Eden Apothecary · Herb Profile
Terminalia chebula
Pronounced Haritaki: hah-ree-TAH-kee · Terminalia chebula: ter-mih-NAY-lee-uh keh-BYOO-lah.
Warm, dry, and astringent yet downward-moving: it tones and dries lax, boggy tissue while coaxing a torpid bowel to release; the rejuvenating rasayana that both binds and unbinds.
Avoid. Traditionally contraindicated in Ayurveda for its downward-moving, purgative action, and modern clinical references rate Terminalia chebula as possibly unsafe taken orally in pregnancy because of its laxative-stimulant effect and the lack of human safety data. Source: NCCIH-aligned clinical monographs (Drugs.com Terminalia; WebMD), consistent with classical Ayurvedic contraindication.
Avoid, or use only under qualified supervision. Reliable lactation data are lacking, and traditional use regards Haritaki as tending to reduce breast milk. Source: consolidated clinical monographs (Drugs.com; WebMD) noting insufficient breastfeeding data, plus traditional Ayurvedic caution.
No established pediatric safety data for self-selected use. In Ayurvedic practice it is given to children only in small, adjusted doses; avoid the laxative dose in young children and use only under a qualified practitioner. Source: insufficient modern pediatric data (NCCIH-aligned monographs).
Warming and drying, so large or prolonged doses can aggravate dryness, thirst, and Pitta-type heat, and may further deplete the very lean, dehydrated, or exhausted. Overdose causes griping and loose stools. Do not astringe an acute infectious diarrhea or dysentery before the pathogen has cleared.
Pregnancy (purgative, downward-moving action). Acute dehydration or recent excessive purging or fluid loss. Marked emaciation, debility, or exhaustion. Bowel obstruction. Acute febrile or exterior illness with an unexpelled pathogen.
Not listed by United Plant Savers, whose at-risk list tracks North American species. Widely cultivated across its native South Asian range; choose cultivated or responsibly wild-harvested fruit, since localized overharvest and habitat pressure affect some wild stands.
Not in canonical biblical texts; native to South and Southeast Asia. Foremost in Ayurveda (Charaka Samhita, Sushruta Samhita) as chief of the rasayana fruits and lead ingredient of Triphala, and known in Traditional Chinese Medicine as He Zi (诃子).
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