botanical name(s): Eupatorium perfoliatum, Eupatorium purpurea
synonyms:
» Eupatorium perfoliatum: boneset, thoroughwort, Indian sage, ague weed, cross-wort, gravel root, crosswort, feverwort, sweating plant, teasel, vegetable antimony, wood boneset, durchwachsener wasserhant, herbe a la fievre
» Eupatorium purpurea: queen of the meadow, gravel weed, Joe Pye weed, gravel root, purple boneset, kidney root, trumpet weed
part(s) used: flowering tops, leaves, root of E. purpurea
qualities: bitter, pungent, astringent, cold, dry
affinities: bones
actions: aperient, cathartic, diaphoretic, stomachic, tonic, diuretic, nervine, antilithic
dosage:
» herb powder: 0.5 - 1 g
» tincture: 2 - 4 ml.
» root tincture: 2 - 4 ml.
specific indications: large full pulse, skin hot and full with a tendency to become moist; deep-seated aching pain in muscles and periosteum; cough, embarrassed breathing, and pain in the chest; urine turbid and urination frequent; influenzal cough and aching pain (Felter and Scudder p. 365)
therapy: malarial affections; colds; influenza; colds with pleuritic pain and hoarseness; intolerable backache and pain in the limbs; periosteal pain of a neuralgic type; irritable cough of measles; acute lobar pneumonia; bronchopneumonia (Felter and Scudder, pp. 365-366) acute bronchitis; nasopharyngeal catarrh (British Herbal Pharmacopoeia, p. 87)
AHPA Botanical Safety Rating: 4
toxicity: E. purpurea: 1, E. perfoliatum: 0
» use with caution during pregnancy; eupatorin has cytotoxic properties (carcinogenic, teratogenic, and fetotoxic potential) (Duke, p. 188)
» contraindicated in allergic hypersensitivity; can result in contact dermatitis due to the sesquiterpene lactone constituents that are found in members of the Eupatorium genus (Lewis and Elvin-Lewis)
» avoid excessive or prolonged use of E. purpurea due to its hepatotoxic pyrrolizidine alkaloid content (De Smet)
constituents: sesquiterpene lactones, polysaccharides, flavonoids, pyrollizidine alkaloids, diterpenes, sterols, essential oil
footnotes
British Herbal Medical Association. 1983. British Herbal Pharmacopoeia. West Yorks, England: The British Herbal Medical Association.
De Smet PAGM et al. (eds.). 1993. Adverse Effects of Herbal Drugs 2, Berlin: Springer-Verlag
Duke, J.A. 1985. C.R.C. Handbook of Medicinal Herbs. Boca Raton, FL: The C.R.C. Press.
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.
Lewis, W.H., and Elvin-Lewis, M.P. 1977. Medical Botany. New York: John Wiley and Sons.