Uña de Gato - Herbal Tea (85g)

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320A-1
$9.95
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Ground Root and Inner Bark of Uña de Gato (Cat's Claw).

Ground bark: 85 gr. (net wt)

Makes 4 Gallons of Tea
(Using 20 g. or approx 2/3 cup to make one gallon)

Benefits: Blood purification for cancer, diabetic and heart disease patients.

Latin (botanical) Name: Uña de Gato Unicaria tormentosa

Summarized Description: Cat's Claw is one of our traditionals. The term "Cat's claw" is the common name for a several plants, so for the purposes of this page (and the representation of the product sold), it is meant to refer to the root and inner back of Peruvian U. tormentosa of the "pentacyclic variety," which is widely believed to be more medicinally active.

Leslie Taylor claims that "Cat's claw (U. tormentosa) has been used medicinally by the Arguaruna, Ashaninka, Cashibo, Conibo, and Shipibo tribes in Peru for at least 2,000 years" (1) -- a claim that Dr. James Duke finds dubious (2). In my work work with shamans, herbalists, and "curenderos" in both Ecuador and Peru, however, I can testify to its importance. One widely respected shaman and herbalist in Provincia de Napo who I became friends with in 2008 told me that few herbalists in his area of the Ecuadorean Amazon do not employ this plant as one of their tools for treating a wide variety of cancers.

Cat's Claw is powerful traditionals from the Amazon, used as a healing agent by the indigenous to treat a wide variety of health conditions (see below).

Uses and Protocols:

I. Preparation --- if you can boil water, you can make this product:

Professional herbalists will recognize this as a standard decoction.

  1. Add roughly 20 grams (about 1/4 of the bag of product) to one liter (about 4 cups) of purified water. Boil for 45 minutes.
  2. Drink 1/2 cup once daily at least one hour before a meal.

Warnings / Contraindications: Despite a lack of in-depth studies, Duke states, "I think it as innocuous as coffee," adding a reference that "like other immunostimulants should be avoided in such immune disorders as HIV, MS, and tuberculosis." (3) Though widely used throughout the tribes that prize this plant, Duke also notes that Cat's Claw has not been shown to be safe for children and lactating or pregnant women. Also reported by Duke: "McGuffin et al. (1997) cite Ken Jones who contraindicates for patients receiving organ transplants or skin grafts, hemophiliacs prescribed fresh blood plasma; simultaneous administration of certain vaccines, hormone therapies, insulin, thymus extracts; not for children under 3 years. Gruenwald et al. (2000) warn of precipitous drops in estradiol and progesterone serum levels, following 8 weeks of use. Extracts prevent estrogen from binding to estrogen receptors on breast cancer cells. As of July 2007, the FDA Poisonous Plant Database listed two titles alluding to toxicity of this species." (4) Taylor's only cited contraindication is skin contact, which "may cause dermatitis and produce an allergic response." (5)

Shelf-Life: This product is dehydrated, so its functional shelf-life is well in excess of two years.

Ethnobotanical Dosage / Usage: Duke provides a "food pharmacy potential" score for this plant of, "FNFF=!" ("Survival food . . . questionable"). This makes sense as no one I have encountered in South America uses it as a food source. Kingberg notes that Cat's Claw is not even found in any register of Peruvian healing plants (despite its many, obvious medicinal properties), as it is regarded as a "religious plant" -- despite not being used as an entheogenic. (6)

Dosages and protocols vary widely according to indication and culture. Duke notes: "Bark decoction used to wash deep wounds, 2X/day (MCK). 20g root bark / liter of water (HH3); one gram root / cup tea, 3X/day (SKY); 30 grams powdered root / 800 ml. water simmered to 500 ml. (PH2); one tsp. decoction (SF); one cup decoction, 2X/day (RAI); 2-4 ml. tincture, 2X / day (RAI); one to two ml. tincture 1-2x/day (SKY); 1-2 (500 mg.) bark capsules, 3x/day (NH); 2 (505mg.) StX capsules/day (NH); 20-60 mg. StX. Fernando Cabieses seems to believe the folk conceptive dosage; boiling 11-13 pounds root until it is reduced to one cup (pretty tricky)." (7)

[We don't recommending using this plant as a contraceptive. Cow's Foot is far more commonly used for this purpose.] Here are other ethnobotanical uses cited by Duke (8):

  1. Ashaninka use for arthritis, bone ache, cancer, urinary inflammation, and to prevent conception and diseases in general (MCK; RAI).
  2. Colombians take for dysentery and gonorrhea (RAI).
  3. Peruvians boil 2 tbsp. bark in 1.5 liter water, taking 0.5 glass, 3X/day before meals (MPG).
  4. Peruvians suggest the herb for abscesses, arthritis, asthma, bleeding, blood disorders, bone ache, cancer, cirrhosis, dermatosis, diabetes, diarrhea, dysentery, dysmenorrhea, enterosis, fever, gastrosis, gonorrhea, herpes, HIV, immunodepression, inflammation, nephrosis, prostatitis, rheumatism, shingles, tumors, ulcers, urogenitosis, and wounds (RAI).
  5. Surinamese take for dysentery, enterosis, and wounds (RAI).

For more information visit the Uña de Gato page on Altcancer.net