Leung's Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients Used in Food, Drugs, and Cosmetics

Wisconsin and Texas. Parts used are the dried
rhizome and roots, which are collected in the
fall (FOSTER AND DUKE;YOUNGKEN).

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION

Diosgenin was detected in the roots,^1 which,
along with gentrogenin, was isolated from
whole plant samples of two JapaneseAletris
species:A. foliataandA. formosana.^2
Other constituents found in aletris include
an amber volatile oil said to be pharmacologi-
cally active, a resinous material, and a sapo-
nin-like glycoside that yields diosgenin on
hydrolysis.

PHARMACOLOGY AND BIOLOGICAL
ACTIVITIES

Aletris has shown estrogenic activity.^3

USES

Medicinal, Pharmaceutical, and Cosmetic.
It has been and is still used in proprietary
preparations for the treatment of female
disorders such as dysmenorrhea and other

menstrual discomforts, in laxatives, and also

as an antiflatulent.

Dietary Supplements/Health Foods. Crude

root, powdered, or cut and sifted used in

tablets, capsules, tinctures, teas, often in com-

bination with other herbs for menstrual dis-

orders and as a bitter digestive tonic (CRELLIN

AND PHILPOTT).

Traditional Medicine. Tea made from the

leaves was used by the Catawba Indians to

relieve colic and stomach disorders and to

treat dysentery; the Cherokee Indians ingested

the leaves to treat rheumatism, flatulent colic,

fever in children, coughs, lung diseases,

cough, jaundice, and painful urination; Mic-

mac used the root as an emmenagogue and

stomachic; Rappahannock Indians used tea

made from the plant for female problems.^4

COMMERCIAL PREPARATIONS

Crude and extracts. Strengths (seeglossary)of

extracts are expressed in weight-to-weight

ratios. Crude was formerly official in U.S.P.

(1820–1860) and N.F. (1916–1942).

REFERENCES

SeetheGeneralReferencesforCRELLIN AND PHILPOTT;DER MARDEROSIAN AND BEUTLER;FERNALD;FOSTER AND
DUKE;GRIEVE;KROCHMAL AND KROCHMAL;LEWIS AND ELVIN-LEWIS;MCGUFFIN1&2;MERCK;YOUNGKEN.

1. R. E. Marker et al.,J. Am. Chem. Soc., 62 ,
   2620 (1940).


2. T. Okanishi et al.,Chem. Pharm. Bull., 23 ,
   575 (1975).


3. C. L. Butler and C. H. Costello,J. Am.
   Pharm. Assoc., 33 , 177 (1944).
   4. D. E. Moerman, Native American
   Ethnobotany, Timber Press, Portland, OR,
   1998, pp. 55–56.

ALFALFA

Source:Medicago sativaL. (Family Legu-
minosae or Fabaceae).

Common/vernacular names: Alfalfa and
lucerne.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

Perennial herb with a deep taproot; leaves

resemble those of clover; grows to a height

of 1 m with mostly bluish purple flowers in

the typical subspecies. Native to the Near

East (western Asia and east Mediterranean

12 Alfalfa