Sophora flavescens

Other names : Ku Shen Gen, Ku Shen, Bitter root, Yellow sophora root

Special Precautions of Sophora flavescens

• Patients with hormone-sensitive cancers should avoid taking S. flavescens as it demonstrated estrogenic effects in vitro, and can stimulate the proliferation of hormone-sensitive cancer cells.
• Toxic effects from use of the root may include nausea, dizziness, vomiting, constipation, spasms, disturbance of speech, irregular breathing, respiratory failure and death.

Health Benefits and Uses of Sophora flavescens

Sophora flavescens is a Chinese medicinal herb used for the treatment of gastrointestinal hemorrhage, skin diseases, pyretic stranguria and viral hepatitis

References

• Kang SC, Lee CM, Choi H, et al. Evaluation of oriental medicinal herbs for estrogenic and antiproliferative activities. Phytother Res. 2006 Nov;20(11):1017-9.
• De Naeyer A, Vanden Berghe W, Pocock V, et al. Estrogenic and anticarcinogenic properties of kurarinone, a lavandulyl flavanone from the roots of Sophora flavescens. J Nat Prod. 2004 Nov;67(11):1829-32.
• Yoo HH, Kim T, Ahn S, et al. Evaluation of the estrogenic activity of Leguminosae plants. Biol Pharm Bull. 2005 Mar;28(3):538-40.
• Bensky, Dan; Clavey, Steven; Stöger, Erich; Lai Bensky, Lilian (2015). Chinese Herbal Medicine: Materia Medica (Portable 3rd ed.). Seattle, USA: Eastland Press. pp. 575–578. ISBN 978-0-939616-82-4.