- Greater celandine is a plant. The dried above-ground parts, root, and rhizome (underground stem) are used to make medicine. Don’t confuse greater celandine with lesser celandine (Family: Ranunculus ficaria).
Contents
Uses
- Chelidonium Majus is used as a homeopathic remedy.
- Greater celandine is used for various problems with the digestive tract including upset stomach, gastroenteritis, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), constipation, loss of appetite, stomach cancer, intestinal polyps, and liver and gallbladder disorders. Other uses include detoxification, treating menstrual cramps, cough, pain, breast lumps, chest pain (angina), fluid retention (edema), “hardening of the arteries” (arteriosclerosis), high blood pressure, asthma, gout, and osteoarthritis.
- Some people apply greater celandine directly to the skin for warts, genital warts, rashes, eczema, and scabies; and to the gums for tooth pain and to ease tooth extraction. The fresh root is also chewed to relieve toothache.
Benefits
- The chemicals in greater celandine might slow the growth of cancer cells, but might also be harmful to normal cells. Preliminary research suggests greater celandine might increase the flow of bile. Greater celandine might also have some pain-relieving properties.
Cautions
- This is a homeopathic remedy. Please consult your doctor before administering homeopathic remedies and proceed with caution.
- Greater celandine is POSSIBLY UNSAFE when taken by mouth. It can cause serious liver problems. When applied to the skin, greater celandine can cause allergic skin rash.
- Pregnancy and breast-feeding: There is not enough reliable information about the safety of taking greater celandine if you are pregnant or breast-feeding. Stay on the safe side and avoid use.
- “Auto-immune diseases” such as multiple sclerosis (MS), lupus (systemic lupus erythematosus, SLE), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), or other conditions:’ Greater celandine might cause the immune system to become more active. This might increase the symptoms of auto-immune diseases. If you have one of these conditions, it’s best to avoid using greater celandine.
- Blockage of the bile duct (bile duct obstruction): Some greater celandine extracts appear to increase the flow of bile. There is a concern that this might make bile duct obstruction worse.
- Liver disease, including hepatitis: There is some evidence that greater celandine can cause hepatitis. Don’t use greater celandine if you have liver disease.
Interactions
Moderate Interaction Be cautious with this combination:
- Medications that can harm the liver (Hepatotoxic drugs) interacts with GREATER CELANDINE: Greater celandine might harm the liver. Taking greater celandine along with medication that might also harm the liver can increase the risk of liver damage. Do not take greater celandine if you are taking a medication that can harm the liver.
- Some medications that can harm the liver include acetaminophen (Tylenol and others), amiodarone (Cordarone), carbamazepine (Tegretol), isoniazid (INH), methotrexate (Rheumatrex), methyldopa (Aldomet), fluconazole (Diflucan), itraconazole (Sporanox), erythromycin (Erythrocin, Ilosone, others), phenytoin (Dilantin) , lovastatin (Mevacor), pravastatin (Pravachol), simvastatin (Zocor), and many others.
Before taking greater celandine, talk with your healthcare professional if you take any medications.
Other Names
Bai Qu Cai, Celandine, Celandine Herb, Celandine Root, Celidonia Mayor, Chelidonii, Chelidonii Herba, Chelidonium majus, Grande Chélidoine, Grande Éclaire, Greater Celandine Above Ground Parts, Greater Celandine Rhizome, Greater Celandine Root, Herbe à Verrues, Herbe aux Verrues, Parties Aériennes de la Grande Chélidoine, Racine de Chélidoine, Racine de Grande Chélidoine, Rhizome de Chélidoine, Rhizome de la Grande Chélidoine, Schollkraut, Tetterwort, Verruguera.
References
Source: WebMD, “Greater Calandine”, www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/
See Homeopathy for more information.