Devil’s club (Oplopanax horridus) is one of the most important spiritual and medicinal plants to indigenous peoples who lived and still live wherever it grows. Different parts of this plant are used by over 38 linguistic groups for a plethora of physical ailments, and it also holds many spiritual applications. This deciduous understory shrub often grows in moist, forested areas ranging from Idaho to coastal Alaska. Its upright stems can grow to over 20 feet high, and its maple-shaped leaves can reach nearly 14 inches across.
The Native American tribes of the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia have quite a long history of using Devil’s club as a decoction—a method of extraction by boiling herbal or plant material to dissolve the chemicals of the material—for ailments such as arthritis, tuberculosis, rheumatism, skin disorders, toothaches, and even diabetes. Although the berries are poisonous, they were topically used by the Haida tribe to get rid of lice.
Since Devil’s club has notably spiny, sharp stems, Shamans often used the plant to build ritual huts that would warn away intruders. On a more spiritual note, the shrub was said to bring about “supernatural powers,” and was worn by Natives for protection, cleansing, and purification.
The first “official” record of using Devil’s club was created back in 1842 by Eduardo Blaschke, who reported the use of this plant’s ash as a treatment for sores among the Tlingit. Interestingly, the use of Devil’s club has been widely documented for its medicinal properties both within and outside its geographical range. According to phytochemical research, Devil’s club also has antiviral, antibacterial, antimycobacterial, and antifungal properties.
Notably, Devil’s club is useful for treating all kinds of blood sugar issues, especially Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, chronic stress with overeating, and diabetes. In fact, herbalist Michael Moore suggests it for patients with “elevated blood lipids, moderately high blood pressure, and early signs of adult onset, insulin-resistant diabetes.” Additionally, he recommended it to patients who were in the flare-up stages of autoimmune disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis.
Despite these medical advancements, little to no consultation has been attempted with the indigenous peoples from which the knowledge of Devil’s club originated. Moreover, there have been no provisions made for compensation or benefit of sharing its properties. Due to this, Native Americans have raised concerns about the harvesting of Devil’s club, as they warn it will compromise its ability to survive.
It is crucial that before we further commercialize and market the use of Devil’s club, we first work in collaboration with the indigenous users of this culturally significant plant. The gathering of information such as ethical harvesting methods, sustainable modes of production, and active pharmacological compounds must meet the requirements of the Biodiversity Convention and other international protocols. Furthermore, the contributions of the indigenous use of Devil’s club to medicine must be further elaborated. Unless these standards are met, the commercialization of Devil’s club unfortunately remains precarious.
References
Kasting, M. (n.d.). Devil’s Club. HerbRally. Retrieved November 29, 2022, from https://www.herbrally.com/monographs/devils-club
Moore, Michael. 1993. Medicinal Plants of the Pacific West. Santa Fe, NM. Red Crane Books, Inc.
Foster, S. (1994). Medicinal Plants of the Pacific West. American Botanical Council. Retrieved November 29, 2022, from https://www.herbalgram.org/resources/herbalgram/issues/32/table-of-contents/article1137/
Moss, Madonna L. 1993 Shellfish, Gender, and Status on the Northwest Coast: Reconciling Archaeological, Ethnographic, and Ethnohistorical Records of the Tlingit. American Anthropologist, 95(3):631–652
Turner, N. J., Lantz, T. C., & Swerhun , K. (2004). Devil’s Club (Oplopanax horridus): An Ethnobotanical Review. American Botanical Council. Retrieved November 29, 2022, from https://www.herbalgram.org/resources/herbalgram/issues/62/table-of-contents/article2697/
McCutcheon AR, Ellis SM, Hancock REW, Towers, GHN. Antibiotic screening of medicinal plants of the British Columbian native peoples. J Ethnopharmacol 1993;37:213-23.
McCutcheon AR, Ellis SM, Hancock REW, Towers, GHN. Antifungal screening of medicinal plants of the British Columbian native peoples. J Ethnopharmacol 1994;44:157-69.
McCutcheon AR, Roberts TE, Gibbons E, et al. Antiviral screening of British Columbian medicinal plants. J Ethnopharmacol 1995;49:101-10.
McCutcheon AR, Stokes RW, Thorson LM, et al. Anti-mycobacterial screening of British Columbian medicinal plants. International Journal of Pharmacognosy 1997;35:77-83.
Kobaisy M, Abramowski Z, Lermer L, Saxena G, Hancock REW, Towers GHN. Antimycobacterial polyenes of devil’s club (Oplopanax horridus), a North American native medicinal plant. J Nat Prod 1997;60:1210-13.
https://www.cbd.int/convention/