Natural Products

Horse Chestnut

Scientific names: Aesculus hippocastanum (horse chestnut), A. californica (California buckeye), A. glabra (Ohio buckeye)

Common names: Horse chestnut also is known as chestnut, California buckeye, Ohio buckeye, and buckeye.

Efficacy-safety rating:

ÒÒ...Ethno or other evidence of efficacy.

Safety rating:

●...Moderate to serious danger.

What is Horse Chestnut?

Members of the genus Aesculus grow as trees and shrubs. The fruit is the capsule with a thick, leathery husk that contains dark seeds (the nuts). As the husk dries, the nuts are released. The tree is native to the Balkan woods and western Asia, but now is cultivated worldwide.

What is Horse Chestnut used for?

Traditional/Ethnobotanical uses

Because of their prevalence, chestnuts have been used in traditional medicine and for a variety of other commercial applications for centuries. Extracts of the bark have been used as a yellow dye, and the wood has been used for furniture and packing cases. In the western US, the crushed unripe seeds of the California buckeye were scattered into streams to stupefy fish, and leaves were steeped as a tea to remedy congestion. Though the seeds are toxic, several traditional methods were employed to rid them of their toxicity. Seeds were buried in swampy, cold ground during the winter to free them of toxic bitter components, then eaten in the spring after boiling. Indians roasted, peeled, and mashed the poisonous nuts, then leached the meal in lime water for several days, creating a meal used to make breads. Sweet chestnuts, used as food, are of a different genus (Castanez) than the horse chestnuts or buckeyes of traditional medicine. The horse chestnut has been used as a traditional remedy for arthritis and rheumatism.

Circulation/Diuretic/Anti-inflammatory

The main anti-inflammatory constituent, aescin (escin), is present in the plant. Extracts are available commercially for oral, topical, and intervenous administration for the management of varicose veins and hemorrhoids. In patients with chronic venous insufficiency, extracts have been found to be effective in reducing patient complaints, along with objective measures of edema.

Horse chestnut potentially is useful against edema, inflammation, and venous insufficiency. However, its toxicity outweighs its usefulness.

What is the dosage of Horse Chestnut?

Horse chestnut extracts typically are standardized on content of a major component, escin. Doses corresponding to escin 20 to 120 mg have been used for venous insufficiency.

Is Horse Chestnut safe?

Contraindications

No longer considered safe for use.

Pregnancy/nursing

Information regarding safety and efficacy in pregnancy and lactation is lacking.

Interactions

None well documented.

Side Effects

No data.

Toxicities

All parts of plants in the Aesculus family are potentially toxic, especially the seeds. Horse chestnut has been classified by the FDA as an unsafe herb. Buckeye sawdust and horse chestnut components in skin cleansers potentially are carcinogenic. Even buckeye honey may be toxic.

References

Horse Chestnut. Review of Natural Products. factsandcomparisons4.0 [online]. 2005. Available from Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. Accessed April 17, 2007.