Wild Lettuce (Lactuca Virosa) Supplement Uses, Benefits, Dosages & Side Effects

Wild Lettuce (Lactuca Virosa) has been used as food and medicine for nearly 2500 years.

In 430 BC, Hippocrates wrote about the milky sap it produces, describing its effectiveness for relieving pain. Wild lettuce leaf, sap, stem, flower, and seed extract are used to make tea and herbal supplements.

Some of the primary benefits attributed to this dietary supplement include pain relief, decreased anxiety, and more restful sleep. [1, 2]

This herb has a long history of use in traditional medicine in Europe, but was first introduced to the United States in the 1800s. Its latex resin was dried and used by the military during the Civil War when field supplies of liquid opium were in short supply.

Its analgesic effects are often compared to those of opium (Lachryma papaveris). However, it does not cause opium-like side effects and is not addictive. [3]

This product is considered to be safe for use in most people. A small percentage of users reports minor and temporary side effects that often linked to allergic reactions. [3]

Wild Lettuce

Plant Extract

Calmness

Pain Relief

Sleep

How It Works:

• Used traditionally to alleviate pain
• Promotes feelings of tranquility
• Supports restful sleep

Dosage:

Between 0.3-1 g extract per day

Safety:

Rated Possibly Safe

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What Is Wild Lettuce?

The Latin name for wild lettuce is Lactuca virosa. Some other names for this natural pain-reliever are Acrid Lettuce, Bitter Lettuce, Great Lettuce, Lactucarium, Laitue à Opium, Laitue Vireuse, and Lechuga Silvestre. [3]

According to Plants For A Future (PFAF), wild lettuce: [5]

• Is an annual/biennial that commonly grows to more than 6 feet in height;
• Develops dandelion-like yellow flowers from July through September;
• Can grow in sandy (light) and loamy (medium) soils;
• Develops board, oval-shaped, jagged-edged leaves;
• Can grow in neutral, acidic, or alkaline soil;
• Is hermaphroditic (has both sex organs);
• Cannot grow in full shade;
• Is pollinated by insects;
• Prefers to be moist;

PFAF states that L. virosa grows along the sides of roads, canals, river banks, and shorelines. It grows best in calcareous soil that is chalky or limy because of high calcium carbonate concentrations.

Wild lettuce is distributed widely throughout Europe, North Africa, western Asia, and central Russia. It has been naturalized in North America, especially in the western USA.

In the late 1960s, this plant developed a following in the Hippie community as a legal psychotropic that was smoked to get high. It was often mixed with Cannabis, Catnip, or Damiana.

Today, wild lettuce is largely used to make teas and tinctures but is once again becoming a popular smoking herb and tobacco alternative. [4]

Wild Lettuce Uses

The Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database (NMCD) reports that wild lettuce supplements have been used for: [3]

• Bronchial tract inflammation caused by mucus accumulations;
• As an opium substitute in cough preparations;
• Dysmenorrhea (painful menstruation);
• Reducing muscle and joint pain;
• Excitability in children;
• Improving circulation;
• Swollen genitals;

Oral supplements are also used for asthma, insomnia, nymphomania, priapism, restlessness, urinary tract diseases, and whooping cough.

Wild lettuce seed oil is taken orally for arteriosclerosis; a condition marked by thickening and loss of elasticity in arterial walls inside the circulatory system.

Wild Lettuce latex has been used topically as an antiseptic for cleaning minor wounds.

While this herb has been used in traditional medicine practices for thousands of years, it has not been approved by the FDA as a drug for the prevention or treatment of any health conditions. More research is needed to validate many of the purported uses of this plant.

How It Works In the Body

According to Gaia Herbs, wild lettuce contains various bioactive chemical compounds. Some of these are oxalic acid, taraxasterol, mannitol, squalene, hyoscyamine, germanicol, and malic acid. [6]

This plant is purported to have analgesic, antispasmodic, digestive, hypnotic, narcotic, sedative, and tonic properties. Most of these are attributed to a constituent called lactucarium.

This milky substance flows from any cut or wound in the plant. It is dried, gathered, and used as a opioid alternative, although it contains no true opiate compounds like morphine, codeine, or thebaine. [5]

Wild lettuce plants contain the highest concentrations of lactucarium when they are flowering (July-September). Although some other lettuce species do produce lactucarium, L. virosa is thought to be its most concentrated source. [5]

NMCD reports that the sedative activity is believed to be caused by lactucin, lactupicrin, or hyoscyamine but researchers are not sure which of these is responsible, or whether a combination of these compounds is responsible. [3]

Some species have been reported to contain miniscule amounts of the psychoactive alkaloid morphine. However, the amounts present are too low to be pharmacologically active when ingested by the human body.

Wild Lettuce Supplements

According to NMCD, there are currently 102 different products available that contain wild lettuce extract. These include alcohol and alcohol-free liquid extracts, teas, capsules, seeds, oils, and whole plant parts. [3]

Be sure to choose supplements that are manufactured in cGMP compliant facilities, tested by third-party laboratories, organic, non-genetically modified, and free of contaminants or adulterants.

