© John Torrey, M.D., F.L.S. (A Flora of the State of New-York, Vol. 1, 1843) · Public domain · Commons
Black cohosh
CautionTraubensilberkerze · (Actaea racemosa)
Buttercup family (Ranunculaceae)
Description
Black cohosh (Actaea racemosa, formerly Cimicifuga racemosa), also called bugbane, black snakeroot or rattle-top, is a perennial herbaceous plant of the buttercup family (Ranunculaceae). It is native to the woodlands of eastern and central North America and reaches a height of roughly 0.75 to 2.5 metres. From a stout, blackish rhizome it sends up large, several-times-divided compound leaves and tall, slender flowering stems that in summer (about June to September) bear long, candle-like racemes of small, white, many-stamened flowers. The medicinal part is the dried rhizome together with its roots (Cimicifugae rhizoma), from which standardised dry ethanolic or isopropanolic extracts are mainly prepared, used both traditionally and medicinally for menopausal complaints.
CONTRAINDICATED during pregnancy
Do not use during pregnancy. Safety has not been sufficiently established, and the indication (menopausal complaints) does not apply to pregnant women.
CONTRAINDICATED during breastfeeding
Do not use while breastfeeding, as there are insufficient data on safety for the breastfed infant.
CONTRAINDICATED for children
Not for children and adolescents under 18 years. Use is restricted to adult women with menopausal complaints; there are insufficient data for younger people.
- TinctureRhizomeInternalEMA well-established
Main use: relief of menopausal complaints such as hot flushes, increased sweating, sleep disorders and nervous irritability. The EMA (HMPC) lists the rhizome dry extract for hot flushes and sweating under 'well-established use'; the broader traditional / empirical-medicine use (including sleep disorders and nervous irritability, as in the ESCOP monograph) is classified here as traditional use. The mechanism of action is not fully clarified; a central-nervous (not primarily oestrogen-like) action of the whole extract is discussed.
Preparation & dosage
What is used are mostly finished, standardised dry extracts of the rhizome (e.g. a dry ethanolic extract, drug-to-extract ratio about 5-10:1, or an isopropanolic extract), not a home-made tea or fresh preparation. The usual daily dose corresponds to roughly 40 mg of dried rhizome and, depending on the product, delivers about 5-6.5 mg of native extract per day; the exact dose follows the particular finished medicine and its package leaflet. The millilitre figures given here refer to liquid ethanolic preparations and are only a rough guide. The effect is not immediate but often sets in only after several weeks. If symptoms persist or worsen, medical advice should be sought; without consulting a doctor, use should not exceed 6 months.
- Liquid amount
- 1–2 ml
- Doses per day
- 2×
- Max duration
- 26 weeks
⚠ Age restriction: ≥ 18 years — For adult women only. Use in children and adolescents under 18 years is not recommended, as there are insufficient data and the indication (menopausal complaints) applies to adults.
[#src_ema_monograph] [#src_ema_assessment] [#src_escop] [#src_wikipedia_de]
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