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<TITLE>RE: [MPWG] new book and NC Medicinal herb project</TITLE>
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<P><FONT SIZE=2>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. </FONT></P>
<P> <FONT SIZE=2>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. </FONT></P>
<P> <FONT SIZE=2>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.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2>Wendy</FONT>
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<P><FONT SIZE=2>>-----Original Message-----</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>From: jmdavis2@ncsu.edu [<A HREF="mailto:jmdavis2@ncsu.edu">mailto:jmdavis2@ncsu.edu</A>]</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>Sent: Wednesday, November 02, 2005 8:28 PM</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>To: mpwg@lists.plantconservation.org</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>Subject: [MPWG] new book and NC Medicinal herb project</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>></FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>[snip] </FONT>
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<P><FONT SIZE=2>>Scott Persons, author of American Ginseng Green Gold, teamed up with</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>horticulturist, Jeanine Davis, to write a comprehensive manual </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>on how to</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>grow and market ginseng, goldenseal, ramps, black cohosh, bethroot,</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>bloodroot, blue cohosh, false unicorn, galax, mayapple, pinkroot,</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>spikenard, wild ginger, and wild indigo. The book is written for the</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>commercial grower but will be of interest to anyone serious </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>about growing</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>these forest medicinals. What makes this book unique is its </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>emphasis on</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>the commercial aspects of production and marketing. It </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>contains budgets</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2>>for five of the herbs, prices through a variety of markets, </FONT>
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