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Low mock berry

The low mockberry, also known as wintergreen and by its Latin name Gaultheria procumbens, is a plant whose leaves and oil are used to make medicine. The oil is produced by processing the warmed, water-soaked leaves with steam. The leaves of the low mockberry are used for painful conditions including headaches, nerve pain (especially sciatica), arthritis, ovarian pain and menstrual cramps. They are also used for digestive problems including stomach pain and flatulence, lung conditions such as asthma and pleurisy, pain and inflammatory swellings, fever and kidney problems. Some people use low doses of low mockberry oil to stimulate gastric juice production and improve digestion. Low mockberry leaves are sometimes applied directly to the skin for rheumatic joint pain, sore muscles and lower back pain. The oil of the lowly false berry is applied to the skin as a so-called counterirritant to relieve muscle pain. Counterirritants work by causing irritation, which reduces pain and swelling in the tissue underneath. The oil of the lowly false berry is also used to kill germs on the skin. In the field of industrial production, mock bilberry is used as a flavoring agent in foods, sweets, teas and pharmaceutical products.

How does the mockberry work?

The leaves of mock bilberry contain an aspirin-like chemical that may reduce pain, swelling and fever.

How effective is low mockberry?

There is not enough scientific data to make a statement about the effectiveness of lowly mockberry for headaches, debilitating pain, stomach pain, bloating, fever, kidney problems, asthma, nerve pain, gout, arthritis, menstrual cramps and rheumatic joint pain.

Further scientific research is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of lowly false berry in these applications.

Safety and side effects

Low mockberry is safe and harmless in the quantities in which it is found in food and appears to be safe and harmless for most people when used as a medicine.

Oral ingestion of the oil of the low mockberry is not safe and harmless. Ingestion of the oil or large amounts of lowly mockberry can cause tinnitus, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headaches, stomach pain and confusion.

When applied to the skin, the oil may cause skin irritation.

Precautions and warnings

Children: Low mockberry oil may be toxic to children. Oral ingestion of 4 to 10 ml of the oil of the lowly mockberry can be fatal for children. Children under 2 years of age should not even apply the oil of the lowly false berry to their skin.

Pregnancy and lactation: Low mockberry is safe and harmless in the amounts found in food, but there is not enough information on whether it is safe and harmless to use in larger amounts during pregnancy. To be on the safe side, pregnant women should therefore neither take the lowly mockberry orally nor use it on the skin.

As a precaution, women who are breastfeeding should not ingest or apply to the skin. Products made from mock bilberry may be toxic to breastfed babies.

Inflammation of the stomach and intestines: Taking mock bilberry could aggravate these conditions.

Salicylate or aspirin allergy, asthma or nasal polyps: Low mockberry may cause allergic reactions in people who are allergic to aspirin or salicylate compounds, suffer from asthma, or have nasal polyps. For this reason, people who suffer from any of these problems should use mock bilberry with caution.

Interactions

Low mockberry should not be combined with the following medications

Warfarin

Warfarin is used to slow down blood clotting. Low mockberry can also slow down blood clotting. Taking low mockberry in combination with warfarin can increase the risk of bleeding and the tendency to bruise. For this reason, the blood should be checked regularly. It is possible that the warfarin dosage may need to be adjusted.

Care should be taken when combining low mockberry with the following medications:

Aspirin

The low mockberry contains a chemical that is similar to aspirin. The use of large amounts of the oil of the lowly false berry on the skin in combination with taking aspirin can increase the risk of side effects from aspirin. For this reason, one should not apply large amounts of oil of the lowly mockberry to the skin and take aspirin at the same time

Dosage

An appropriate dosage of mock bil berry depends on various factors such as age, health status and others. At the present time, there is insufficient scientific data to be able to make a statement about appropriate dosage ranges for the mock bilberry. For this reason, you should follow the dosage instructions on the label and/or consult a doctor or pharmacist before use.

References

  1. Chan TY. Potential dangers from topical preparations containing methyl salicylate. Hum Exp Toxicol 1996;15:747-50. view abstract.
  2. Covington TR, et al. Handbook of Nonprescription Drugs. 11th ed. Washington, DC: American Pharmaceutical Association, 1996.
  3. Electronic Code of Federal Regulations. Title 21. Part 182 -- Substances Generally Recognized As Safe. Available at: http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid= 786bafc6f6343634fbf79fcdca7061e1&rgn=div5&view= text&node=21:3.0.1.1.13&idno=21
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  5. Hoffman D. The herbal handbook: a user's guide to medical herbalism. rev ed. Rochester, VT:Healing Arts Press, 1998.
  6. Joss JD, LeBlond RF. Potentiation of warfarin anticoagulation associated with topical methyl salicylate. Ann Pharmacother 2000;34:729-33. view abstract.
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