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| drome, premenstrual syndrome, environmental toxin poisoning, chronic depression, immune system impairment, allergies and genital herpes. Does it work? There is at least one well-documented Peruvian case of cancer apparently cured by cat's claw, and its most enthusiastic advocate, Philip Steinberg, credits cat's claw tea with curing his long-term prostate inflammation. German research supports at least some of the claims made on its behalf, but cat's claw is among the least tested and least understood of the popular medicinal herbs. No clinical trials of cat's claw teas, extracts or capsules have been conducted to test its effectiveness, and critics charge that promoters misinterpreting laboratory test results have misrepresented the herb. |
| Product quality is a serious consideration, for another South American plant with the same common name has been sold as Uncaria tomentosa, and although only the root's bark was used in traditional medicine and tested in Europe, most of the cat's claw imported to the U.S. is the bark of the above-ground vine, not its root. As the rate of harvesting increases, the world's supply of cat's claw, especially its medicinal root, is in serious danger of extinction. |
| Cat's claw was unknown in North America until the early 1990s, so it has a short history of popular use here. The herb is said to be safe, and lab tests on rats have shown no toxicity. However, little is known about its long-term effects. |
| In addition to questioning the quality of cat's claw in capsules, the Austrian physician Klaus Keplinger, who has received patents for his cat's claw extracts, believes that the herb should never be taken raw, only cooked, which is its traditional method of preparation. |
| By the 21st century, when some predict that authentic cat's claw will be extinct or impossible to obtain, we may know the answers to the questions this exotic herb raises. |
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