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Sarsaparilla, also known as Honduras sarsaparilla, red
sarsaparilla, and Spanish sarsaparilla, is a tropical American perennial plant. Its long,
tuberous rootstock produces a vine which trails on the ground and climbs by means of
tendrils growing in pairs from the petioles of the alternate, obicular to ovate, evergreen
leaves. The small, greenish flowers grow in axillary umbels.
Sarsaparilla belongs to a large family of related Smilax
species. Sarsaparilla was first used in the United States when the early pioneers learned
about its tonic nature from Native Americans. Sarsaparilla was independently discovered in
other countries around the world to be an effective treatment for rheumatism, whereby its
mode of action has been linked to its high content of saponins.
Sarsaparilla provides toning of the whole body, and nutritive
& therapeutic support for the convalescing patient. Sarsaparilla root actually attacks
microbial substances in the blood stream, and neutralizes them. The plant is used for
coughs, hypertension, pleurisy, wounds, sore eyes, burns, as a diuretic & alterative (in
medicine - gradually restoring to health), and most importantly, as a general tonic
for resistance to disease.
Sarsaparilla has been used effectively as a carminative,
diaphoretic, diuretic, and tonic. Sarsaparilla root is said to be good for gout,
rheumatism, colds, fevers, and catarrhal problems, as well as for relieving flatulence. A
tea made from it has also been used externally for skin problems, scrofula, ringworm, and
tetters. Sarsaparilla would be classed generally as a "blood purifier." It was
once commonly taken as a spring tonic.
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