Sorrel

OTHER NAME(S): Acedera Común, Azeda-Brava, Common Sorrel, Field Sorrel, Garden Sorrel, Oseille Commune, Oseille des Champs, Petite Oseille, Petite Oseille des Brebis, Red Sorrel, Sheep Sorrel, Sheep's Sorrel, Sorrel Dock, Sour Dock, Surette, Vignette, Vinette, Wiesensauerampfer, Rumex acetosa, Rumex acetosella, Sheep Sorrel, Sorrell, Acedera, Oseille

Overview

Sorrel (Rumex acetosa) is a plant that grows in mild climates worldwide. It contains oxalate, which gives it a sour flavor.

Sorrel contains tannins, which have a drying effect that reduce mucous production.

People use sorrel for breast cancer, bronchitis, swelling in the sinuses, and other conditions, but there is no good scientific evidence to support these uses.

Don't confuse sorrel with wood sorrel, yellow dock, or Hibiscus sabdariffa. These are not the same. Products containing sorrel are available over-the-counter and by prescription in some European countries.

References
  1. Schulz V, Hansel R, Tyler VE. Rational Phytotherapy: A Physician's Guide to Herbal Medicine. Terry C. Telger, transl. 3rd ed. Berlin, GER: Springer, 1998.
  2. Leung AY, Foster S. Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients Used in Food, Drugs and Cosmetics. 2nd ed. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons, 1996.
  3. McGuffin M, Hobbs C, Upton R, Goldberg A, eds. American Herbal Products Association's Botanical Safety Handbook. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, LLC 1997.
  4. Ellenhorn MJ, et al. Ellenhorn's Medical Toxicology: Diagnoses and Treatment of Human Poisoning. 2nd ed. Baltimore, MD: Williams & Wilkins, 1997.
  5. Neubauer N, Marz RW. Placebo-controlled, randomized, double-blind, clincal trial with Sinupret sugar coated tablets on the basis of a therapy with antibiotics and decongestant nasal drops in acute sinusitis. Phytomedicine 1994;1:177-81.
  6. Marz RW, Ismail C, Popp MA. Action profile and efficacy of a herbal combination preparation for the treatment of sinusitis. Wien Med Wochenschr 1999;149:202-8.
  7. Terris MK, Issa MM, Tacker JR. Dietary supplementation with cranberry concentrate tablets may increase the risk of nephrolithiasis. Urology 2001;57:26-9.
  8. Jaber R. Respiratory and allergic diseases: from upper respiratory tract infections to asthma. Prim Care 2002;29:231-61.
  9. Kaegi E. Unconventional therapies for cancer: 1. Essiac. The Task Force on Alternative Therapies of the Canadian Breast Cancer Research Initiative. CMAJ 1998;158:897-902.
  10. Ito H. Effects of the antitumor agents from various natural sources on drug-metabolizing system, phagocytic activity and complement system in sarcoma 180-bearing mice. Jpn J Pharmacol 1986;40:435-43.
  11. Zick, S. M., Sen, A., Feng, Y., Green, J., Olatunde, S., and Boon, H. Trial of Essiac to ascertain its effect in women with breast cancer (TEA-BC). J Altern Complement Med 2006;12(10):971-980.
  12. Melzer, J., Saller, R., Schapowal, A., and Brignoli, R. Systematic review of clinical data with BNO-101 (Sinupret) in the treatment of sinusitis. Forsch Komplement.Med (2006.) 2006;13(2):78-87.
  13. Sanz, P. and Reig, R. Clinical and pathological findings in fatal plant oxalosis. A review. Am J Forensic Med Pathol. 1992;13(4):342-345.
  14. Karn H and Moore MJ. The use of the herbal remedy ESSIAC in an outpatient cancer population. Proc Annu Meet Am Soc Clin Oncol 1997;16:A245.
  15. Richardson, M. A. Research of complementary/alternative medicine therapies in oncology: promising but challenging. J Clin Oncol. 1999;17(11 Suppl):38-43.
