Feverfew is an herb with a long history as a folk remedy for ailments, such as arthritis, fever and headaches. It belongs to the sunflower family, and is also known as Tanacetum parthenium, or Chrysanthemum parthenium. In modern times, the leaves of the feverfew plant have gained use as an alternative treatment for migraine headaches.
Basics
Feverfew leaves contain a compound called parthenolide, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. Parthenolide achieves its migraine-related effects by easing spasms in your body's smooth muscle tissue and stopping blood vessels in your brain from constricting. You can obtain feverfew as a fresh leaf, or as dried or freeze-dried forms packaged as liquid extracts, tablets or capsules. Use of fresh feverfew leaves or feverfew tea can cause mouth ulcers in some individuals, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center notes. To provide you with treatment benefits, a feverfew product must have a parthenolide content of at least 0.2 percent.
Results
Daily use of dried feverfew capsules may help relieve or prevent your migraine symptoms, the UMMC reports. However, not all feverfew studies have produced positive treatment results, and your chances of gaining good results can vary considerably depending on the specific type of supplement you use. In some cases, you may receive feverfew in combination with supplements that contain magnesium or bark from the white willow tree. Consult your doctor for more information on available feverfew products and treatment combinations.
Recommended Doses
If you are an adult with migraine headaches, the UMMC recommends taking 100 to 300 mg of a feverfew supplement as many as four times a day. Use a product that has a parthenolide content of 0.2 percent to 0.4 percent. If you have a child aged 2 or older, you can ask his doctor to recommend an appropriate daily feverfew dosage. Children younger than 2 should not receive feverfew in any form. In some circumstances, your doctor may recommend a substance called carbon dioxide extracted feverfew. If this is the case, you can take this form of feverfew three times a day, in 6.25 mg doses, for as long as four months.
Side Effects
The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine lists potential side effects of feverfew use that include irritation or swelling of your tongue or lips, loss of normal taste sensations and development of canker sores. You may also develop rarer side effects that include bloating, digestive difficulties and nausea. If you take feverfew for extended periods of time and then stop, you may develop withdrawal symptoms that include joint pain, muscle stiffness, headaches, nervousness and sleep disturbances.
Considerations
You should not use feverfew if you have known allergies to plants in the Compositae family, including marigolds, ragweed and chrysanthemums, Sloan-Kettering reports. If you have a bleeding disorder and/or use anticoagulant medications, use of feverfew can significantly increases your risks for bleeding, the UMMC notes. If you are pregnant or nursing, do not use feverfew in any form. To avoid withdrawal symptoms, do not suddenly discontinue feverfew use if you have been taking supplements for more than seven straight days.
Member Comments