Herb
Cascara Sagrada
A dried tree bark traditionally used as a strong, short-term laxative for occasional constipation — not for regular or long-term use.
🌱 What it is
Cascara sagrada, Spanish for "sacred bark," comes from a buckthorn tree native to the Pacific coast of North America. Its dried, aged bark has long been used as a stimulant laxative. It lost its US over-the-counter laxative approval on safety and efficacy grounds, so it is now best understood as an occasional, short-term traditional remedy rather than an everyday tool.
✨ How it may help
- Traditionally used to support occasional, short-term relief from constipation
- Traditionally used to support bowel movement when other gentle measures haven't helped
- Traditionally used to support brief, occasional digestive relief
🥄 How to use it
Taken only occasionally and briefly, as a standardized capsule or tea, following the product label — not intended for regular or ongoing use.
⚖️ Caution
A harsh stimulant laxative — habit-forming with regular use, and it can cause cramping, dependence, and electrolyte loss, including a concerning drop in potassium, if used often or long-term. It lost its US OTC laxative approval on safety and efficacy grounds. Avoid in pregnancy, breastfeeding, in children, and with any bowel disease or undiagnosed abdominal pain. Gentler, food-first options — fiber, fruit, water, and movement — should be tried first and remain the everyday approach.
🍃 A note from nature
That the gentlest paths — fiber, water, movement — are also the healthiest points to a design where the simplest daily gifts were meant to be enough most of the time.