Horehound Herb & Recipes 3 x 5 inch bag

(Marrubium vulgare). The bag of dried horehound herb (stems removed) comes with recipes on making Horehound Salve, Horehound Lozenges and Horehound Cough Syrup. The bag yields enough herb to make at least three of each of the recipes.

This perennial plant grows from a short, knobby root. The woolly stems are square and reach 1 ½ to 2 feet tall. The crinkled, fuzzy leaves grow opposite along the stem, each pair of leaves at right angles to the ones below. The tiny white flowers form balls below paired leaves. The seed heads mature into sticking burrs. The plant has a sharp, acrid scent when crushed. Horehound can be found growing wild throughout Europe, the United States and Canada. The herb prefers dry, sandy places, wastelands, vacant lots and abandoned fields.

Cautions: Horehound preparations may interact with the drug hydroxytryptamine (antidepressant). Cardioactives in the herb may interfere with antiarrhythmic drugs, increase the risk of hypokalemia, antagonize beta-adrenoceptor blocking drugs, interact with depolarizing muscle relaxants and increase the risk of arrhythmias, interfere with nitrates and calcium-channel blockers, and cardioactives may increase the arrhythmogenic potential of terfenadine. Due to the diuretic action of Horehound the following drug interactions are possible: increased risk of toxicity with anti-inflammatory analgesics; if hypokalemia occurs possible antagonism with antiarrhythmics and potentiation of muscle relaxants; antagonizes antidiabetic (hypoglycemic) drugs; may potentiate and/or interfere with antihypertensives; may potentiate lithium therapy; when taken with corticosteroids there is a risk for hypokalemia; may potentiate other diuretics and increase the risk of hypokalemia. Preparations of this herb may antagonize antihypertensive drugs and nitrates and calcium-channel blockers, and when combined with sympathomimetics there is an increased risk of hypertension. Interferes with the absorption of iron and other minerals when taken internally. Possible adverse effects and/or overdose effects include dermatitis, irritation, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting. Very large doses can cause arrhythmia.

Constituents: Marrubiin, a diterpene lactone, with premarrubiin; diterpene alcohols; marruciol, marrubenol, sclareol, peregrinin, dihydroperegrinin; volatile oil, containing [[alpha]]-pinene, sabinene, limonene, camphene, p-cymol, [[alpha]]-terpinolene; alkaloids; traces of betonicine and its isomer turicine; miscellaneous; choline, alkanes, phytosterols, tanins etc.