Appendix B Toxic or potentially toxic herbs

These herbs should not be taken during pregnancy and lactation and are generally not recommended for internal use under any circumstances, the last point with a few exceptions, specifically Convallaria, Lobelia, boldo, poke root, Rauwolfia and Gelsemium.

Abrus precatorius seed and root jequirity
Aconitum species aconite
Acorus calamus sweet flag
Adonis vernalis  
Ammi visnaga  
Apocynum  
Aristolochia (all or any species) snakeroot, birthwort
Arnica (all or any species), other than for external use Arnica
Arum maculatum cuckoopint, lords and ladies
Belladonna deadly nightshade
Brugmansia  
Brunfelsia uniflora manaca, mercury
Calotropis  
Catha edulis khat
Chenopodium ambrosioides wormseed oil
Cicuta virosa cowbane
Cinchona quinine bark
Colchicum  
Convallaria lily of the valley
Coronilla  
Crotalaria (all or any species)  
Croton (all or any species) cascarilla, Croton
Cynoglossum officinale hound’s tongue
Daphne mezereum mezereum
Datura jimson weed
Digitalis foxgloves
Dryopteris filix-mas male fern
Duboisia  
Echium vulgare viper’s bugloss
Erysimum  
Euonymus europaeus European spindle tree
Galanthus snowdrop
Gelsemium  
Heliotropium (all or any species) heliotrope
Helleborus (all or any species) hellebore
Hyoscyamus henbane
Lantana camara Lantana
Lathyrus sativus, other than the cooked seed grass pea
Lithospermum (all or any species)  
Lobelia  
Mandragora mandrake
Menispermum canadense yellow parilla
Mentha pulegium pennyroyal
Oleander  
Opuntia cylindrica San Pedro cactus
Papaver somniferum opium poppy
Peganum harmala wild rue
Petasites (all or any species) butterbur
Peumus boldus boldo
Phytolacca decandra (P. americana) poke root, pokeweed
Podophyllum resin  
Pteridium aquilinum bracken fern
Rauwolfia  
Ricinus communis, other than the fixed oil of the seed castor tree
Robinia pseudoacacia, other than the leaf and flower false acacia
Schoenocaulon officinale (Sabadilla officinarum, Veratrum officinale) Sabadilla
Scopolia carniolica  
Semecarpus anacardium (Anacardium orientale), other than the seed marking nut tree
Senecio (all or any species)  
Solanum (all or any species) except stems of Solanum dulcamara (bittersweet) and potatoes  
Sophora secundiflora mescal bean
Spigelia marilandica pink root, worm grass
Staphisagria  
Strophanthus  
Strychnos nux vomica
Strychnos gaulthieriana  
Strychnos ignatii (Ignatia amara) Ignatious bean
Symphytum (all or any species) comfrey
Tamus communis fruit and root black bryony
Tanacetum vulgare (except in preparations containing 0.8% or less of oil of tansy) tansy
Teucrium (all or any species) germander
Thevetia  
Toxicodendron radicans (Rhus toxicodendron) poison ivy
Tussilago farfara coltsfoot
Virola sebifera cuajo negro, camaticaro
Yohimbe (yohimbine)