Petadolex is standardized to contain 15% of a key ingredient, petasin. It's also guaranteed to be pyrrolizidine alkaloid (PA) free, so you can use it with confidence. Pyrrolizidine alkaloids are toxic compounds that can harm the liver. Studies demonstrate patented Petadolex is safe and well tolerated.

Active ingredients
Petasin, a kind of sesquiterpene ester, appears to be a major active compound of butterbur extract. It has inhibitory activities on leukotriene generation in eosinophils and neutrophils. This indicates that it may have anti-inflammatory and anti-allergy properties. Butterbur may be helpful for seasonal allergic rhinitis. Butterbur also helps reduce smooth muscle spasm.

Medical uses for herb and extract

Allergic rhinitis
A placebo-controlled evaluation of butterbur and fexofenadine on objective and subjective outcomes in perennial allergic rhinitis.
Clin Exp Allergy. 2004.
There are presently no placebo-controlled data regarding the effects of butterbur on subjective and objective outcomes in patients with perennial allergic rhinitis. We performed a placebo-controlled evaluation of the effects of butterbur and fexofenadine (FEX) on subjective and objective outcomes in patients with perennial allergic rhinitis. Methods Sixteen patients with perennial allergic rhinitis and house dust mite sensitization were randomized in double-blind cross-over fashion to receive for 1 week either butterbur 50 mg twice daily, FEX 180 mg once daily and placebo (PL) once daily. Butterbur and FEX, in comparison to PL, were equally effective in attenuating the nasal response to adenosine monophosphate and in improving nasal symptoms, highlighting a potential role for this herbal remedy in the treatment of allergic rhinitis.

Asthma and bronchitis treatment
Various parts of the Butterbur plant have been used for centuries to treat bronchial asthma and whooping cough. Butterbur's possible effectiveness in treating respiratory disorders such as asthma and bronchitis is attributed to the antispasmodic and anti-inflammatory properties of the petasin constituent.

Petasites hybridus extract in the treatment of asthma - an open trial.
Altern Med Rev. 2004.
The efficacy and tolerability of a butterbur root extract Petadolex for the treatment of asthma was analyzed in a prospective, non-randomized, open trial. Subjects included 64 adults and 16 children/adolescents treated for two months with the extract, followed by two months during which the intake of the extract was optional. Concomitant asthma medication was permitted. The number, duration, and severity of asthma attacks decreased, while peak flow, forced expiratory volume (FEV1), and all measured symptoms improved during therapy. In addition, more than 40 percent of patients using asthma medications at baseline reduced intake of these medications by the end of the study. This study suggests the Butterbur extract Petadolex is an effective and safe therapy for the treatment of asthma.

Cancer
My wife has been having pains due to cancer and chemo and surgery and soon to have radiation. She has all sorts of pains everywhere. Can butterbur help?
   We cannot predict what kind of effect it will have on cancer related pain.

Gastrointestinal Disorders
A German study found extracts of butterbur blocked ethanol-induced gastric damage and reduced ulcerations of the small intestine caused by indomethacin, an anti-inflammatory drug used to treat arthritic conditions. The results of this study were attributed to inhibition of lipoxygenase activity and leukotriene biosynthesis.

Migraine headache relief:
Two clinical studies using 50 mg and 75 mg of a standardized butterbur extract twice daily for 12 weeks demonstrated its effectiveness as a prophylactic treatment for migraines. When used to treat migraine headache, administration is prophylactic and supplementation should be carried out daily for a few weeks and then tapered until migraine incidence begins to increase. It may work by preventing peptidoleukotriene biosynthesis. Feverfew benefit for headache relief.

An extract of the root of butterbur (Petasites hybridus) reduces the frequency of migraine headaches. An article published in the December 2004 issue of Neurology reports a trial that compared it with an inactive placebo. Researchers compared the effectiveness of two different doses of butterbur extract in about 230 migraine patients. They had experienced two to six attacks per month for the 3 months prior to the study. The number of migraine headache attacks per month was reduced by 45 percent in the group that took 75 milligrams twice daily, compared with a reduction of 28 percent in the placebo group. A group that took 50 milligrams twice daily experienced a 32 percent decrease, not significantly different from placebo. The extract was well tolerated with burping as the only adverse event occurring more frequently in the active treatment groups. There were no changes in blood pressure, heart rate, or routine laboratory tests.
   It is likely that some users will find it reduces the severity or frequency of their migraine headache, whereas others may not find it to be helpful. How butterbur interacts with standard pharmaceutical medicines -- such as beta blockers or triptans -- used for prevention or treatment of migraines is currently not known.

Safety of a patented special butterbur root extract for migraine prevention.
Danesch U, Rittinghausen R. Weber and Weber, Inning, Germany. Headache. 2003.

Safety and side effects, how safe is it?
Butterbur has not been studied extensively enough to determine its long term safety or side effects.

I wanted to give you feedback that the combination of butterbur and yohimbe bark is not a good idea, I got rapid heart rhythm.
   The aphrodisiac herb itself can cause rapid heart rate.