The Consumer Guide to Feverfew
In this guide...
One in every ten Americans suffers the severe pain of migraines. Many of these people choose instead to suffer from the side effects of anti-migraine drugs, which may include numbness and tingling in the fingers and toes, nausea, and diarrhea. Feverfew preparations, derived from the leaves and small, white flowers of a bushy perennial (Tanacetum parthenium), are a promising alternative: a seemingly effective anti-migraine remedy with few side effects.
Traditional uses: Feverfew’s principal traditional use (as its name implies) was to reduce fever. Herbalists have also long regarded feverfew as a minor headache remedy.
Modern perspective: Feverfew’s utility against headaches has gained prominence just since the mid-1980’s, after researchers determined in a number of placebo-controlled human studies that feverfew can reduce the frequency and severity of migraines. Feverfew is also sometimes used to reduce the inflammation of arthritis and to relieve menstrual ailments. However, the only controlled clinical trial of feverfew in rheumatoid arthritis patients (all female) failed to show any benefit over placebo.
Do scientists know how feverfew works? Feverfew's anti-migraine action has been attributed to lactone compounds, chiefly parthenolide. However, recent studies have cast doubt on this assumption. Exactly if and how parthenolide might work against migraines is still being determined, with researchers focusing on its ability to inhibit the effects of serotonin, histamine, protein kinase C, thromboxane B2 (TXB2), leukotriene B4 (LTB4) or other body chemicals. Types of products: It is sold dried and in capsules, concentrated drops, tinctures, and extracts. The newest feverfew products are standardized for 0.1 to 0.2 percent of parthenolide. A number of studies done in the late 1980s and early 1990s indicated that several commercial feverfew products contained none of the active compound parthenolide. Parthenolide levels of the dried herb were also found to fall during storage. These studies emphasize the importance of using high-quality standardized extracts (and there are now a number of these on the market) of this herb for proper dosage and reliable pharmaceutical effect.
Safety: Few side effects have been associated with use of feverfew products, although chewing the fresh leaves can cause swelling of the lips and tongue.
Traditional Uses
Modern Perspective
Do Scientists Know How Feverfew Works?
Types Of Products
Safety
References
Books on Feverfew
Browse Our Wide Selection of Feverfew Products
- Awang, D.V.C., et al., "Parthenolide content of feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium) assessed by HPLC and H-NMR spectroscopy," Journal of Natural Products 1991, 54(6):1516–21.
- Barsby RW, et al. Feverfew and vascular smooth muscle: extracts from fresh and dried plants show opposing pharmacological profiles, dependent upon sesquiterpene lactone content. Planta Med 1993 Feb;59(1):20-5.
- Brown AM, et al. Pharmacological activity of feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium (L.) Schultz-Bip.): assessment by inhibition of human polymorphonuclear leukocyte chemiluminescence in-vitro. J Pharm Pharmacol 1997 May;49(5):558-61
- Heptinstall, S., et al., "Parthenolide content and bioactivity of feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium (L.) Schultz-Bip.): Estimation of commercial and authenticated feverfew products," J. Pharm. Pharmacol. 1992, 44(5):391–95.
- Pattrick M, Heptinstall S, Doherty M. Feverfew in rheumatoid arthritis: a double blind, placebo controlled study. Ann Rheum Dis 1989 Jul;48(7):547-9.
Books on Feverfew
- Feverfew: Natural Headache Relief by Deanne Tenney (TK: 1998)
- Feverfew: The Amazing Herb That Relieves Migraine Headaches, A Keats Good Herb by Ken Hancock (New Canaan, Ct.: Keats, 1997)
- Feverfew: Your Headache May Be Over by Ken Hancock and Christopher Hobbs (TK: 1986)
- Feverfew: Guide to History by Jennifer Britt and Lesley Keen (TK: 1987)
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