Goldenseal

Perennial herb of northeastern United States having a thick knotted yellow rootstock and large rounded leaves. Common Names: goldenseal, yellow root

Hydrastis canadensis - goldenseal - desc-flower front view

Other names

Latin Names: Hydrastis canadensis

Background

• Goldenseal is a plant native to North America. Overharvesting and loss of habitat have decreased the availability of wild goldenseal, but the plant is now grown commercially in the United States, especially in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
• Historically, Native Americans used goldenseal for skin disorders, ulcers, fevers, and other conditions. European settlers adopted it as a medicinal plant, using it for a variety of conditions.
• Currently, goldenseal is used as a dietary supplement for colds and other respiratory tract infections, allergic rhinitis (hay fever), ulcers, and digestive upsets such as diarrhea and constipation. It is also used as a mouthwash for sore gums and as an eyewash for eye inflammation, and it is applied to the skin for rashes and other skin problems.
• The roots of goldenseal are dried and used to make teas, extracts, tablets, or capsules. Goldenseal is often combined with echinacea in commercial products.

Goldenseal

Evidence

• The scientific evidence does not support the use of goldenseal for any health-related purpose.
• Berberine, a substance found in goldenseal, has been studied for heart failure, diarrhea, infections, and other health conditions. However, when people take goldenseal orally (by mouth), very little berberine may be absorbed by the body or enter the bloodstream, so study results on berberine may not apply to goldenseal.
• The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) is funding research to study how goldenseal may act against bacteria and to develop research-grade goldenseal for use in human studies.

Goldenseal

Safety

• There isn’t much reliable information on the safety of goldenseal.
• Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding should not use goldenseal, and it should not be given to infants. Berberine can cause or worsen jaundice in newborn infants and could lead to a life-threatening problem called kernicterus.
• Goldenseal contains substances that may change the way your body processes many medications. If you’re taking medication, consult your health care provider before using goldenseal.

Herbal and dietary supplements

• Aloe Vera, Ashwagandha, Astragalus, Bilberry, Black Cohosh, Butterbur, Cat's Claw, Cascara, Chaparral, Comfrey, Crofelemer, Echinacea, Ephedra, Fenugreek, Flavocoxid, Garcinia cambogia, Germander, Ginkgo, Ginseng, Greater Celandine, Green Tea, Hoodia, Hops, Horse Chestnut, Hyssop, Kava Kava, Kratom, Lavender, Maca, Margosa Oil, Melatonin, Milk Thistle, Noni, Passionflower, Pennyroyal Oil, Red Yeast Rice, Resveratrol, Saw Palmetto, Senna, Skullcap, Spirulina, St. John's Wort, Turmeric, Usnic Acid, Valerian, Yohimbine

Chinese and Other Asian Herbal Medicines

• Ba Jiao Lian, Bol Gol Zhee, Chi R Yun, Jin Bu Huan, Ma Huang, Sho Saiko To and Dai Saiko To, Shou Wu Pian

Multi-Ingredient Nutritional Supplements

• Herbalife, Hydroxycut, Move Free, OxyELITE Pro, SLIMQUICK

See also Nutritional supplements

Comprehensive list of common dietary supplements with detailed product information including brand name, how it is supplied, net contents, product ID etc, sorted alphabetically.

List of dietary supplements sorted alphabetically

A – B – C – D – E – F – G – H – I – J – K – L – M – N – O – P – Q – R – S – T – U – V – W – X – Y – Z – W – 0-9

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Dietary supplements

A Acai Aloe Vera Anabolic Steroids Astragalus Vitamin A B Bilberry Bitter Orange Black Cohosh Botanical Dietary Supplements Butterbur Vitamin B12 Vitamin B6 C Calcium Carnitine Cartilage Cat's Claw Chamomile Chasteberry Chondroitin Chromium Cinnamon Coenzyme Q10 Colloidal Silver Cranberry Vitamin C

D Dandelion Dietary Supplements Vitamin D E Echinacea Ephedra Essiac/Flor-Essence European Elder Evening Primrose Oil Vitamin E F Fenugreek Feverfew Fish Oil Flaxseed Folate G Garlic Ginger Ginkgo Ginseng Glucosamine Goldenseal Grape Seed Extract Green Tea

H Hawthorn Herbal Dietary Supplements Hoodia Horse Chestnut I Iodine Iron K Kava Vitamin K L Lavender Licorice Root M Magnesium Melatonin Milk Thistle Mistletoe Multivitamin/mineral Supplements N Noni O Omega-3 Fatty Acids

P PC-SPES Peppermint Oil R Red Clover S Sage SAMe (S-Adenosyl-L-Methionine) Saw Palmetto Selenium Soy St. John's Wort T Tea Thunder God Vine Turmeric V Valerian Vitamin A Vitamin B12 Vitamin B6 Vitamin C Vitamin D Vitamin E Vitamin K Y Yohimbe Z Zinc

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Goldenseal Resources
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External links

• Goldenseal: An Annotated Bibliography
• About.com's Herb & Supplement Guide: Goldenseal
• Bruce A. Ford: Hydrastis in the Flora of North America, Volume 3