  16. Tarasova, G. D. [The administration of sinupret in the treatment of acute sinusitis in children]. Vestn.Otorinolaringol. 2001;(2):46-48.
  17. Tai, J. and Cheung, S. In Vitro culture studies of FlorEssence on human tumor cell lines. Phytother Res 2005;19(2):107-112.
  18. Lee, N. J., Choi, J. H., Koo, B. S., Ryu, S. Y., Han, Y. H., Lee, S. I., and Lee, D. U. Antimutagenicity and cytotoxicity of the constituents from the aerial parts of Rumex acetosa. Biol Pharm Bull. 2005;28(11):2158-2161.
  19. Farre, M., Xirgu, J., Salgado, A., Peracaula, R., Reig, R., and Sanz, P. Fatal oxalic acid poisoning from sorrel soup. Lancet 12-23-1989;2(8678-8679):1524.
  20. Dornberger, K. and Lich, H. [Screening for antimicrobial and presumed cancerostatic plant metabolites (author's transl)]. Pharmazie 1982;37(3):215-221.
  21. Richstein, A. and Mann, W. [Treatment of chronic sinusitis with Sinupret]. Ther.Ggw. 1980;119(9):1055-1060.
  22. Gniazdowska, B., Doroszewska, G., and Doroszewski, W. [Hypersensitivity to weed pollen allergens in the region of Bygdoszcz]. Pneumonol.Alergol.Pol. 1993;61(7-8):367-372.
  23. Ernst, E., Marz, R. W., and Sieder, C. [Acute bronchitis: effectiveness of Sinupret. Comparative study with common expectorants in 3,187 patients]. Fortschr.Med 4-20-1997;115(11):52-53.
  24. Bhakuni, D. S., Bittner, M., Marticorena, C., Silva, M., Weldt, E., and Hoeneisen, M. Screening of Chilean plants for anticancer activity. I. Lloydia. 1976;39(4):225-243.
  25. Yamamoto A. Essiac. Can J Hosp Pharm 1988;41(3):158.
  26. Neubauer N and Marz RW. Placebo-controlled, randomized double-blind clinical trial with Sinupret sugar coated tablets on the basis of a therapy with antibiotics and decongestant nasal drops in acute sinusitis. Phytomedicine 1994;1:177-181.
  27. Choe S., Hwang B, Kim M, and et al. Chemical components of Rumex acetellosa L. Korean J Pharmacog 1998;29:209-216.
  28. Locock RA. Herbal medicine: Essiac. Can Pharm J 1997;130 (Feb):18-19, 51.
  29. U.S.Congressional Office of Technology Assessment. Essiac. US Government Printing Office, Washington, DC: 1990.
  30. Bicker J, Petereit F, Hensel A. Proanthocyanidins and a phloroglucinol derivative from Rumex acetosa L. Fitoterapia 2009;80(8):483-95.
  31. Selçuk SN, Gülhan B, Düzova A, Teksam Ö. Acute tubulointerstitial nephritis due to large amount of sorrel (Rumex acetosa) intake. Clin Toxicol (Phila) 2015;53(5):497.
  32. Derksen A, Hensel A, Hafezi W, et al. 3-O-galloylated procyanidins from Rumex acetosa L. inhibit the attachment of influenza A virus. PLoS One 2014;9(10):e110089.
  33. Gescher K, Hensel A, Hafezi W, Derksen A, Kühn J. Oligomeric proanthocyanidins from Rumex acetosa L. inhibit the attachment of herpes simplex virus type-1. Antiviral Res 2011;89(1):9-18.
  34. Peric A, Kovacevic SV, Gacesa D, Peric AV. Efficacy and safety of combined treatment of acute rhinosinusitis by herbal medicinal product Sinupret and mometasone furoate nasal spray. ENT Updates 2017;7(2):68-74.
  35. Ahn JH, Kim J, Rehman NU, Kim HJ, Ahn MJ, Chung HJ. Effect of Rumex Acetosa Extract, a Herbal Drug, on the Absorption of Fexofenadine. Pharmaceutics. 2020;12(6):E547.
  36. Jeong D, Irfan M, Lee DH, Hong SB, Oh JW, Rhee MH. Rumex acetosa modulates platelet function and inhibits thrombus formation in rats. BMC Complement Med Ther. 2020;20(1):98.
  37. Selbach S, Klocke A, Peters U, et al. Microbiological and clinical effects of a proanthocyanidin-enriched extract from Rumex acetosa in periodontally healthy carriers of Porphyromonas gingivalis. Planta Med. 2021 Dec 25. doi: 10.1055/a-1728-2249.