What is American Spikenard?

American spikenard is a tall woodland plant from eastern North America. Healers use the root and rhizome (the underground stem). Old books also call it spignet or spikenard root.

It was best known as a cough and chest remedy. Folk and Eclectic healers also gave it for stiff joints and skin trouble. Today it shows up in cough syrups and in herbal "cleansing" blends.

Here is the honest evidence verdict. There are no useful human trials of this plant. It has a long record of traditional use, but that record is not proof that it works, and it is not proof that it is safe.

The name is a trap. True spikenard is a different plant, Nardostachys jatamansi, from the Himalayas. Devil's walking stick, Aralia spinosa, is also sold loosely as spikenard and can irritate the mouth and gut.

How does American Spikenard work?

Short answer: no one has shown what it does inside the human body.

The root holds saponins, plant compounds that foam in water like soap. In test tubes, saponins from various plants can thin and loosen mucus. Whether that happens in your airways has not been tested.

Lab work on Aralia species has found compounds that quiet inflammation signals in cells. That is cell and animal work only. It does not tell you what root tea does for a sore knee.

Eclectic doctors of the 1800s described it as a warming expectorant (a remedy that helps you cough mucus up). They had no way to test that idea. Modern science has not filled the gap.

So treat any mechanism talk you read as a hypothesis. The plant may do something. It may do nothing at all.

What forms does American Spikenard come in?

You will most often meet it as dried root, cut or powdered.

Common forms are: - Dried root, simmered as a decoction (a long-brewed root tea). - Liquid extracts and tinctures, usually made with alcohol. - Capsules of plain powdered root.

It also appears as one herb among many in cough syrups and "blood purifier" blends. In those, the amount per serving is often small. The label may not say how much is in there.

Buy only from sellers who print the Latin name, Aralia racemosa. Two other plants share the common name. Getting the wrong one is a real risk.

Where it comes from:

Eastern Woodlands peoples used the root long before settlers arrived, chiefly for coughs, wounds and sore joints. Settlers copied the use and called the plant spignet.

In the 1800s, Eclectic physicians listed it in their materia medica (their book of remedies). They used it for chronic coughs, rheumatism and skin eruptions. It was often paired with other roots in syrups and "blood cleansing" formulas.

It was also used as a cheap stand-in for sarsaparilla in home tonics. Interest faded in the 1900s as modern drugs arrived. It never went through the testing those drugs did.

This section describes what people did in the past. It is not advice to copy them.

What does American Spikenard help with?

• Cough and chest congestion: This is the main traditional claim. Eclectic doctors used the root syrup for long-running coughs and thick mucus. No human trial has tested it for cough. Lab work on saponins from other plants hints at a mucus-thinning effect, which is not the same as proof. A cough that lasts more than three weeks needs a doctor, not a syrup.
• Sore throat and hoarseness: Folk use included root tea as a gargle or sip for a raw throat. There is no human evidence for this. Any relief may simply come from warm liquid and the sweetener in a syrup.
• Joint pain and rheumatism: Old American texts list it for aching, stiff joints. It was usually given as part of a mixture, not alone. Some Aralia compounds damp down inflammation signals in cell and animal studies. That has never been shown to ease joint pain in people. Treat this use as untested.
• Skin eruptions and eczema: It was a regular in "blood purifier" blends for rashes and eczema. The idea of purifying blood is not how the body works. No trial supports it for any skin condition. Spreading or weeping rashes need a clinician's eye.
• Poor appetite and sluggish digestion: Bitter, aromatic roots were widely used to wake up appetite. Spikenard was one of them. This claim rests on taste and tradition alone. There is no human data on appetite or digestion for this plant.

What are the side effects of American Spikenard?

• Nausea or stomach upset
• Loose stools or diarrhoea at larger amounts
• A dry, puckering feel in the mouth
• Skin rash or itching in people sensitive to related plants
• Contact rash from handling the fresh plant
• Flushing or warmth from alcohol-based tinctures

Good to know:

Reported side effects are mild and mostly involve the gut. They are also poorly tracked, since no trial has counted them.

Allergy is the main concern. The plant sits in the same family as ginseng and ivy. If you react to those, you may react to this.

Stop at once if you get a rash, swelling of the lips or face, or trouble breathing. That needs emergency care.

How much American Spikenard should you take?

• Recommended daily: No official dose exists, because the plant has never been tested in people. What follows is only the kind of amount a product label tends to carry. Labels for dried root often suggest 1 to 3 grams a day as a decoction. Tincture labels often suggest 2 to 4 millilitres, up to three times a day. These are label customs, not a dose for you. Follow the label on the product you hold, and ask a pharmacist or doctor first. Do not use it in children.
• Best time of day: Timing does not matter much. People using it for a cough often take it when the cough is worst, which is usually evening. If an alcohol tincture makes you feel warm or flushed, take it earlier in the day.
• With or without food: Food is fine and may help. The root can upset an empty stomach, mostly because of the saponins. Take tinctures in a little water. Plain water also softens the alcohol burn.
• Time to effect: Nobody can give you an honest number, because there are no trials. Traditional reports describe easier coughing within a few days. Expect nothing dramatic. It may do nothing at all, and a cough often settles on its own in that time.
• How long to take it: No safe long-term period has been studied. Traditional use was short, usually for a cough or flare that lasted days to a few weeks. Stop if nothing has changed after about two weeks. Long daily use with no end date is not supported by any evidence.