RESEARCH - Many black cohosh products are fake - study

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Many black cohosh products are fake - study

Last Updated: 2006-05-05 15:17:55 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Anne Harding

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Some products now sold in the US as black cohosh

don't contain the popular herbal medicine at all, a new study shows.

The herb has been used for several decades in Europe and North America to

treat menopausal symptoms and some clinical trials have suggested it can

indeed help treat hot flashes.

Black cohosh is becoming scarce in the wild, raising the possibility that

manufacturers may turn to related Actaea species that are cultivated in

China and can be obtained more cheaply.

While these herbs are used in Chinese medicine, they are not employed for

treating menopausal symptoms, Dr. J. Kennelly of the City University

of New York told Reuters Health.

And right now, because it's not clear which components of black cohosh are

responsible for its potential effects, there's no way to tell if the Asian

herbs may also help fight menopausal symptoms. " They do have similar

compounds; it's a bit of a black box, really, " Kennelly said.

To investigate the authenticity of black cohosh products now on the market,

Kennelly and colleagues tested 11 different products.

Three of the products were made from the herb's cheaper Asian cousin and

contained no black cohosh, they report in the Journal of Agricultural and

Food Chemistry. One other product contained both Asian cohosh and black

cohosh.

" Right now it looks like a number of products aren't really black cohosh, "

Kennelly said. He and his colleagues do not name the brands of the products

they tested. However, he said, they have informed the Food and Drug

Administration and the American Herbal Products Association of their

findings. Kennelly also noted that some Web sites, like consumerlab.com,

offer independent testing of herbal products.

" It's a little bit difficult for the consumer I guess at this point, " he

said.

SOURCE: Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, May 17, 2006.

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