This product is no longer sold by Raintree Nutrition, Inc. See the main product page for more information on why. Click on one of the product search links in the left margin of this page to find other available products. You can also see the rainforest products page to find other companies selling rainforest herbal supplements or rainforest plants in general.

The Cassia plants are well known for a group of chemicals with strong laxative actions called anthraquinones. The most widely used species of Cassia in herbal medicine is known as senna (Cassia senna or C. acutifolia). The actions of the anthraquinones chemicals are the basis of senna's widespread use as a purgative and strong laxative.* While fedegoso leaves do contain a small amount of these anthraquinones, it was shown in animal studies not to have the same strong purgative and laxative effects as fedegoso seeds or senna.* For more information about fedegoso (Cassia occidentalis), please refer to the Database File for Fedegoso in the Tropical Plant Database. To see pictures of fedegoso, click here.

Traditional Uses:* as a broad-spectrum internal and external antimicrobial to treat bacterial and fungal infections; for liver disorders (jaundice, hepatitis, cirrhosis, anemia, detoxification, injury/failure, bile stimulant, etc.); for intestinal worms, internal parasites, skin parasites; as an immune stimulant; as a cellular protector and a preventative to cell damage (immune, liver, kidney, cancer preventative)

Suggested Use: This plant is best prepared as an infusion (tea): Use one teaspoon of powder for each cup of water. Pour boiling water over herb in cup and allow to steep 10 minutes. Strain tea (or allow settled powder to remain in the bottom of cup) and drink warm. It is traditionally taken in 1 cup dosages, twice daily. For more complete instructions on preparing herbal infusions see the Methods for Preparing Herbal Remedies Page.

Contraindications: Fedegoso leaf extracts have demonstrated weak uterine stimulant activity and smooth-muscle relaxant actions in rats. As such, the use of this plant is contraindicated during pregnancy.

Drug Interactions: Fedegoso has demonstrated significant liver protective, tonic, and detoxifing effects in animal and human studies. As such, fedegoso may speed the clearance (or reduce the half-life) of some drugs that require metabolization in the liver.

Other Observations: Fedegoso has demonstrated hypotensive activity in animal studies. People with low blood pressure should use with caution and monitor their blood pressure levels for this possible effect.

---

Third-Party Research on Fedegoso

All available third-party research on fedegoso can be found at PubMed. A partial listing of the third-party published research on fedegoso updated through Jan 2019 is shown below:

Antimicrobial Actions:
Li, S., and Li S., Cycloartane triterpenoid and its glucoside isolated from Cassia occidentalis." Chin J Nat Med. 2017 Dec; 15(12): 950-954.
Bhagat, M., et al. "Evaluation of Cassia occidentalis for in vitro cytotoxicity against human cancer cell lines and antibacterial activity." Indian J. Pharmacol. 2010 Aug; 42(4): 234-7.
Li, S., et al. "Cycloartane triterpenoids from Cassia occidentalis." Planta Med. 2012 May; 78(8): 821-7.
Evans C., et al. "Efficacy of some nupe medicinal plants against Salmonella typhi: an in vitro study." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2002 Apr; 80(1): 21-4.
Samy, R., et al. "Antibacterial activity of some folklore medicinal plants used by tribals in Western Ghats of India." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2000; 69(1): 63-71.
Anesini, C., et al. "Screening of plants used in Argentine folk medicine for antimicrobial activity." J. Ethnopharmacol. 1993; 39(2): 119-28.
Caceres, A., et al. "Plants used in Guatemala for the treatment of dermatophytic infections. 1. Screening for antimycotic activity of 44 plant extracts." J. Ethnopharmacol. 1991; 31(3): 263-76.
Hussain, H., et al. "Plants in Kano ethomedicine: screening for antimicrobial activity and alkaloids." Int. J. Pharmacog. 1991; 29(1): 51-6.
Gaind, K., et al. "Antibiotic activity of Cassia occidentalis." Indian J. Pharmacy 1966; 28(9): 248-50.

