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GUT HEALTH

Wormwood

Artemisia absinthium

also known as absinthe wormwood

Moderate (traditional + parasitic) — but with serious safety boundaries

Wormwood — Köhler 1887 botanical illustration

A silvery, bitter herb famous as the flavoring of thujone concerns. Modern legal absinthe has limited thujone content.">absinthe — the green-tinged spirit French poets and painters used in the 19th century before bans spread across Europe. Wormwood has a long traditional use for parasites and digestive complaints, and the bitter compounds genuinely stimulate digestion. But wormwood also contains thujone, a nervous system compound that can trigger seizures at sustained or high doses. Short courses, with respect, are the way it has been safely used for centuries.

Traditional and modern use as an antiparasitic — particularly for intestinal worms (the name 'wormwood' is literal)
Bitter digestive stimulant — eases bloating, indigestion, and sluggish digestion when used briefly
Long traditional European use as an appetite stimulant during recovery from illness
Active in laboratory studies against several types of intestinal parasites
Artemisinin, a related compound from sweet wormwood (Artemisia annua), is the source of the modern antimalarial drugs that have saved millions of lives
Best used in short courses — a couple of weeks at most — under qualified guidance

Contains thujone — at high or sustained doses, thujone can trigger seizures, hallucinations, and nervous system effects

Skip with seizure disorders, epilepsy, or any history of unexplained seizure

Limit continuous use to about 2 weeks at a time

Skip during pregnancy — can stimulate the uterus and cause miscarriage

Skip during nursing

Skip in children

Use caution with anti-seizure medications, sedatives, and any neurological medications

Use caution with kidney or liver disease

Modern absinthe is regulated to limit thujone content; the 19th-century 'absinthe madness' was likely a combination of high thujone, very high alcohol content, and adulterants like methanol

Wormwood is sometimes confused with mugwort or sweet wormwood — these are related but different plants with different uses

Memorial Sloan Kettering About Herbs · EMA Herbal Medicinal Product Monographs · American Botanical Council HerbMedPro · Memorial Sloan Kettering About Herbs · EMA Herbal Medicinal Product Monographs · American Botanical Council HerbMedPro

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