Skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora), Cut and Sifted, Certified Organic

PACIFIC NORTHWEST GROWN. Skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora), Cut and Sifted, Certified Organic

Common names: Blue Skullcap, Mad Dog Skullcap, Madweed, Side-flowering Skullcap, Helmet Flower, Hoodwort, Blue Pimpernel, Toque Des Marais

Family: Lamiaceae

Fresh from this fall harvest and dried, this Skullcap is the most amazing quality you will find!  Grown locally in the Pacific Northwest, and brought directly to our facility, you will find that a little bit goes a long way.  

Blue Skullcap is native to North America, a hardy perennial herb that grows to a height of 2 feet or more in wetlands and damp meadows with partial to full sunlight. The Scutellaria genus includes more than 350 species, many of which are medicinally active, such as the widely used Chinese herb, S. baicalensis, which seems to be very similar to S. laterifolia in its phytochemistry.

Skullcap is traditionally used as a nervine, to aid sleep, to help ease anxiety, and promote general relaxation. In her classic text, A Modern Herbal, Maude Grieve describes this species of Skullcap simply as “one of the finest nervines ever discovered.” It is a key ingredient in our Time Out Tea.

A 2014 study, testing the effects of Skullcap on healthy volunteers, showed "significantly enhanced global mood without a reduction in energy or cognition." An animal study with Skullcap appeared to confirm its anxiolytic properties and noted that a flavonoid, baicalin, found in the herb, binds to the benzodiazepine site of the GABAA receptor.

In vitro experiments also demonstrated baicalin's effect of inhibiting the metastasis of aggressive breast cancer cells. In addition to other flavonoids, baicalein, scutellarin, and wogonin, S. laterifolia contains the human neurohormones serotonin and melatonin. Scutellarin was shown in another study to act against fibrosarcoma metastases in vitro, and markedly reduced the size of tumors in test animals.

A common feature of a vast array of disorders, including neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric diseases such as anxiety, Alzheimer's disease, depression, and Parkinson's disease, as well as immune dysfunctions, is oxidative stress. A 2013 study using mouse brain tissue revealed Skullcap's potent neuroprotective antioxidant activity.

*These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.