Immunostimulant Actions:
Bin-Hafeez, B., et al. "Protective effect of Cassia occidentalis L. on cyclophosphamide-induced suppression of humoral immunity in mice." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2001; 75(1): 13-18.

Antioxidant & Cellular Protective Actions:
Fidèle, N., et al. "Hypolipidemic, antioxidant and anti-atherosclerogenic effect of aqueous extract leaves of Cassia occidentalis Linn (Caesalpiniaceae) in diet-induced hypercholesterolemic rats." BMC Complement. Altern. Med. 2017 Jan 25; 17(1): 76.
Neboh, E., and Ufelle, S. "Myeloprotective activity of crude methanolic leaf extract of Cassia occidentalis in cyclophosphamide-induced bone marrow suppression in Wistar rats." Adv. Biomed. Res. 2015 Jan 6; 4:5.
Ntchapda, F., et al. "Diuretic and antioxidant activities of the aqueous extract of leaves of Cassia occidentalis (Linn.) in rats." Asian Pac J Trop Med. 2015 Sep;8(9):685-93.
Arya, V., et al. "Antioxidant activity of organic and aqueous leaf extracts of Cassia occidentalis L. in relation to their phenolic content." Nat. Prod. Res. 2011 Sep; 25(15): 1473-9.
El-Hashash, M., et al. "Antioxidant properties of methanolic extracts of the leaves of seven Egyptian Cassia species." Acta Pharm. 2010 Sep; 60(3): 361-7.
Sreejith, G., et al. "Anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory and anti-lipidperoxidant effects of Cassia occidentalis Linn." Indian J. Exp. Biol. 2010 May; 48(5): 494-8.

Osteogenic Actions:
Pal, S., et al. "Extract and fraction of Cassia occidentalis L. (a synonym of Senna occidentalis) have osteogenic effect and prevent glucocorticoid-induced osteopenia." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2019 Jan 28.

Liver Protective & Detoxification Actions:
Yadav, J., et al. "Cassia occidentalis L.: a review on its ethnobotany, phytochemical and pharmacological profile." Fitoterapia. 2010 Jun; 81(4): 223-30.
Jafri, M., et al. "Hepatoprotective activity of leaves of Cassia occidentalis against paracetamol and ethyl alcohol intoxication in rats." J. Ethnopharmacol. 1999; 66(3): 355-61.
Sharma, N., et al. "Protective effect of Cassia occidentalis extract on chemical-induced chromosomal aberrations in mice." Drug Chem. Toxicol. 1999; 22(4): 643-53.
Saraf, S., et al. "Antiheptatotoxic activity of Cassia occidentalis." Int. J. Pharmacog. 1994; 32(2): 178-83.
Subbarao, V., et al. "Changes in serum transaminases due to hepatotoxicity and the role of an indigenous hepatotonic, LIV-52." Probe 1978; 17(2): 175-78.
Sethi, J., et al. "Clinical management of severe acute hepatic failure with special reference to LIV-52 in therapy." Probe 1978; 17(2): 155-58.
Sama, S., et al. "Efficacy of an indigenous compound preparation (LIV-52) in acute viral hepatitis—A double blind study." Indian J. Med. Res. 1976; 64: 738.

Skin Repigmentation Actions (Vitiligo):
Babitha, S., et al. "A stimulatory effect of Cassia occidentalis on melanoblast differentiation and migration." Arch Dermatol Res. 2011 Apr; 303(3): 211-6.

Diuretic Actions:
Ntchapda, F., et al. "Diuretic and antioxidant activities of the aqueous extract of leaves of Cassia occidentalis (Linn.) in rats." Asian Pac. J. Trop. Med. 2015 Sep; 8(9): 685-93.

