Solanaceae
Datura
Datura stramonium
✗ High Risk
Avoid in Pregnancy
Native to: Central America (naturalized globally)
Also known as: Jimsonweed, Thorn Apple, Devil's Trumpet, Stinkweed
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Parts Used
LeafSeed
Therapeutic Uses
Historically used for asthma (smoked — anticholinergic bronchodilator). EXTREMELY DANGEROUS — narrow therapeutic window. Pharmaceutical atropine and scopolamine derived from this genus but purified and standardized. NO THERAPEUTIC USE as whole herb.
Herbal Actions
Anticholinergic, antispasmodic, bronchodilator, hallucinogenic (toxic doses)
Active Constituents
Tropane alkaloids (hyoscyamine, scopolamine, atropine — all highly toxic), tannins, flavonoids
Preparation Methods
🏺 Tincture
Traditional Preparation Notes
| Herbal Tea | DO NOT USE — toxic |
| Tincture | DO NOT USE — fatally toxic at unpredictable doses |
| Notes | FATALLY TOXIC. Alkaloid content varies enormously — impossible to dose safely. All plant parts toxic. Causes severe anticholinergic syndrome (hot, dry, blind, mad, red, full — classic toxidrome). Pharmaceutical alkaloids safe; whole plant not. |
Safety Information
Safety Rating
✗ High Risk
Pregnancy
Avoid in Pregnancy
Drug Interactions
None known
Contraindications: DO NOT USE. All parts toxic. Narrow margin between effect and death. Report cases to poison control.
Side Effects: Anticholinergic crisis: hallucinations, tachycardia, hyperthermia, urinary retention, seizures, coma, death.