Wild Yam, kosher herb from Nature’s Sunshine Products historically used to support and balance the female glandular system.

Benefits:

Helps support and balance the female glandular system.

Wild yam contains diosgenin, a steroidal saponin that is used commercially to produce steroid hormones. Wild yam is used widely to support menopausal women.

It has even been used by women to reduce hot flashes and treating colic in infants.

A perennial vine, wild yam is typically the long, slender and knotted tuberous rootstock of the plant. The leaves are heart-shaped, growing anywhere from two to six inches long and nearly as wide.

The lower leaves often grow in twos and fours, and the plant contains small greenish-yellow flowers that smell a lot like cinnamon. Many of the varieties develop edible tubers much like potatoes.

The parts used are the dried roots or rhizome. The roots contain diosgenin, a plant-based estrogen the can convert into the hormone known as progesterone.

A study published in the Journal of Lipid Research indicates that the diosgenin found it may help raise good HDL cholesterol and lower LDL (the “bad” cholesterol). In the study, rats were given wild yam for a period of one week to determine if diosgenin suppresses cholesterol absorption, and it was found the rats had better HDL-to-LDL ratio.

Another study conducted on mice and rats suggests that supplementation may be beneficial in controlling hypercholesterolemia.

Wild yam may help treat a disorder of the intestines called diverticulosis. This happens when small pouches form on the colon wall. If they get inflamed, they are are referred to as diverticulosis and can be very painful, resulting in constipation, diarrhea and even fever at times.

Records indicate that diverticulosis is found in 30 percent to 40 percent of people over the age of 50, and it is caused by a highly refined low-fiber diet. How does it help with diverticulosis?

Wild yam has anti-spasmodic and anti-inflammatory effects. As an anti-spasmodic, it may help reduce any pain caused by abdominal cramping around the inflamed area.

A tincture of wild yam, valerian, cramps bark and peppermint may offer relief.

Ingredients: Wild yam root.

Recommended Use: Take 1–2 capsules with a meal twice daily.

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