<html><head><style type="text/css"><!-- DIV {margin:0px;} --></style></head><body><div style="font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size:10pt"><div>Since Basil's incontinence meds have also stopped working, I was curious to see what butterbur was. I googled it, and the first result was the WebMD listing, which raises some serious concerns:</div><div><br></div><div>"<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; ">Some butterbur products may contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs), and that’s the major safety concern. PAs can damage the liver, <a href="http://www.webmd.com/lung/picture-of-the-lungs" crosslinkid="72327" keywordsetid="26698" externalid="091e9c5e803c50fe" keywordid="60505" chronic_id="091e9c5e803c50fe" directive="friendlyurl" object_type="wbmd_pb_page" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 102, 153); ">lungs</a>, and <a
href="http://www.webmd.com/heart/anatomy-picture-of-blood" crosslinkid="1506783" keywordsetid="28544" externalid="091e9c5e8056ea80" keywordid="62987" chronic_id="091e9c5e8056ea80" directive="friendlyurl" object_type="wbmd_pb_page" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 102, 153); ">blood</a> circulation, and possibly cause <a href="http://www.webmd.com/cancer/" crosslinkid="31192" keywordsetid="942" externalid="9A13E96B1FF14D08" keywordid="7043" chronic_id="" directive="friendlyurl" object_type="wbmd_pb_page" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 102, 153); ">cancer</a>. Butterbur products that contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs) are <b>UNSAFE</b> when taken by mouth or applied to broken skin. Broken skin allows chemicals to be absorbed into the body. Do not use butterbur products unless they are certified and labeled as free of PAs.</span></div><meta charset="utf-8"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:
Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; "><p style="font-family: Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 10px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); "><br>PA-free butterbur products are <b>POSSIBLY SAFE</b> for adults and children when taken by mouth appropriately. PA-free root extracts seem to be safe when used for up to 16 weeks in adults. There is some evidence that a specific PA-free butterbur extract (Petadolex, Weber&Weber, GmbH & Co, Germany) can be safely used in children who are 6-17 years old for up to 4 months.<br><br>Not enough is known about the safety of using PA-free butterbur products on unbroken skin. Don’t use it.<br><br>PA-free butterbur is generally well tolerated. It can cause belching, headache, itchy<a href="http://www.webmd.com/eye-health/picture-of-the-eyes"
crosslinkid="72347" keywordsetid="26646" externalid="091e9c5e803ffc74" keywordid="60425" chronic_id="091e9c5e803ffc74" directive="friendlyurl" object_type="wbmd_pb_page" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 102, 153); ">eyes</a>, <a href="http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/digestive-diseases-diarrhea" crosslinkid="5461" keywordsetid="1090" externalid="091e9c5e80007ea0" keywordid="7253" chronic_id="091e9c5e80007ea0" directive="friendlyurl" object_type="wbmd_pb_page" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 102, 153); ">diarrhea</a>, asthma, upset stomach, <a href="http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/weakness-and-fatigue-topic-overview" crosslinkid="43920" keywordsetid="1192" externalid="091e9c5e8001e577" keywordid="7389" chronic_id="091e9c5e8001e577" directive="friendlyurl" object_type="wbmd_pb_page" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 102, 153); ">fatigue</a>, and drowsiness. However, it seems to cause less drowsiness
and fatigue than cetirizine (Zyrtec). Butterbur products might cause allergic reactions in people who are allergic to ragweed, marigolds, daisies, and other related herbs.</p><h4 style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; font-weight: bold; font-size: 12px; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); ">Special Precautions & Warnings:</h4><b><a href="http://www.webmd.com/baby/default.htm" crosslinkid="507" keywordsetid="1742" externalid="091e9c5e80042fa3" keywordid="8123" chronic_id="091e9c5e80042fa3" directive="friendlyurl" object_type="wbmd_pb_page" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 102, 153); ">Pregnancy</a> and breast-feeding</b>: Taking butterbur by mouth is <b>LIKELY UNSAFE</b>. Butterbur preparations containing pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs) might cause <a
href="http://www.webmd.com/baby/tc/birth-defects-testing-what-are-birth-defects-tests" crosslinkid="47107" keywordsetid="8182" externalid="091e9c5e8001d08d" keywordid="31577" chronic_id="091e9c5e8001d08d" directive="friendlyurl" object_type="wbmd_pb_page" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 102, 153); ">birth defects</a> and liver damage. Not enough is known about the safety of using butterbur products that do not contain PAs during pregnancy or breast-feeding. Don’t use it.<br><br><b><a href="http://www.webmd.com/allergies/default.htm" crosslinkid="492" keywordsetid="775" externalid="091e9c5e80022f86" keywordid="30831" chronic_id="091e9c5e80022f86" directive="friendlyurl" object_type="wbmd_pb_page" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 102, 153); ">Allergy</a> to ragweed and related plants</b>: Butterbur may cause an <a href="http://www.webmd.com/allergies/tc/allergic-reaction-topic-overview" crosslinkid="49042"
keywordsetid="8026" externalid="091e9c5e8001e7cd" keywordid="30828" chronic_id="091e9c5e8001e7cd" directive="friendlyurl" object_type="wbmd_pb_page" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 102, 153); ">allergic reaction</a> in people who are sensitive to the Asteraceae/Compositae family. Members of this family include ragweed, chrysanthemums, marigolds, daisies, and many others. If you have allergies, be sure to check with your healthcare provider before taking butterbur.<br><br><b>Liver disease</b>: There is some concern that butterbur might make liver disease worse. Don’t take it."</span><div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif"><br></font></div><div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Just an FYI, in case you didn't know. <br></font><div style="font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size:10pt"><br><div style="font-family:arial, helvetica,
sans-serif;font-size:10pt"><font size="2" face="Tahoma"><hr size="1"></font><b><br></b>I've done the allergy testing on a couple of my bassets (current &<br>former) and recommend having that done if you can. We've also done<br>food elimination diet.<br>I use the antihistamine chlorphenarmine - under $3 at wal-mart for<br>generic. I recently started using the herb butterbur in capsule form.<br> Been trying it for Hal's itchies for 2 weeks. He seems less itchy and<br>coat seems less "tacky". Been using it for my seasonal allergies too.<br> After reading the studies done comparing butterbur to Zyrtec, thought<br>I'd give it a try.<br>Apparently, it is also used for incontinence... so, since Sara Sue's<br>elimination diet results point to an environmental allergy and since<br>the prescription meds have stopped working for her incontinence...<br>I've also started her on it.<br>vikki<br>spencer, sara sue, hal e bear<br>beloved sebastian
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