-stem to the point where it emerges from the soil. Many young woodland plants resemble immature Golden Seal.
The two leaves are pahnately veined with five to nine jaggedly toothed lobes. When the flower appears in early spring, the leaves, which later attain a size of six to eight inches, are only partially developed. The upper leaf encloses and protects the flower bud. The flower is greenish-whites less than a half an inch in diameter and has, instead of petals, three petal-like sepals. These fall away as soon as the flower expands, leaving only a cluster of stamens and pistils which develop into a round berry-like cluster. The cluster ripens in August to resemble a single large raspberry from which the common name ground raspberry is derived. In a bed of Golden Seal, there are often large numbers of immature, sterile plants having only a stem with one leaf. Only after at least three years is the plant old enough to flower and reproduce.
In the past, Golden Seal has been used to make a beautiful yellow dye. This is where it gets the names like yellow Indian paint, Indian tumeric, and Ohio curcuma. In more recent times Golden Seal has become too rare and expensive to use as dyestuff.
A homemade toothpowder can be made by first mixing powdered Golden Seal, myrrh, and sea salt to act as disinfectants and medications. To this, an equal amount of powdered chicory charcoal is added. The charcoal is gently abrasive and helps whiten the teeth and freshen the breath. To these ingredients, some powdered peppermint is added to help counteract the bitter taste of the Golden Seal and give the powder a refreshing toothpaste-like flavor.
Internally, the decoction of Golden Seal is very well known as a stomach medicine. It acts as a tonic and a stimulant to the digestive system, increasing both the appetite and gastric secretions. It is useful in poor digestion caused by weak, debilitated, or inflamed stomach or intestinal lining. It helps stimulate poor circulation in cold extremities, especially when combined with cayenne pepper. It is useful either alone or combined with other herbs, such as myrrh or slippery elm, as an injection to treat various genito-urinary infections.
For bad colds and flu, Golden Seal tea is a favorite remedy. It seems to be antibiotic in action. The only complaint most Golden Seal users have about the tea is its bad taste. Adding a little honey and a drop or two of brandy in the tea does wonders, not only to cut the bad taste but also to help warm the insides and clear the head.
An extract of Golden Seal, the drug called "hydrastine," has been used to treat malaria, and is considered second only to quinine.
Golden Seal and/or its derivatives were official in the United States Pharmacopea intermittently between 1831 and 1936, and were listed in the National Formulary until 1960. The underground rootstock, when fresh and clean, is a brilliant yellow that can hardly be surpassed by the blossoms of any wild flower. Like many rhizomes, it grows along horizontally a few inches under the ground. If you are gathering it, the budding end portion of the older rhizomes should be broken off and replanted as a conservation measure.
Golden Seal has been in the news recently. Apparently heroin addicts found that if they take Golden Seal it will mask the presence of heroin or morphine in-the urine tests that were being used by drug detoxification programs. This result could be due to a chemical react on, but some herbalists contend that it is due to Golden Seal's strength and effectiveness as a blood cleanser and detoxifier. It seems that whatever the reason for this action, new heroin tests have been developed which are not influenced by this root.
Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis) is another important North American blood purifying antiinflammatory herb. Its major constituents, berberine, hydrastine, and hydrastimne, are effective against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, yeast, fungus, and protozoas. Berberine, a major compound in goldenseal, has been found to inhitbit cellular respiration especially of cancer cells, which are more sensitive to berberine than are normal cells.
Goldenseal can prevent the growth of bacteria, fungi and viruses, both in test tubes and in clinical trials. Whether the concentrations found in most herbal teas are high enough to do any good is questionable, but the combination of goldenseal and echinacea for respiratory infection does seem to make sense. Unless it is washed down with half a gallon of water, goldenseal has never helped anyone "beat" a workplace urine drug test.
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Directions
Stir 1/4 of a teaspoon into a glass of water and consume 3 times daily, with meals.
Cautions
Avoid use during pregnancy.
Those with ragweed allergies should use sparingly.
Additional Information
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These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Products are intended to support general well being and are not intended to treat, diagnose, mitigate, prevent, or cure any condition or disease. If conditions persist, please seek advice from your medical doctor. The essence of the current American rule on Traditional Uses is, as stated by FTC, "Claims based on historical or traditional use should be substantiated by confirming scientific evidence, or should be presented in such a way that consumers understand that the sole basis for the claim is a history of use of the product for a particular purpose."
