Hi Katherine in Atl and all,

The information you shared was about wormwood, specifically Artemesia
absinthum. The jaundice research was done on Artemesia capillaris ( also
known as yin chen hao as listed in the American Herbal Products Associations
book, Botanical Safety Handbook.

Other Artemesia species, such as sweet annie, mugwort, tarragon,
southernwood or sagebrush are also unique species, with differing
constituents, sometimes critically so. For example, A. absinthum is the herb
used to flavour absinthe, a liquor long associated with serious neurological
effects and long-banned. The German Commission E did approve limited use of
the herb with warnings regarding overuse. These warnings may not and often
do not apply to other Artemesias. And there are a lot of other Artemesias in
the world.

It is an error to rely upon information about one plant species to shed
light on another and worse to confuse two plants; sometimes information
holds for both, in which case, their similarity is remarked upon in the
literature. This is not the case with Artemesia. Artemesia is an extremely
variable genus as regards constituents, medicinal uses and physiological
activities, etc.

Regarding A. capillaris, the subject of the jaundice research, the AHPA's
Safety Handbook states concerns regarding use during pregnancy but not
lactation. There is an editorial note about A. capillaris: "adverse effects
may include nausea, abd distension, dizziness. Two women treated with this
herb combined with Zizyphus jujuba developed Adams-Stokes syndrome."
(one of the editors is an expert on Chinese herbs, btw.)

I do not have any other specific information about  A. capillaris, despite
Duke's listing of 7 other species ( that vary wildly in their safety
information) and other texts with multiple Artemesia listings.

The research article was interesting to read and use a slightly different
rendition of the common name, yin chen hao, btw. Oh for time to dig up more
about this interesting herb

and the traditional use of catnip too, Patricia!

Regards,
Sheila

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