Name of ingredient
Celery seed extract, known as 3-nbutylphthalide or 3nB.
Applications
• Lowering blood pressure.
• Detoxification.
• Treating rheumatism and gout.
History
The celery plant is native to the Mediterranean region, where the seeds were traditionally valued for their medicinal properties. The story about 3nB is that the father of a researcher at the University of Chicago Medical Center ate a lot of celery and discovered it was significantly reducing his blood pressure. This prompted research into 3nB and its positive effects on blood pressure, as well as rheumatism.
Sources/Origin
Seeds from the flowers of the celery plant.
Format
Tablets
Dosage
The dosage is celery extract standardized to contain 85 per cent 3nB and other celery phthalides at a dosage of 75 to 150mg twice daily.
Side effects
No side effects have been studied; however, pregnant or lactating women are recommended to not take celery seed extract. Also, according to some sources, a percentage of the population is allergic to celery seed extract.
Regulations
Celery seed extract is not listed in the Natural Health Products Ingredients Database of Health Canada. However, celery seed powder is listed as a defined organism substance and is legal. In the U.S. celery seed supplements are classified as a food by the FDA.
The Department of Justice, Canada, lists celery seed extract under regulation 8.10.011 and states it “shall be the essence, extract or flavour derived from celery seed…and shall correspond in flavouring strangth to an alcoholic solution containing not less than 0.3 per cent by volume of volative oil of celery seed.”
Current research
Research is in progress to determine what other applications celery seed extract can be used for. There is some indication it may also be useful for treating colds, arthritis, digestive disorders and liver disease.
