Pau D'Arco Herbal Information

Pau D'Arco Herbal Information


NAME
Pau D'Arco

LATIN NAME
Tabebuia Avellanedae or Tabebuia Impetiginosa

ALSO KNOWN AS
Taheebo, Ipe roxo, Lapacho,

ORIGIN
Taheebo (the tree Pau D'Arco comes from) is a huge canopy tree native to the Amazon rainforest and other tropical parts of South and Latin America. It grows to 30 m high and the base of the tree can be 2–3 m in diameter. As well as being native to Central and South America, Pau D'Arco is also cultivated in sub-tropical North America.

PARTS USED
Inner bark

TRADITIONAL HERBAL USES AND MEDICINAL PROPERTIES
Pau d'arco is recorded to be used by forest inhabitants throughout the Amazon for malaria, anemia, colitis, respiratory problems, colds, cough, flu, fungal infections, fever, arthritis and rheumatism, snakebite, poor circulation, boils and syphilis.

Pau d'arco also has a long history in herbal medicine around the world.

In South American herbal medicine, Pau D'Arco is considered to be astringent, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antifungal, and laxative. Pau D'Arco is used to treat ulcers, syphilis, urinary tract infections, gastrointestinal problems, candida and yeast infections, cancer, diabetes, prostatitis, constipation, ulcers, diabetes, rheumatism, arthritis, prostatitis, dysentery, stomatitis, boils and allergies.

In western herbal medicine, pau d'arco is considered to be analgesic, antioxidant, antiparasitic, antimicrobial, antifungal, antiviral, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and laxative, as well as to have anticancerous properties. It is used for fevers, infections, colds, flu, syphilis, urinary tract infections, cancer, respiratory problems, skin ulcerations, boils, dysentery, gastrointestinal problems of all kinds, arthritis, prostatitis, and circulation disturbances. Pau D'Arco is also used for lupus, diabetes, ulcers, leukemia, allergies, liver disease, Hodgkin's disease, osteomyelitis, Parkinson's disease, and psoriasis, and is a popular natural remedy for candida and yeast infections.

FOLKLORE AND HISTORY
Pau d'arco has a long and well-documented history of use by the indigenous peoples of the rainforest. Use of Pau D'Arco may actually pre-date the Inca Empire. Tribes living thousands of miles apart have used Pau D'Arco for the same medicinal purposes for hundreds of years. Guarani and Tupi Indians call the Pau D'Arco tree tajy, which means "to have strength and vigor." The bark is used to treat many different conditions and as a tonic. The Inca are attributed with dubbing this tree as divine. Many plants have been credited with godlike status but, it is said that pau d'arco attracts alpha rays, which give human cells a positive electrical charge.

CONSTITUENTS
Pau d'arco has crystalline oxygen locked into it. Pau D'Arco is also rich in nutrients including iron, calcium, selenium, zinc vitamins A, B & C, magnesium potassium and sodium. It is also stacked with therapeutic phytochemicals including lapachol. Its combination of properties makes it antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal, thus giving it a reputation as immune system stimulant and disease fighter.

TYPICAL PREPARATIONS AND DOSAGE

Pau D'Arco is toxic in very high doses

Tincture:
Children (10 years): one half of the adult doses.
Children (14 years): three quarter of the adult doses.
Adults: 2-3ml ; 2 - 3 times a day in water or juice.

Decoction:
Boil 1 - 1½ tsp in 1 cup water for about 10 minutes. Drink 1 cup 2 - 3 times a day.

PRECAUTIONS
Pau d'arco may affect the blood's ability to clot, and could interfere with any blood-thinning drugs you are taking, including:
Warfarin (Coumadin)
Clopidogrel (Plavix)
Aspirin