(^26) • MAY 2019
uncommonHERBS/GET TO KNOW BOTANICALS
5 Benefits of Pau d’Arco
Native to the Amazon rainforest, pau d’arco has years of healing
power behind it—here are our top reasons to give this antimicrobial
herb a try /// BY KARTA PURKH SINGH KHALSA, RH, DC-N
Pau d’arco is an herb made from the
inner bark of Tabebuia trees (Tabebuia
impetiginosa and Tabebuia avellanedae),
which grow in the Amazon rainforest.
Known for their bright pink-purple
flowers, Tabebuia trees can grow up
to 125 feet tall. Also called taheebo or
lapacho, pau d’arco is best known as
a remedy for candida, but it has been
long used by indigenous peoples as
a treatment for stomach, skin, and
inflammatory conditions. Here are five
reasons to supplement with pau d’arco:
- It Has Antibacterial Properties
Research suggests that pau d’arco
bark has antibacterial and antifungal
properties. While its exact mechanism
of healing is unknown, pau d’arco is
thought to inhibit the processes that
bacteria and fungi need to produce
energy. Several compounds
found in the plant’s
inner bark are
Did You
Know?
Pau d’arco is best known as
a remedy for candida, but it
is also traditionally used as
a treatment for stomach,
skin, and inflammatory
conditions.thought responsible for its beneficial
health effects. For example, a study
in Phytomedicine found that beta-
lapachone (a chemical in pau d’arco)
helps inhibit and treat methicillin-
resistant Staphylococcus aureus
(MRSA). Pau d’arco was also shown
to help slow the growth of Helicobacter
pylori, a bacterium associated with
stomach ulcers. And another study
published in Phytotherapy
Research found that
pau d’arco significantly
accelerates healing
of gastric ulcers in
rats.- It Helps Fight Candida
Pau d’arco is most widely used to treat
candida, a type of yeast. Most remedies
that help control yeast work best from
the inside. Even if you’re fighting a fungal
skin infection, this invader is hard to
kill using external treatments. One of
the first herbs to consider is pau d’arco,
which contains constituents
that have been shown