8892
0
Posted on Dec 30, 2005, 8 p.m.
By Bill Freeman
GENERAL DESCRIPTION: Wild yam, a native of North and Central America, has been used to treat gastrointestinal upset, nerve pain, and morning sickness. ROLE FOR ANTI-AGING: In 1940 an American scientist found that a species of Mexican wild yam contained a steroid precursor known as diosgenin, which could be used in the manufacture of synthetic hormone products such as birth control pills, testosterone, progesterone creams and other medicine.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION:
Wild yam, a native of North and Central America, has been used to treat gastrointestinal upset, nerve pain, and morning sickness.
ROLE FOR ANTI-AGING:
In 1940 an American scientist found that a species of Mexican wild yam contained a steroid precursor known as diosgenin, which could be used in the manufacture of synthetic hormone products such as birth control pills, testosterone, progesterone creams and other medicine. Today the herb is used to make "natural hormone" creams and other remedies for women seeking relief from uterine pain, PMS, menopausal symptoms and various other gynecological conditions. Diosgenin can definitely be used in a laboratory to make sex hormones, but the human body cannot convert diosgenin into hormones, and diosgenin apparently can’t produce hormonal effects on its own. Thus, wild yam’s ability to provide "natural progesterone" and to regulate hormone production is controversial, even among herbalists. Experts have theorized that diosgenin (or another compound in the yam) has other therapeutic, non-hormone-related effects on the body. Scientists recently tested a wild yam extract to determine if it increased blood levels of a compound of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA): after three weeks of dioscorea supplementation, researchers found no effect on levels of DHEA. The researchers did find, however, that dioscorea has significant antioxidant activity and was associated with increased levels of the "good" HDL cholesterol and reduced levels of triglycerides. Wild yam is also considered to be a strong antispasmodic and has antiinflammatory properties.
THERAPEUTIC DAILY AMOUNT:
Wild yam products come in capsules, liquids, extracts and topical creams and gels. An average dose of an extract standardized for 10 percent diosgenin is 200mg.
MAXIMUM SAFE LEVEL: Not established
SIDE EFFECTS/CONTRAINDICATIONS:
A number of experts recommend that Wild Yam should not be used by people with hormone- sensitive conditions, for example certain types of breast cancer. Although the herb has been used as a treatment for morning sickness, pregnant or nursing women should only take Wild yam under a doctor’s guidance.