Antidiabetic Actions:
Amuri, B., et al. "Hypoglycemic and antihyperglycemic activities of nine medicinal herbs used as antidiabetic in the region of Lubumbashi (DR Congo)." Phytother Res. 2017 Jul; 31(7): 1029-1033.
Verma, L., et al. "Antidiabetic activity of Cassia occidentalis (Linn) in normal and alloxan- induced diabetic rats." Indian J. Pharmacol. 2010 Aug; 42(4): 224-8.
Verma, L., et al. "Effect of ethanolic extract of Cassia occidentalis Linn. for the management of alloxan-induced diabetic rats." Pharmacognosy Res. 2010 May; 2(3): 132-7.

Cholesterol Lowering Actions:
Fidèle, N., et al. "Hypolipidemic, antioxidant and anti-atherosclerogenic effect of aqueous extract leaves of Cassia. occidentalis Linn (Caesalpiniaceae) in diet-induced hypercholesterolemic rats." BMC Complement. Altern. Med. 2017 Jan; 17(1): 76.

Antimutagenic (cancer preventative) and Anticancerous Actions:
Qin, R., et al. "[A new nor-sesquiterpene from Cassia occidentalis and its bioactivity]." Zhongguo Zhong Yao Za Zhi. 2016 Dec; 41(23): 4389-4392.
Bhagat, M., et al. "Evaluation of Cassia occidentalis for in vitro cytotoxicity against human cancer cell lines and antibacterial activity." Indian J. Pharmacol. 2010 Aug; 42(4): 234-7.
Yadav, J., et al. "Cassia occidentalis L.: a review on its ethnobotany, phytochemical and pharmacological profile." Fitoterapia. 2010 Jun; 81(4): 223-30.
Bin-Hafeez, B., et al. "Protective effect of Cassia occidentalis L. on cyclophosphamide-induced suppression of humoral immunity in mice." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2001; 75(1): 13-18.
Sharma, N., et al. "In vitro inhibition of carcinogen-induced mutagenicity by Cassia occidentalis and Emblica officinalis." Drug Chem. Toxicol. 2000; 23(3): 477-84.
Sharma, N., et al. "Protective effect of Cassia occidentalis extract on chemical-induced chromosomal aberrations in mice." Drug Chem. Toxicol. 1999; 22(4): 643-53.

Laxative Actions:
Elujoba, A., et al. "Chemical and biological analyses of Nigerian Cassia species for laxative activity." J. Pharm. Biomed. Anal. 1989; 7(12): 1453-57.

Anti-inflammatory, Muscle Relaxant & Antispasmodic Actions:
Ginwala, R., et al. "Potential role of flavonoids in treating chronic inflammatory diseases with a special focus on the anti-inflammatory activity of apigenin." Antioxidants (Basel). 2019 Feb 5; 8(2)
Xu, W., et al. "Effects of anthraquinones from Cassia occidentalis L. on ovalbumin-induced airways inflammation in a mouse model of allergic asthma." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2018 Jul; 221: 1-9.
Patel, N., et al. "Pro-inflammatory cytokines and nitric oxide inhibitory constituents from Cassia occidentalis roots." Nat. Prod .Commun. 2014 May; 9(5):661-4.
Irié-N'guessan, G., et al. "Tracheal relaxation of five Ivorian anti-asthmatic plants: role of epithelium and K^(+) channels in the effect of the aqueous-alcoholic extract of Dichrostachys cinerea root bark." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2011 Nov; 138(2): 432-8.
Sreejith, G., et al. "Anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory and anti-lipidperoxidant effects of Cassia occidentalis Linn." Indian J. Exp. Biol. 2010 May; 48(5): 494-8.
Sadique, J., et al. "Biochemical modes of action of Cassia occidentalis and Cardiospermum halicacabum in inflammation." J. Ethnopharmacol. 1987; 19(2): 201-12.
Feng, P., et al. "Pharmacological screening of some West Indian medicinal plants." J. Pharm. Pharmacol. 1962; 14: 556-61.

Anticholinesterase Activity: (Anti-Alzheimer’s)
de Almeida, E., et al. "The anticholinesterase properties of plants from the northeast of Brazil selected by an ethnopharmacological study for disorders relating to the nervous system." Pharmacogn Mag. 2016 May;12(Suppl 2):S195-200.

