Sign up for our Health Tip of the Day newsletter, and receive daily tips that will help you live your healthiest life. Safety of high-dose Puerariae Lobatae Radix in adolescent rats based on metabolomics. Food Sci Nutr. Comparison of Pueraria mirifica gel and conjugated equine estrogen cream effects on vaginal health in postmenopausal women. Efficacy and safety of kudzu flower-mandarin peel on hot flashes and bone markers in women during the menopausal transition: A randomized controlled trial.
Applications of Pueraria lobata in treating diabetics and reducing alcohol drinking. Chin Herb Med. Response of migraine without aura to kudzu. Neurol Sci. A pilot study in healthy human subjects. J Ethnopharmacol. Your Privacy Rights.
To change or withdraw your consent choices for VerywellHealth. At any time, you can update your settings through the "EU Privacy" link at the bottom of any page.
These choices will be signaled globally to our partners and will not affect browsing data. We and our partners process data to: Actively scan device characteristics for identification. I Accept Show Purposes. Table of Contents View All. Table of Contents. Even existing stands of kudzu now exude the odor of their own demise, an acrid sweetness reminiscent of grape bubble gum and stink bug. A study of one site showed a one-third reduction in kudzu biomass in less than two years.
The widely cited nine-million-acre number appears to have been plucked from a small garden club publication, not exactly the kind of source you expect a federal agency or academic journal to rely on. Yet the popular myth won a modicum of scientific respectability. Today, it frequently appears on popular top-ten lists of invasive species. The official hype has also led to various other questionable claims—that kudzu could be a valuable source of biofuel and that it has contributed substantially to ozone pollution.
As trees grew in the cleared lands near roadsides, kudzu rose with them. It appeared not to stop because there were no grazers to eat it back. But, in fact, it rarely penetrates deeply into a forest; it climbs well only in sunny areas on the forest edge and suffers in shade.
Still, along Southern roads, the blankets of untouched kudzu create famous spectacles. Bored children traveling rural highways insist their parents wake them when they near the green kudzu monsters stalking the roadside.
It was an invasive that grew best in the landscape modern Southerners were most familiar with—the roadsides framed in their car windows. It was conspicuous even at 65 miles per hour, reducing complex and indecipherable landscape details to one seemingly coherent mass. And because it looked as if it covered everything in sight, few people realized that the vine often fizzled out just behind that roadside screen of green. In animal studies, feeding with kudzu root suppressed alcohol intake and withdrawal symptoms 4.
Studies of kudzu in humans are limited and have mostly focused on its effects on alcohol consumption or climacteric symptoms. In heavy drinkers, data suggest kudzu may be a useful adjunct to reduce alcohol intake 9 19 In another small study, a single dose of kudzu extract reduced alcohol consumption Other preliminary studies suggest kudzu may improve symptoms such as hot flushes and night sweats in perimenopausal women 5 10 21 , and cognitive function in postmenopausal women 6.
Although a topical P. A recent systematic review of P. In addition, another systematic review determined that evidence on benefits for any condition with various species of kudzu are limited and unclear Because human and animal studies suggest some estrogenic effects 5 10 11 , individuals with hormone-sensitive cancers and those taking tamoxifen should avoid kudzu. Anti-inflammatory properties are attributed to decreased prostaglandin E2 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha release, both of which are involved in inflammatory processes 3.
The isoflavone tectorigenin demonstrated antiproliferative activity via cell differentiation and reduced expression of Bcl-2, an antiapoptotic protein 1. In animal studies, peurarin may alleviate chronic alcoholic liver injury via inhibition of endotoxin gut-leakage, activation of Kupffer cells, and expression of lipopolysaccharide receptors In humans, benefits from kudzu on hot flashes, night sweats, and cognitive function are also attributed to isoflavones 5 6.
Puerarin particularly has been credited with influencing alcohol consumption patterns, although the mechanism by which this might occur is unknown In one small study of postmenopausal women, transient negative profiles including anemia and liver profiles 5. Other small studies reported no significant adverse effects 9 19 20 21 Acute interstitial nephritis: In a middle-aged woman who consumed kudzu root juice to promote health and well-being for 10 days, and without evidence of any other causes Symptoms of appetite loss, nausea, vomiting, and epigastric discomfort, improved within several days after discontinuation and conservative treatment.
These adverse effects were attributed to the ingestion of mistletoe and kudzu extracts which he took to promote general health, although it is uncertain whether either, both, or an interaction between the two caused these adverse effects Developing Your Personal Care Plan. Integrative Medicine at Home Membership Program.
About Mind-Body Therapies. How It Works. Purported Uses. Menopausal symptoms Small clinical studies suggest that kudzu is a phytoestrogen that may help reduce menopausal symptoms, but a systematic review did not find benefit.
Alcohol abuse Kudzu may reduce alcohol intake and withdrawal, but these studies enrolled only a small number of patients, and a systematic review did not find benefit.
Diabetes Kudzu is used in traditional medicine to treat diabetes, but evidence is lacking. Fever or common cold Kudzu is used in traditional medicine for these purposes, but human studies are lacking. Neck or eye pain Kudzu is used in traditional medicine for these purposes.
Although animal studies suggest kudzu may reduce inflammation and pain in combination with other herbs, human studies are lacking. Do Not Take If. You have hypersensitivity to kudzu. You have hormone -sensitive cancer: Kudzu has estrogenic activity. You are taking tamoxifen: Isoflavones in kudzu may interfere with the effects of tamoxifen which is used for estrogen-dependent breast cancer. You are taking methotrexate: In animal studies, taking kudzu at the same time reduced elimination of the drug methotrexate, causing increased levels of the drug.
Clinical relevance has yet to be determined. You are taking antidiabetic medication: Animal studies suggest a key component in kudzu may increase the activity of these medications. For more anti-inflammatory benefits, check out moringa. And here's how much turmeric you should be taking. Your official excuse to add "OOD" ahem, out of doors to your cal. Become an Insider. Enter Email Address. Facebook Pinterest Twitter Youtube Instagram.
0コメント