[MPWG] new book and NC Medicinal herb project

[wendy.applequist at mobot.org]

This looks like a really good book.  I'd like to comment on one thing, the
inclusion of wild ginger.  Wild ginger usually means Asarum canadense,
which, like several other species of Asarum, contains relatively small
amounts of one aristolochic acid.  Aristolochic acids are the toxic
compounds in Aristolochia that can cause progressive kidney failure, with
concomitant use of certain pharmaceuticals probably greatly increasing risk.
FDA has therefore banned all species containing any amount of these
compounds, including A. canadense, from consumer products. 
	While it is legal to sell unprocessed material, the FDA ban conveys
a negative safety message that seems certain to reduce demand over time.
The likelihood that anyone would suffer serious harm from using wild ginger
is minuscule, but probably not zero, as most factors affecting individual
susceptibility are unknown.  Any herbalist who recommended long-term use
would therefore be accepting a potentially serious liability risk.  If
people plant a lot of wild ginger expecting a stable market price in future,
they are quite likely to be disappointed.  
	Moreover, some people take "wild ginger" to include Hexastylis
arifolia (aka Asarum arifolium), which contains dangerously high levels of
aristolochic acids.  This plant should never be grown for noncommercial
herbal use, as individual users will have no way of assessing risk of use or
even knowing that the risk exists.

Wendy

>-----Original Message-----
>From: jmdavis2 at ncsu.edu [mailto:jmdavis2 at ncsu.edu]
>Sent: Wednesday, November 02, 2005 8:28 PM
>To: mpwg at lists.plantconservation.org
>Subject: [MPWG] new book and NC Medicinal herb project
>
[snip] 

>Scott Persons, author of American Ginseng Green Gold, teamed up with
>horticulturist, Jeanine Davis, to write a comprehensive manual 
>on how to
>grow and market ginseng, goldenseal, ramps, black cohosh, bethroot,
>bloodroot, blue cohosh, false unicorn, galax, mayapple, pinkroot,
>spikenard, wild ginger, and wild indigo.  The book is written for the
>commercial grower but will be of interest to anyone serious 
>about growing
>these forest medicinals.  What makes this book unique is its 
>emphasis on
>the commercial aspects of production and marketing.  It 
>contains budgets
>for five of the herbs, prices through a variety of markets, 
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