ACE-Inhibitor & Anti-atherosclerogenic Actions:
Khan, M., et al. "Mechanism & inhibition kinetics of bioassay-guided fractions of Indian medicinal plants and foods as ACE inhibitors." J. Tradit. Complement. Med. 2018 Apr; 9(1): 73-84.
Fidèle, N., et al. "Hypolipidemic, antioxidant and anti-atherosclerogenic effect of aqueous extract leaves of Cassia. occidentalis Linn (Caesalpiniaceae) in diet-induced hypercholesterolemic rats. BMC Complement. Altern. Med. 2017 Jan; 17(1): 76.
Xiao, J., et al. "Advance on the flavonoid C-glycosides and health benefits." Critical Reviews In Food Science and Nutrition. 2015; 56. 10.1080/10408398. 2015. 1067595.

Anti-anemic Actions:
Manikandaselvi, S., et al. "Studies on physicochemical and nutritional properties of aerial parts of Cassia occidentalis L." J .Food Drug Anal. 2016 Jul; 24(3): 508-515.

Antimalarial, Antiparasitic & Insecticidal Actions:
Ukil, B., et al. "Functional imaging of neurotransmitters in Hymenolepis diminuta treated with senna plant through light and confocal microscopy." Microsc. Microanal. 2018 Dec; 24(6): 734-743.
Sharma, A., et al. "Evaluation of the larvicidal efficacy of five indigenous weeds against an indian strain of dengue vector, Aedes aegypti L. (Diptera: Culicidae)." J. Parasitol. Res. 2016; 2016:2857089.
Roy, S., et al. "Senna leaf extracts induced Ca(+2) homeostasis in a zoonotic tapeworm Hymenolepis diminuta." Pharm Biol. 2016 Oct; 54(10): 2353-7.
Murugan, K., et al. "Mosquitocidal and antiplasmodial activity of Senna occidentalis (Cassiae) and Ocimum basilicum (Lamiaceae) from Maruthamalai hills against Anopheles stephensi and Plasmodium falciparum." Parasitol. Res. 2015 Oct; 114(10): 3657-64.
Kumar, D., et al. "Larvicidal activity of Cassia occidentalis (Linn.) against the larvae of Bancroftian filariasis vector mosquito Culex quinquefasciatus." J. Parasitol Res. 2014; 2014: 236838.
Kundu, S., et al. "Broad spectrum anthelmintic potential of Cassia plants." Asian Pac. J. Trop. Biomed. 2014 May; 4(Suppl 1): S436-41.
Panneerselvam, C., and Murugan, K. "Adulticidal, repellent, and ovicidal properties of indigenous plant extracts against the malarial vector, Anopheles stephensi (Diptera: Culicidae). Parasitol Res. 2013 Feb; 112(2): 679-92.
Kumar, S., et al. "Evaluation of 15 local plant species as larvicidal agents against an Indian Strain of dengue fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti L. (Diptera: Culicidae)." Front. Physiol. 2012; 3: 104.
Kundu, S., et al. "In vitro screening for cestocidal activity of three species of Cassia plants against the tapeworm Raillietina tetragona." J. Helminthol. 2012 Mar 20: 1-6.
Equale, T., et al. "In vitro anthelmintic activity of crude extracts of five medicinal plants against egg-hatching and larval development of Haemonchus contortus." J Ethnopharmacol. 2011 Sep; 137(1): 108-13.
Ibrahim, M., et al. "Senna occidentalis leaf extract possesses antitrypanosomal activity and ameliorates the trypanosome-induced anemia and organ damage." Pharmacognosy Res. 2010 May; 2(3): 175-80.
Tona, L., et al. "In vitro antiplasmodial activity of extracts and fractions from seven medicinal plants used in the Democratic Republic of Congo." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2004 Jul; 93(1): 27-32.
Tona, L., et al. "In-vivo antimalarial activity of Cassia occidentalis, Morinda morindoides and Phyllanthus niruri." Ann. Trop. Med. Parasitol. 2001; 95(1): 47-57.
Gasquet, M., et al. "Evaluation in vitro and in vivo of a traditional antimalarial, ‘Malarial 5.’" Fitoterapia 1993; 64(5): 423.
Schmeda-Hirschmann, G., et al. "A screening method for natural products on triatomine bugs." Phytother. Res. 1989; 6(2): 68-73.

