Cat’s Claw Used in HIV/AIDS Study
Cat’s Claw is an endangered species of plants that grows in the hilly regions in Peru and the surrounding Amazon Basin in Central and Southern America. It gets its unusual name from the horns that grow along the vine of the plant and has several medicinal values that are difficult to find on a single plant. This plant has been used for centuries together by the natural inhabitants of the area and has a lot of benefits that can rival modern scientific alternatives. Its most documented use is in the cure of arthritis and the positive effects it has while healing individuals who are suffering from either rheumatoid arthritis or osteoarthritis.
Cat’s Claw is also known to cure a variety of diseases, not just arthritis. Some of the diseases that it has an effect on include immune disorders, gastritis, cancer, arthritis, rheumatism, neuralgias, chronic inflammation of all kinds, rheumatic disorders, ulcers and such viral diseases as herpes zoster (shingles). There are also cases where Cat’s Claw has worked on Crohn’s disease, ulcers, gastritis, diverticulitis, and other inflammatory conditions of the bowel, stomach, and intestines, leaky bowel syndrome, cancer, and to help prevent strokes and heart attacks, reduce blood clots, and for diverticulitis and irritable bowel syndrome. Unfortunately, the true effect of Cat’s Claw on these symptoms has not been proven clinically.
Cat’s Claw has also been used sometimes in the treatment of AIDS. There have been reports from different parts of the world where Cat’s Claw has been used in combination with zidovudine to reduce the spread of AIDS. The in-vivo tests are being continually carried out in different countries as you are reading this, and there have been some promising leads. Although the research is still inconclusive, it is still encouraging and researchers are yet to find a concrete connection between Cat’s Claw and the AIDS virus.
One of the largest studies of Cat’s Claw on HIV patients ran from the year 1987 to 1991. It was conducted using a German drug called Krallendorn (a product of the company Immodal). The tests could not reach an agreeable conclusion regarding the effect of Cat’s Claw on the test patients and consequently, more research is going on in this regard.
There have been unproven claims of AIDS patients having been helped by this drug. Once such claim comes from the very place Cat’s Claw grows, Peru. President of the Peruvian Committee for Sexually Transmitted Diseases and AIDS, Dr. Roberto Inchastegui also claimed that AIDS patients were “cured” with a preparation made from a blend of various plants and Cat’s Claw. Dr. Rumberto Muro at the Lima Naval Hospital, also in Peru, confirmed that several patients who were seriously ill with complete AIDS symptoms were now merely carriers of the HIV virus, after undergoing a treatment with the plant.
With no scientific proof regarding its viability to cure AIDS, we are not yet at a stage to recommend Cat’s Claw confidently to individuals diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. There is no harm in trying, and with the help of a healthcare practitioner, the plant can be used for a trial treatment of the AIDS virus.
