Cascara sagrada

Rhamnus purshiana

A deciduous tree growing 20-30 feet tall, with a trunk averaging 1 1/2 feet in diameter, cascara sagrada has slender branches and a reddish-brown bark. Its green or yellow-green leaves are elliptical, finely toothed, and rounded at the base, with either blunt or sharp ends; the leaves are crowded at the tips of branchlets. Greenish-white flowers (May-June), borne in clusters in the axils of the leaves, develop into round black fruits (September), each with two or three smooth seeds.

Spanish priests in California, who noted that American Indians used the bark medicinally, gave this tree the name cascara sagrada, meaning "sacred bark." The Indians stripped the bark from the tree in early spring or autumn, dried it, and then aged it for at least a year. To prepare the medicine, they steeped the bark in boiling water; they drank the cooled liquid to relieve constipation. A century elapsed between the time the Spaniards took note of the plant's medicinal use in California and its acceptance by American physicians in 1877. Cascara sagrada has been listed in the U.S. Pharmacopeia since 1894. Cascara bark has been called the world's most widely used laxative. It is still marketed.

Cascara sagrada acts by irritating the intestines to produce wavelike contractions of the muscles of the intestinal wall. Properly diluted, cascara sagrada is especially useful as a mild laxative for elderly people or those in delicate health. Honey produced from cascara flowers also has a slight laxative effect. Two related European species, R. frangula (alder buckthorn) and R. cathartica (buckthorn), have similar laxative effects, but cascara sagrada is milder and also safer to use.

Other names

• Cascara
• Cascara Buckthorn
• Chittembark
• Sacred Bark

Parts used

Dried bark.

Uses

Cascara sagrada may be used in chronic constipation as it encourages peristalsis and tones relaxed muscles of the digestive system.
Cascara sagrada is a key ingredient of many commercial laxatives. Cascara sagrada can also be used in small doses as a tonic to promote digestion.

Habitat & cultivation

West coast of North America. Pacific Northwest from British Columbia to northern California. Forested mountain slopes, canyons, and bottomlands.

Constituents

Cascara sagrada contains anthraquinones, tannin, volatile oil.

How much to take

Only the dried form of cascara sagrada should be used. Two capsules containing dried cascara can be taken up to two times per day. As a tincture, 1 - 5 ml per day is generally taken. It is important to drink eight 6-ounce glasses of water throughout the day. Cascara sagrada should be taken for a maximum of eight to ten days.

Side effects

Women who are pregnant or lactating should not use cascara sagrada without the advice of a physician. Those with an intestinal obstruction should not employ this herb. Long-term use or abuse of cascara sagrada may cause a loss of electrolytes (especially the mineral potassium) or weaken the colon. Loss of potassium may potentiate the action of digitalis-like medications with fatal consequences.

Collection & harvesting

The bark is stripped from the trunk of this Western American tree in the spring and summer and left to age for a few years. Due to indiscriminate cutting by white settlers during the last century, the number of wild trees has been greatly reduced.

Combinations

Cascara sagrada should be combined with aromatics and carminatives, for instance with liquorice.

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