Pau d’arco, also called Taheebo, is a famous tree that originates from the forests of South America.
Traditionally, the bark of this tree was used to reduce inflammation, help with pain, and clear up infections. It has also been used to ease arthritis symptoms and as a dye for textiles.
This article will look at pau d’arco’s benefits, as well as its safety and history.
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What is Pau d’arco?
The pau d’arco tree is known for its durable and pest-resistant bark.
The scientific name for pau d’arco is Tabebuia avellanedae. It is found in the Amazon rainforests and has traditional roots in many South American cultures.
Traditional accounts recommend this herb for bacterial, viral, and parasitic infections. Native peoples of South America have used pau d’arco for numerous benefits, including for wounds, sore throats, and cancer.
Contemporary research indicates that this herb may exhibit antimicrobial and anti-cancer properties. Studies also show its potential for promoting weight loss.
Pau d’arco’s main active constituents, lapachol and β-lapachone, are thought to be responsible for some of these health-supporting properties.
Health Benefits of Pau d’arco:
A combination of clinical research, traditional knowledge, as well as contemporary herbalist accounts, have observed various pau d’arco benefits.
Below are the primary health benefits of this herb and its main constituents.
1. May Have Anti-Cancer Effects
Various studies and traditional accounts suggest that pau d’arco exhibits anti-cancer properties.
Cancer occurs when cells divide uncontrollably and spread into surrounding tissues. These cells cause damage and disrupt normal organ functioning. This often causes detrimental health problems or death.
Traditional accounts suggest that pau d’arco’s main active constituents, lapachol and β-lapachone, are responsible for the bark’s anti-cancer activities.
A lab-based study discovered that pau d’arco extract inhibits the growth of breast cancer cells. The pau d’arco extract also increased the death of cancer cells, suggesting that this herb could be a potential therapy to treat cancer.
Another lab-based trial observing the effects of β-lapachone found that it helped to inhibit cancer cell activity. Researchers noted that there was no damage to healthy cells during the trial.
A third lab-based study discovered that β-lapachone, in combination with radiation therapy, causes a decrease in tumor growth and increases tumor cell death. The radiation therapy sensitized the tumor cells to the β-lapachone; therefore, these two therapies synergistically worked together to slow and decrease tumor growth.
In a review of pau d’arco, researchers noted that Tabebuia impetiginosa (a cousin and medicinal equal of Tabebuia avellanedae) demonstrates anti-cancer properties for numerous cancer types. They mention that it is essential to administer it as a decoction to extract the active constituents, lapachol and β-lapachone.
In The Essential Guide to Herbal Safety, noted herbalists Kerry Bone and Simon Mills discuss pau d’arco’s anti-cancer and anti-tumor properties. They recall accounts of pau d’arco being used for “the treatment of terminal cancer and leukemia in Brazil in the late 1960s.”
World-renowned herbalist, Rosemary Gladstar, writes that Argentinian and Brazilian doctors use pau d’arco for cancer treatment therapies and that “impressive findings have been recorded on the success of these treatments” in the US.
Summary:
Lab-based research has found that pau d’arco may work to inhibit tumors and cancer growth, however, human clinical studies are needed for confirmation of these findings.
2. May Have Antimicrobial Benefits
Lab-based research and contemporary accounts suggest that pau d’arco has antimicrobial properties.
Infections result from viruses, bacteria, fungi, or other microbes infiltrating and attacking the body. Antimicrobial herbs may help reduce and eliminate invading microbes by supporting the immune response or directly inhibiting the invaders.
In a lab-based study, researchers discovered that lapachol has an antimicrobial effect on Leishmaniasis, a parasitic disease found in tropical and subtropical climates. Lapachol reduced parasitic levels internally and on the skin, comparable to the recommended pharmaceutical for this disease.
Another lab-based study found that the lapachol content in this herb exerts antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus. Researchers documented that these results were dependent on lapachol’s antioxidant properties.
A lab-based trial involving Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) observed that lapachol prevented bacterial growth in MRSA-infected wounds. Researchers noted that lapachol had antibacterial activity, but did not eliminate the bacteria cells.
Respected AHG herbalist, David Hoffmann, writes that the naphthoquinones present in pau d’arco, lapachol and β-lapachone, have antibacterial and anti-fungal properties. He recommends pau d’arco powder for vaginitis.
In Pau d’Arco: Immune Power from the Rain Forest, medical writer Kenneth Jones explains that pau d’arco bark is highly effective against E. coli, Candida albicans (a yeast or fungus strain), and Staphylococcus aureus.
Herbal writers Kerry Bone and Simon Mills list pau d’arco as antibacterial, anti-parasitic, and anti-fungal.