Wallflower

Wallflower

• Wallflower (scientific name Cheiranthus cheiri) is a plant native to southern Europe commonly known as beeflower, gillyflower, keiri, and wallstock-gillofer. Medicinal parts of the plant include the flower, seed, and any other above ground components.

• Wallflower may be used as a diuretic to promote onset of the menstrual cycle, stimulation of the heart (like digitalis or digoxin), and a treatment for constipation or gallbladder and liver disease.

• This supplement has cardiac glycoside components (like the ones found in diuretics) to control an irregular heartbeat, reduce backup of blood in the body, increase blood flow to the kidneys, help excrete sodium, and decrease peripheral edema.

• The typical dose of wallflower is three to four cups of a mixture containing 2-3 g of herbs and 100 mL of hot water, steeped for about 10 min and strained. Side effects of wallflower supplementation include death if intravenous or injected, arrhythmia, heart failure, and death.

• Many drugs interact with wallflower including PhosLo (calcium acetate), Tums/Rolaids extra strength (calcium carbonate), calcium chloride.

• Osteocit (calcium citrate), calcium glubionate, calcium gluceptate, and calcium gluconate. Additionally, many drugs when combined with wallflower can increase cardiac gly-coside toxicity, including acetazolamide, azosemide, beclomethasone, betametha-sone, budesonide, Symbicort (budesonide and formoterol combination), bumetanide, cascara, chlorothiazide, chlorthalidone, cortisone, deflazacort, dexamethasone, digitalix, docusate, senna, ethacrynic acid, etozolin, flunisolide, fluorometholone, fluticasone, furosemide, hydrochlorothiazide, hydrocortisone, hydroflumethiazide, indapamide, mannitol, mefruside, methazolamide, methyclothiazide, methylpred-nisolone, metolazone, olmesartan and hydrochlorothiazide combination (Benicar HCT), polythiazide, prednisolone, prednisone, quinidine, quinine, torsemide, triam-cinolone, trichlormethiazide, urea, and xipamide.

• Other supplements that may inter-act with wallflower are also those that increase cardiac glycoside toxicity or increase potassium depletion.

• This includes black hellebore, calotropis, motherwort, adonis, digitalis, lily-of-the-valley, and squill, horsetail plant or licorice, stimulant laxative herbs such as black root, cascara sagrada, castor oil, and senna, and mahuang.