(Austin,Texas,September9,2015)ThenonprofitAmericanBotanicalCouncil(ABC)saysthattheNewYorkAttorneyGeneral’s(NYAG’s)investigationontheherbdevil’sclawhasreachedanincorrectconclusionbasedonitstoo-narrowinterpretationofbotanicalclassifications.
TodaytheNYAGsentcease-and-desistlettersto13companiesthatselldevil’sclawherbaldietarysupplementsinformingthemthattheirproductscontainingdevil’sclawmaterialweretestedattheNewYorkBotanicalGardenusingDNAtechnology.Theresultsshowedthatthedevil’sclawwasadifferentbotanicalspeciesthanwhatwaslabeled,andwhattheNYAGtermeda“lessdesirable”speciesoftheherb.
Inbotanicalclassificationandnomenclature,devil’sclawisusuallyknownscientificallybyitsLatinname,Harpagophytumprocumbens,whereHarpagophytumisthegenusoftheplantandprocumbensreferstothespeciesoftheplant.TheDNA-barcodingtestscommissionedbytheNYAGshowedthatsomeherbalsupplementsactuallycontainHarpagophytumzeyheri,aslightlydifferentformofdevil’sclaw,i.e.,adifferent,butverycloselyrelatedspecies.Ineffect,theyareliketwosiblings.
“Bothspeciesofdevil’sclawhaveasimilarchemicalprofile,”saidThomasBrendler,amedicinalplantexpertandeditoroftheAfricanHerbalPharmacopeia,acompilationoftechnicalinformationofvariousAfricanmedicinalplants,includingtheirbotany,growingconditions,rangeofhabitat,chemistry,andtraditionalandmodernmedicinalactivitiesanduses.
“Whilebothspeciesdiffermarginallyinshapeandchemicalcomposition,bothareconsideredequallyeffective,”headded.
Accordingtovariousgovernment-recognizedmedicineevaluationbodiesandpharmacopeias,thetwospeciesofdevil’sclawareconsideredinterchangeableforthepurposeoftheirusefortheirmedicinalactions.TheseorganizationsincludetheEuropeanMedicinesAgency,theEuropeanPharmacopoeia,andtheunofficialESCOP(EuropeanScientificCooperativeforPhytotherapy),apan-Europeanconsortiumofmedicinalplantexperts.Alsolistingbothspeciesasinterchangeableistheproposedmonograph“Harpagophytumspeciesroot”intheUnitedStatesPharmacopeia’sHerbalMedicinesCompendium.
Brendleraddedthatmany,possiblymost,devil’sclawextractsintheworldmarketarebasedonmixturesofthetwospecies,asaredevil’sclawherbalteasanddriedpowderedrootmaterialsusedinsupplementsandotherproducts.Bothspeciesofdevil’sclawhavebeeninthemarketintheUnitedStatessincethe1980s,henoted.
“WesincerelyappreciateAttorneyGeneralSchneiderman’sinterestinthequalityofherbalmaterialssoldindietarysupplementsandhisapparentdesiretohelpconsumersmaintainaccesstohigh-quality,safe,andeffectiveherbalproducts,”saidMarkBlumenthal,founderandexecutivedirectorofABC.
“WehereatABChaveasimilarmission,asevidencedbyourlong-timeeffortsintheABC-AHP-NCNPRBotanicalAdulterantsPrograminwhichwehavebeenworkingoneducatingindustryandallrelevantstakeholdersaboutqualityissuesintheglobalherbalmarket,”hecontinued.“However,splittingthedevil’sclawgenusintheverynarrowwaythattheyhavedoneinthisinvestigationisakintosplittinghairs—ithasnorealmeaningorvaluetoanyone,particularlytheherbconsumer.”
“Thismaybeahair-splittingbotanicaldistinction,”notedBlumenthal,“butitcertainlyisnotalegalorregulatoryone,especiallysinceauthoritativesourcesrecognizebothspeciesasbeing‘devil’sclaw.’”
Blumenthaladdedthat,accordingtodataABCusedforitsannualherbmarketreport,devil’sclawisarelativelylow-sellingherbintheUnitedStates.In2014,devil’sclawranked162ndinsalesintheUSmainstreamretailmarketand150thinthenaturalandhealthfoodschannel.Totalestimatedsalesofdevil’sclawdietarysupplementsintheUnitedStatesrangefromapproximately$250,000toupto$500,000.
AboutDevil’sClawDevil’sclaw,thevernacularnameforthetwospeciesHarpagophytumprocumbensandH.zeyheri,occursinthedesertregionsofsouthernAfrica(Namibia,Botswana,andSouthAfrica).Itsbitterroothashistoricallybeenusedtotreatawiderangeofailmentsand,prominently,asananti-inflammatoryanddigestive.Majorclinicalusesinmodernphytotherapy(herbalmedicine)focusonitsanti-inflammatoryeffectsinthetreatmentofjointdiseasesandbackpain.ThesuggestedmechanismofactionisthroughCOX-2inhibition.Some20humanclinicaltrialsconductedoverthelast30yearshaveconfirmeditssafetyandefficacyinthetreatmentandalleviationofdegenerativejointdisease,osteoarthritis,andlowerbackpain.