Non-Toxic Actions:
Silva, M., et al. "Acute and subacute toxicity of Cassia occidentalis L. stem and leaf in Wistar rats." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2011 Jun; 136(2): 341-6.
Yadav, J., et al. "Cassia occidentalis L.: a review on its ethnobotany, phytochemical and pharmacological profile." Fitoterapia. 2010 Jun; 81(4): 223-30.

Contraindicated in Pregnancy:
Aragão, T., et al. "Toxicological reproductive study of Cassia occidentalis L. in female Wistar rats." J. Ethnopharmacol. 2009 May 4; 123(1): 163-6.

Toxicity of Fedegoso Seeds:
There are several liver-toxic plant chemicals in the seeds of fedegoso that has caused injury and death in people and livestock eating the seeds. These chemicals are only found in the seed, and not the plant. Do not ingest fedegoso seeds!
Chhapola, V., et al. "Hepatomyoencephalopathy secondary to Cassia occidentalis poisoning: report of three cases from North India." Indian J. Crit. Care. Med. 2018 Jun; 22(6): 454-456.
Panigrahi, G., et al. "Interaction of anthraquinones of Cassia occidentalis seeds with DNA and Glutathione." Toxicol. Rep. 2018 Jan; 5: 164-172.
Dong, X., et al. "Induction of apoptosis in HepaRG cell line by aloe-emodin through generation of reactive oxygen species and the mitochondrial pathway." Cell Physiol. Biochem. 2017; 42(2): 685-696.
Gotardo, A., et al. "Toxicity of Senna occidentalis seeds in laying hens and its effects on egg production." Avian Pathol. 2017 Jun; 46(3): 332-337.
Dong, X., et al. "Aloe-emodin induces apoptosis in human liver HL-7702 cells through FAS death pathway and the mitochondrial pathway by generating reactive oxygen species." Phytother. Res. 2017 Jun; 31(6): 927-936.
Yang Y, et al. "[A new sesquiterpene from seeds of Cassia occidentalis and its cytotoxicity]." Zhongguo Zhong Yao Za Zhi. 2016 Sep; 41(17): 3256-3259.
Panigrahi, G., et al. "Immunomodulatory potential of Rhein, an anthraquinone moiety of Cassia occidentalis seeds. Toxicol Lett. 2016 Mar; 245: 15-23.
Panigrahi, G., et al. "Mechanism of rhein-induced apoptosis in rat primary hepatocytes: beneficial effect of cyclosporine A." Chem. Res. Toxicol. 2015 Jun; 28(6): 1133-43.
Panigrahi, G., et al. "Activity-guided chemo toxic profiling of Cassia occidentalis (CO) seeds: detection of toxic compounds in body fluids of CO-exposed patients and experimental rats." Chem. Res. Toxicol. 2015 Jun; 28(6): 1120-32.
Panigrahi, G., et al. "Hepatic transcriptional analysis in rats treated with Cassia occidentalis seed: involvement of oxidative stress and impairment in xenobiotic metabolism as a putative mechanism of toxicity." Toxicol. Lett. 2014 Aug; 229(1): 273-83.
Panigrahi, G., et al. "Association between children death and consumption of Cassia occidentalis seeds: clinical and experimental investigations." Food Chem. Toxicol. 2014 May; 67: 236-48.
Nirupam, N., et al. "Hepatomyoencephalopathy due to Cassia occidentalis poisoning." Indian J. Pediatr. 2013 Dec; 80(12): 1063-4.
Oliveira-Filho, J., et al. "Hepatoencephalopathy syndrome due to Cassia occidentalis (Leguminosae, Caesalpinioideae) seed ingestion in horses." Equine Vet. J. 2013 Mar; 45(2): 240-4.