Goldenseal

Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis), also called orangeroot or yellow puccoon, is a perennial herb in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, native to southeastern Canada and the eastern United States. It may be distinguished by its thick, yellow knotted rootstock. The stem is purplish and hairy above ground and yellow below ground where it connects to the yellow rhizome. Goldenseal mostly reproduces clonally through the rhizome. The plant bears two palmate, hairy leaves with 5–7 double-toothed lobes and single, small, inconspicuous flowers with greenish-white stamens in the late spring. In summer, it bears a single berry the size of a large raspberry with 10–30 seeds. It is most known due to its use in traditional medicine. However, there is currently insufficient evidence to determine if goldenseal has a justifiably good therapeutic index for any conditions. Research into the efficacy of goldenseal for a variety of uses is ongoing. In herbalism, goldenseal's roots and rhizomes have been historically harvested and claimed to be a safe and effective multi-purpose remedy. Currently, some herbalists who support the use of goldenseal claim the herb's efficacy is due to high concentrations of berberine and hydrastine. The herb is believed to possess some measure of anti-inflammatory, anti-diarrheal, antibacterial, and immune system-enhancing properties. Goldenseal is used to purportedly control muscle spasms, treat cancer, stimulate the heart and increase blood pressure, treat gastrointestinal disorders, treat conjunctivitis, manage painful and heavy menstruation, treat infections topically, reduce swelling and alleviate edema. Goldenseal may be purchased in salve, tablet, tincture form or as a bulk powder. It is often used to boost the medicinal effects of other herbs with which it is blended or formulated. A second species from Japan, previously listed as Hydrastis palmatum, is now usually classified in another genus, as Glaucidium palmatum. According to the American Cancer Society, 'evidence does not support claims that goldenseal is effective in treating cancer or other diseases. Goldenseal can have toxic side effects, and high doses can cause death.' Even though not enough research has been completed to determine the plant's efficacy, some experiments have shown that goldenseal is effective at reducing infection and potentially useful in the prevention and treatment of MRSA (Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus). Although the 2012 article, 'Quorum Quenching and Antimicrobial Activity of Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis) against Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)', found evidence of efficacy ('a demonstrated quorum-quenching activity against several clinically-relevant MRSA isolates (USA300 strains)') it did not evaluate the toxicity of goldenseal or consider the therapeutic index. Herbalist Paul Bergner investigated the research and has been unable to find case reports in which levels of intestinal pathogens were lowered after taking goldenseal. A study in which men with E. coli-induced diarrhea had 42–48% reduced symptoms after taking berberine showed unchanged levels of intestinal bacteria, pathogenic or otherwise, after taking goldenseal. It appears likely that goldenseal shares with Mahonia (Oregon grape) and Berberis (barberry) the ability to inhibit the drug resistance MDR pumps of bacteria. At the time of the European colonization of the Americas, goldenseal was in extensive use among certain Native American tribes of North America, both as a medicine and as a coloring material. Benjamin Smith Barton, in his first edition of Collections for an Essay Toward a Materia Medica of the United States (1798), refers to the Cherokee use of goldenseal as a cancer treatment. Later, he calls attention to its properties as a bitter tonic, and as a local wash for ophthalmia. It became a favorite of the Eclectics from the time of Constantine Raffinesque in the 1830s. Tribes also used goldenseal for digestive issues, as an eyewash, as a diuretic and as a bitter. Dr. John Henry Pinkard, a noted 'Yarb Doctor' and producer of medicines in Roanoke, Virginia, during the 1920s and 1930s, had a variety of remedies that he prepared and sold out of his drugstore and shipped across the country. Some of the names were: 'Pinkard's Hydrastic Compound' (evidently made from goldenseal or Hydrastis canadensis), 'Pinkard's Great Liniment' and 'Pinkard's Sanguinaria Compound' (made with Sanguinaria). Many of his potions were based on herb lore taken from traditional slave and rural Virginia medical practices and local tribal remedies.