What is Chinese skullcap used for?
The root is used medicinally. Chinese skullcap is substantially different from American skullcap (S. It has been incorporated into herbal formulas designed to treat such widely varying conditions as cancer, liver disease, anxiety, allergies, skin conditions, and epilepsy. Other evidence indicates that baicalin, wogonin, and baicalein may have anticancer, anti-inflammatory, liver-protective, antianxiety, insomnia, and antihypertensive effects. Chinese skullcap contains antioxidants, which protect the body from free radicals that can cause chronic health conditions.Abstract. Skullcap (Scutellaria baicalensis) has been widely used as a dietary ingredient and traditional herbal medicine owing to its anti-inflammatory and anticancer properties.Skullcap also helps to lower blood pressure due to the way it relaxes the nervous system. The leaves, stems, and flowers are the parts of the plants that are used medicinally. Typically the plants are harvested while it is blooming and at their most potent and then dried for later use.In fact, our in-house herbalists swear by it! While other relaxing herbs like valerian and chamomile tend to make people sleepy, skullcap has the uncanny ability to soothe the nerves without slowing you down.
What is another name for Chinese skullcap?
Scutellaria baicalensis is used in traditional medicine to treat many medical conditions, but studies in humans are limited. S. Huang Qin or Chinese skullcap, is a root extract used in traditional medicine. As an important medicinal herb, S. S.
What are the side effects of Chinese skullcap extract?
When taken by mouth: Baikal skullcap is possibly safe for most adults when taken for up to 8 weeks. It might cause stomach pain, constipation, vomiting, and stomach upset. One specific product (Limbrel, Primus Pharmaceuticals) has been linked to serious side effects. Hormone-sensitive condition such as breast cancer, uterine cancer, ovarian cancer, endometriosis, or uterine fibroids: Baikal skullcap might have the same effects as estrogen. If you have any condition that might be made worse by estrogen, don’t use Baikal skullcap.Baikal skullcap might have some of the same effects as estrogen. However Baikal skullcap is not as strong as estrogen pills. Taking Baikal skullcap along with estrogen pills might decrease the effects of estrogen pills.
Is Chinese skullcap good for sleep?
Chemicals in skullcap might cause sleepiness. People use skullcap for anxiety, insomnia, and many other conditions, but there is no good scientific evidence to support these uses. Actions | Compounds in skullcap may bind to a GABA receptor in the brain responsible for modulating anxiety. Skullcap also contains the amino acid glutamine, which provides both sedative and anxiety-fighting effects.One early study was a small double-blind, placebo-controlled trial that found indications that the herb might reduce anxiety levels in healthy volunteers. In the 2010s, more human clinical studies into skullcap occurred, showing its ability to increase mood while reducing anxiety by stimulating GABA.
Who cannot take skullcap?
Even so, people with conditions that affect liver function should avoid this plant altogether. Chinese skullcap has also been associated with lung complications and can interact with many common medications, such as: blood thinners. Some Chinese herbal products have been contaminated with toxic compounds, heavy metals, pesticides, and microorganisms and may have serious side effects. Manufacturing errors, in which one herb is mistakenly replaced with another, also have resulted in serious complications.The growing number of clinical case reports and laboratory research results clearly shows that some Chinese herbs have a certain liver toxicity. Studies on the diagnosis, treatment and mechanism have not kept pace.There have been several reports and small case series of acute liver injury with jaundice arising after 1 to 3 months of starting herbals or dietary supplements with Chinese skullcap (Scutellaria baicalensis), the liver injury resembling that associated with North American skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora).
Is skullcap toxic to the liver?
Hepatotoxicity. Skullcap has been implicated in rare instances of clinically apparent liver injury, although in most cases multiple herbal medications were being taken and the role of skullcap in the hepatic damage was unclear. However, the National Institutes of Health official guidance states that the use of Scutellaria “has been implicated in rare instances of clinically apparent liver injury” and that “the onset of symptoms and jaundice occurred within 6–24 weeks of starting skullcap, and the serum enzyme pattern was typically .