Herb of the Week: Chanca Piedra

 What is Chanca Piedra


Chanca Piedra known in English as stone breaker is an herb from the amazons with 4 different varieties: Pyllanthum Niruri, Phyllanthus Amarus, Phyllanthus Sellowianus and Phyllanthus Urinaria.
P. Niruri is the one known in tropical places such as the amazon while P. Amarus and P. Sellowianus is the one that grows in dry tropical regions. The 4 plants are alike and exhibit similar medicinal activities but some of them have stronger effects on certain conditions.

Some Active Constituents


Some active constituents are lignans, flavonoids, alkaloids, ellagitannins and phenylpropanoids and others.. One of my favorite flavonoids is rutin and quercetin which are also present on this interesting plant.

Traditional Medicinal Uses and Preparation

Traditionally the plant has been used to treat kidney stones, gallstones, malaria, colic, jaundice, parasites, fever and pain.
The whole plant is used and is prepared as a decoction. Tincture is not recommended because the alcohol content destroy all the water soluble constituents rendering the plant ineffective.

Research and Chanca Piedra

Research has found that chanca piedra indeed is good for its traditional uses yet it has also found that it lowers blood cholesterol, triglycerides, lowers blood sugar and blood pressure. It has been found to act as an inhibitor of Aldose Reductase the culprit of macular degeneration and diabetic neuropathy. Its inhibition is not limited to Aldose Reductase but it acts as a reverse transcriptase inhibitor which makes it idoneous for HBV, leukemia, sarcoma and HIV.
Has been proven to slow and prevent cancer cell proliferation by inhibiting mutations and breaks on DNA; it also has shown to protect the cells and the liver against carcinogenic substances.
Has been found to be 7 times more effective than aspirin and acetaminophen as pain reliever.

Chanca Piedra and Modern Use
 Chanca Piedra has been widely used in Brazil and you can find it on pharmacies as pills or capsules...it has been used in China, and India also.

The Future and Chanca Piedra  
Because chanca piedra is effective by only using water it can not be developed as a drug and giving the circumstances that chanca piedra's medicinal properties relies on synergetic properties rather than on isolated compounds this makes the herb less "marketable, researchable, and profitable" for companies so expect this herb to be in a dark corner of the closet ...

Pain and Acupuncture

Pain is a problem affecting 4 out of 5 Americans; who have reported having at least one episode of pain, usually lower back pain. The parameters for classifying back pain are the following: Primary: is from an unknown etiology and it is self limiting, meaning it solves within a month. For this cases the new parameters state there is no need for X-rays, MRI or CTS. there are Orthopedic Tests that can rule out any doubt. A well Health History intake is very important and SOAP notes Secondary: back pain due to a trauma falls in this category and requires X-Ray, MRI or CTS to see if there is ligaments, tendon, neuro-muscular,disc herniation or bone fracture involvement. Tertiary: the etiology under this category is related with a disease like cancer or any other ailment that someway or somehow has reached the back like PID (pelvic inflammatory disease). In this category MRI, X-Ray, CTS are recommended. Indistinctly of the classification the pain is something real for the patient and that is why the seek for help. One way they seek for help is by using aspirin or any other NSAID (Non-Steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs like Ibuprofen) or Paracetamol (acetaminophen). NSAIDs work with COX1 and COX2 while Acetaminophen with COX3. The difference is that NSAIDs are good to inhibit inflammation by reducing or blocking the production of prostaglandins while acetaminophen works with COX3 which inhibits pain right on the central nervous systems. The problem of both NSAID and Acetaminophen is that the former causes blood pressure issues, gastric problems and many other ailments related with smooth muscles (the heart, the uterus are example of smooth muscles) while the latter damages the liver. The doctor could prescribe the patient anti-depressants, or opiods as pain management tool; the drawback is: addiction. Invasive techniques might have they risk which patients should consider. Acupuncture offers a non-invasive solution where pain can be reduced significantly. 10 to 16 treatments are needed in order to resolve the pain; once solved the relapse is less... for this i have to mention 2 patients: the first was treated for a pinched nerve on the lumbar area which have her prone in bed, it took only 2 acupuncture treatments and the pain has not showed up in one year. The second patient had neck and headaches so severe that medications did not work for her; 11 treatments were enough to reduce the pain to 95%. The patient feels so great that she is not using medications for the headaches or neck pain. There are several great techniques in acupuncture that deliver great results. These are Balancing Method (my favorite), Trigger Point Technique and NeuroMuscular (Medical Acupuncture)....all of them are good but the first brings results the same day and last longer...acupuncture in order to exert great results is recommended ASAP while the problem (pain) is in its acute stage... the more time you let it pass the more treatments or more difficult to treat is. For more information you can contact me at www.omic-ny.net