Alder
Alder has been chosen because it was the subject of a question to a general
practitioner in 2003, a type of query that might come from anyone inter-
ested in ‘natural’ remedies. On hearing about its use by Mi’kmaq people in
Newfoundland, a patient asked whether it was good for headache – better
than aspirin which upset the questioner’s stomach. It is also an example of
one of many herbs about which the busy practitioner has difficulty finding
useful information to confirm whether or not it has some general value.
Uses
Well-established databases are not helpful with information on alder, e.g.
one of them gives only the following information:
- People use this for: pharyngitis and intestinal bleeding
- Safety: there is insufficient reliable information available about the
safety of smooth alder - Pregnancy and lactation: insufficient reliable information available;
avoid using - Effectiveness: there is insufficient reliable information about the
effectiveness of smooth alder.^16
No reference is given to headache. In fact the above information is for
Alnus serrulata, a related species of A. viridus spp.crispus which is
harvested in Conne River for headache – a reminder that correct botanical
identification is essential in evaluating data.^17 A. serrulata is commonly
noted in the US medical literature; one example gives a lengthy list of reputed
uses recorded for the aboriginal Cherokees of North Carolina: for ‘pains
related to birth; swellings and sprains; skin eruptions; ingredient in tea to
clear milky urine; ingredient in tea for menstrual period; an emetic and
purgative; rub and blow infusion of bark in eyes for drooping’;^18 other
recommendations include ‘cold bark tea to purify blood or bring down high
blood pressure’.^18 It is appropriate to note that such lists, in being unwieldy
and unfathomable, are valueless as a clinical aid for most conventional prac-
titioners without some preparation as in step 1 to consider how such lists
have evolved.^19
A check on an indispensable source of information on aboriginal herbs,
namely Dan Moerman’s database Native American Ethnobotany(available
on the internet) offers relatively little help in the use of alder for headache.^20
A search for ‘Alnusand headache’ in the compilation of information drawn
from publications on aboriginal ethnobotany finds two different entries (out
of 355 hits for ‘Alnus’). One is to Alnus rubra(a different species) as an
‘emetic and purgative for headache and other maladies’, and the other is to
an infusion of the twigs as a ‘liniment for pain of sprains, bruises, backache
50 |Traditional medicine