FHN Complementary Medicine Monthly Newsletter July 2008
I hate cockleburs….or do I?
How many times have you had a walk in nature and come back with the pesky cockleburs? Or your dog or cat comes in from outdoors and you have to spend time pulling out those pesky burrs? Well next time before you start uttering four letter words (like….. darn) think about the following. Cockleburs ( Xanthium strumarium, the Chinese call it Cang Er Zi) has been used for centuries in the treatment of allergic rhinitis. You know the runny nose and itchy eyes that are brought on by pollens, grass, etc. Those things that are especially nasty from spring to late summer.
Xanthium has been found to inhibit the formation of histamine in the body. This is different than an antihistamine which block the receptor site for histamine but doesn’t reduce the production of it. The net effect is it reduces the allergic response without all the drowsiness associated with some antihistamines.
At Complementary Medicine we have a product called Xanthium 12 (which actually has twelve herbs in it) that we use for allergies. The synergistic herbs also act on other pathways and help reduce some of the other causes of inflammation (ie leukotrienes) in the upper respiratory system.
So next time you stumble over a cocklebur use another four letter word like I “love” it.
Drs. Glenn and Julie Smith
Complementary Medicine