Some sources state that fresh wild lettuce is best for making tea or tinctures at home. There are many recipes online that can be used to prepare decoctions and infusions.

Dried plant parts may have lost some of their bioactive properties during the time they are harvested, packaged, stored, and shipped. That is because exposure to light, heat, and air can degrade many chemical compounds.

Store your supplements according to the manufacturer’s directions in a cool, dark location in a sealed glass container.

How To Use Wild Lettuce

EMedicineHealth states that the recommended dose of wild lettuce depends on several factors for each user. These include body weight, age, health history, current health problems, the reason for use, and any medications or other supplements you may be using. [3]

Dietary supplements made with this ingredient and sold on Amazon typically contain 450mg to 500mg per capsule. One brand, Zazzee Naturals, provides a 5:1 extract meaning that 500mg of raw plant extract is concentrated into a serving size of 100mg.

According to NMCD, wild lettuce has been used as follows:

• Tea made from 0.5-3 grams dried plant parts in 150 mL water taken 3 times daily;
• 0.5-3 mL 1:1 25% alcohol extract taken 3 times daily;
• 0.3-1 gram dried lactucarium extract 3 times daily;

This plant has not been studied in humans and there are no clinical trials available to rate its safety or efficacy. There is insufficient evidence available to determine the optimal dosage range for this supplement.

It is best to consult your doctor or pharmacist about beginning to use Lactuca virosa supplements. A qualified healthcare professional can help you determine the appropriate dosage for your needs.

Note that some users report feeling the Wild Lettuce High sensation after using this herbal extract. Some people state that it makes them feel relaxed, mildly-euphoric, pain-free, calm, and ready for sleep.

While this might entice some people to take larger doses, serious side effects, including death, can result from excessive usage of this natural health product.

How to Preparing Wild Lettuce Tea

Wild Lettuce is a popular field food and its leaves can be eaten raw in small amounts. However, the most popular way to use wild lettuce is by making a tea. Here is one recipe that can be used to brew this tea at home:

1. Chop 0.5-3 grams leaves up into smaller pieces and place into already-boiled water.
2. Cover and allow to steep for 10 minutes.
3. Strain plant parts from tea into a piece of cheesecloth.
4. Squeeze cheesecloth to extract remaining liquid.
5. Serve and enjoy.

Some people find wild lettuce tea to be bitter. If you do too, then consider adding chamomile, lavender, blueberries, honey, lemon, raw organic sugar, or other flavor enhancers to the recipe.

Safety and Side Effects

Wild lettuce has been used traditionally for more than two-thousand years and is not believed to be dangerous for healthy people when used in appropriate amounts.

NMCD reports that when administered in large amounts various adverse effects can occur including: [3]

• Increased respiration or respiratory depression
• Excitatory states or somnolence (sleepiness)
• Tachycardia (abnormally-rapid heartbeat)
• Tinnitus (ringing in the ears)
• Mydriasis (pupil dilation)
• Inner-head pressure
• Vision disorders
• Dizziness

In very rare cases, wild lettuce has been linked to coma and death.

Most people experience no adverse effects from using wild lettuce supplements appropriately in small amounts.

The most common side effect is allergic reactions including contact dermatitis. This is common in people who are allergic to other members of the daisy plant family (Asteraceae/Compositae).

This is the same botanic family that dandelion, ragweed, marigold, chrysanthemums, and more than 32,000 other species belong to.

It is possible for wild lettuce supplements to exacerbate the symptoms of BPH (benign prostatic hyperplasia), asthma, allergies, or narrow-angle glaucoma. If you have any of these conditions, then ask your doctor if it is safe for you to start using this product.

Because of a lack of clinical research, Lactuca virosa extracts and capsules are not recommended for women when they are pregnant or breastfeeding.

Theoretically, this plant may increase the effects or side effects of CNS depressants including:

• Benzodiazepines like Valium (diazepam), Xanax (alprazolam), and Halcion (triazolam);
• Barbiturates including Nembutal (pentobarbital sodium), and Mebaral (mephobarbital);

Be careful using a wild lettuce supplement together with herbs and supplements that have antiplatelet/anticoagulant effects. This can increase the risk of bleeding or bruising in some people.

Such herbs include danshen, angelica, clove, garlic, ginger, ginkgo, red clover, poplar, and meadowsweet.

Use extra caution if taking this supplement along with herbs or supplements that have sedative properties. Some of these are St. John’s wort, California poppy, catnip, chamomile, lavender, passionflower, kava-kava, hops, dogwood, and valerian.

This plant is not known to interact with other foods. It is also not known to affect outcomes of laboratory tests.

Stop using wild lettuce at least 2 weeks prior to a scheduled surgery. Failure to do so might result in excessive sleepiness when combined with anesthesia or other medicines used before, during, or after the procedure.

Before taking this supplement, consult with a doctor to determine whether wild lettuce extract is safe and appropriate for you to use.

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