-IBIS-1.7.0-
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herb
Gelsemium sempervirens (Yellow Jasmine)
Botanicals

definition

botanical name(s): Gelsemium sempervirens

synonyms: yellow jasmine, Carolina jasmine

part(s) used: root

qualities:

affinities: uterus, GI system

actions: relaxes high nervous and muscular tension, anodyne

dosage:

» tincture: 0.3 - 1 ml.

therapy: synergist in formulas for colds, fevers, bronchitis; facial neuralgia; toothache; headache; rigid os

toxicity: 4; see gelsemium toxidrome

treatment of overdose should be symptomatic and help promote renal output; Atropine or Digitalis may be useful; artificial respiration may be necessary (Duke, p. 205; Grieve; Hardin, p. 124-126)

» contraindicated during pregnancy due to uterine stimulant effect (Brinker, p. 51)

» handling fresh plant may cause contact dermatitis (Fuller and McClintock, p. 372)

» repeated intake of small dosages can cause vomiting (Felter and Scudder, pp. 385-386)

» Gelsemium toxidrome: neuromotor and spinal nerve stimulation followed by paralysis; signs and symptoms include a weak and thready pulse, diaphoresis, headache (usually frontal) vertigo, ataxia, dysphagia, dry mouth, double vision; followed by ptosis, a paralysis of the tongue, a pronounced weakness of the jaw, muscular prostration, and a strychnine-like intoxication (general rigidity, tetany, spasmodic extensor reflexes with hypercontractility); palpebral ptosis and a rigid and shy-like expression in the face have been noted; in later stages hypotension occurs, followed by death due to cardiorespiratory failure; convulsions are rare (Ellis, p. 74; Felter and Scudder, pp. 385 - 386; von Oettingen, p. 368)

constituents: alkaloids and volatile oils

footnotes

Brinker F. 1996. The Toxicology of Botanical Medicines, rev. 2nd ed., Sandy, Oregon: Eclectic Medical Publications.

Duke, J.A. 1985. C.R.C. Handbook of Medicinal Herbs. Boca Raton, FL: The C.R.C. Press.

Ellis, M.D. 1975. Dangerous Plants, Snakes, Arthropods, And Marine Life. Hamilton, IL: Drug Intelligence Publications, Inc.

Felter, H.W. & Scudder, John K., 1922. The Eclectic Materia Medica, Pharmacology and Therapeutics. Cincinnati, Ohio. Reprinted in 1985 by Eclectic Medical Publications, Portland, OR.

Fuller, T.C., and McClintock, E. 1986. Poisonous Plants of California. Los Angeles: University of Southern California Press.

Grieve, M. 1971. A Modern Herbal, Vols. I and II. New York: Dover Publications.

Hardin, J. W.; and Arena, J.M. 1974. Human Poisoning from Native Cultivated Plants, 2nd ed. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.

von Oettingen, W.F. 1958. Poisoning: A Guide to Clinical Diagnosis and Treatment. Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders and Company.