Pau d’arco (Tabebuia avellanedae) is native to South America, where reportedly it has been used to treat a wide range of conditions, including pain, arthritis, inflammation of the prostate gland (prostatitis), fever, dysentery, boils and ulcers, and various cancers.
Although preliminary lab tests show that a chemical in pau d’arco called lapachol can kill some viruses, bacteria, and fungi in test tubes, it isn’t known whether it will have the same effects when taken by humans. So even though pau d’arco is sometimes used for conditions ranging from candidiasis (a yeast infection of the vaginal or oral areas), herpes simplex virus, and influenza to parasitic diseases such as schistosomiasis and bacterial infections such as brucellosis, there is no evidence it works. Test tube studies to evaluate whether pau d’arco has any effect on cancer have shown mixed results; and even in studies where pau d’arco does reduce the number of cancer cells, the amounts used would be toxic to humans.
The same is also true of some of the doses that might be needed to kill bacteria or viruses. If you decide to take pau d’arco, do so only under your doctor’s supervision.
The pau d’arco tree is an evergreen tree that grows in the warm parts of Central and South America. It is a broad-leaf evergreen that grows to a height of 125 feet and has pink to violet-colored flowers. Its extremely hard wood makes it resistant to disease and decay. The inner bark of the tree is used medicinally. In recent years there has been an increasing demand for pau d’arco and, as a result, the trees are endangered.
Most of the chemical research on pau d’arco has been done on the wood and not the inner bark. Pau d’arco contains chemical compounds called naphthoquinones such as lapachol that may have antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial properties, as well as significant amounts of the antioxidant quercetin.
Pau d’arco is available in health food stores in capsules, tinctures, and as dried bark. The recommended dosage is one to two capsules or one to two droppers of tincture taken one to four times per day, depending on the condition and patient.
Tea can be made from the bark by adding one tbsp of bark for every three cups of water. The tea should be boiled for twenty minutes or longer in a non-aluminum pot. One cup of tea can be taken three or four times daily for acute conditions. One-half cup three or four times daily is recommended for other conditions. Pau d’arco tea has a cool, bitter flavor.
Pregnant and nursing women should not use pau d’arco until it is sufficiently researched. Pau d’arco has been shown to have blood-thinning actions in some people, and may cause anemia when used long term. Possible side effects from ingesting too much pau d’arco include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, dizziness, and stomach cramps. Another precaution consumers should heed is assuring that the product they purchase is produced by a reputable manufacturer. Some tested have very few active ingredients. The pau d’arco imported from Argentina is generally considered to be the highest quality bark.
