Cascara Sagrada Dosage Question

[lyfe]

I am experiencing some sluggish bowels and after reading through the forums have found that peat advises cascara Sagrada. I have looked through the forums and it seems like most people recommend 200mg dosages for daily use? Is this the best option? I have a new bottle of Now Foods 450 mg Cascara Sagrada. Is this too much for daily use?

 

[charlie]

The optimal dose is different for everyone. Even the optimal dose can change for a person from day to day depending on context.

 

[cihans]

I have same brand and dosage as @charlie mentioned I found my dose by 1 pill to 3 at the moment. 2 at bedtime and 1 in the afternoon. This makes 100% morning bowel movement for sure.

 

[lyfe]

The optimal dose is different for everyone. Even the optimal dose can change for a person from day to day depending on context.

Thanks for the feedback ! So 45omg is considered a " safe " dose? Also, if you dont mind me asking - is there any known interactions between aspirin and cascara? I am currently taking 81 mg aspirin mid day, and 450mg cascara prior to bed. Any info would be greatly appreciated

 

[professor_sue]

Personally, I don't know of any interactions between cascara sagrada and aspirin. So, going with the ol' N=1 here, I have been using approx 900-1,000 mg aspirin most days of the week. I take it by itself, without any other vitamins/supplements, and usually, I take it sometime during the day, in the morning. I include 2 cascara sagrada caps (800 mg dose approx) as part of my supplement regimen, though I imagine it might work better by itself. Typically, if I want "relief" the next morning, I will take a fairly high dose the night before ... much higher than 800 mg. I used to have to do this on a regular basis but not so much anymore now that my digestive problems are being worked out. It has taken a couple decades or more, but (fingers crossed) I am feeling better, things are moving along ... and Peat's ideas, albeit complicated to digest (pun intended), make sense to me. Anyway, for me, I have had no problems with using aspirin and/or cascara sagrada. And this is just my experience; I am not a medical doctor or a medical anything.

 

[tara]

I am experiencing some sluggish bowels and after reading through the forums have found that peat advises cascara Sagrada. I have looked through the forums and it seems like most people recommend 200mg dosages for daily use? Is this the best option? I have a new bottle of Now Foods 450 mg Cascara Sagrada. Is this too much for daily use?

I agree with those above saying dose needed can vary a lot.
I have aged cascara sagrada that I've used occasionally. It's in capsules - I think nature's way 350mg. Half a capsule has been enough for me when I've had transient need to improve transit. I make tea of it.
I recommend starting with a small dose - 1/4 or 1/2 capsule at most if you've not used it before - and increasing the till you get the desired effect. The risk of taking too much more than you need is that the effect can be sudden, unexpected, and inconvenient. :)

On the basis of caution, I'd be wary of using as much as a whole capsule daily for extended periods, not because I know it's unsafe, but because I don't know that it's safe.

 

[Inaut]

For those that want to use cascara (and aren't constipated):

I was browsing the interwebs yesterday night and came across a herbalist recommending that cascara be taken together with ginger to avoid the laxative effect. Tested it out and i think it's a good approach to gut healing as the ginger counteracts the spasmodic reaction to cascara.

Hiyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

 

[not_James_Bond]

@Inaut
Firstly inaut I want to thank you for answering my enquiries. I have just ordered Now Products Cascara 450mg and wanted to know if you continue to use it, plus with ginger.
I believe (like most supplements) that one should cycle it, think I will try 1x cap Mon-Friday leaving the weekend out to see the true benefit (or not) of this supplement.

I am still awaiting my Gentian root liquid drops, so this along with Cascara should keep my digestion in great shape

 

[serling78]

@Inaut
Firstly inaut I want to thank you for answering my enquiries. I have just ordered Now Products Cascara 450mg and wanted to know if you continue to use it, plus with ginger.
I believe (like most supplements) that one should cycle it, think I will try 1x cap Mon-Friday leaving the weekend out to see the true benefit (or not) of this supplement.

I am still awaiting my Gentian root liquid drops, so this along with Cascara should keep my digestion in great shape

Curious if the Now Cascara has helped you. I got the same brand and tried it for a couple days (two pills each night) and I feel like it was making me more bloated and constipated. Not sure if I should stick with it and try to push through or just abort.

Earlier this year I tried MACA for the first time and it made me horribly constipated but I foolishly tried to stick with it thinking my body would adjust. I don't want to make that same mistake with cascara, but I know they are different supplements.

Honestly I still don't think I've recovered from the MACA. I took it for about 6 weeks and stopped cold turkey around 5.5 months ago and my digestion has never been the same. I'm bloated and constipated all the time now.

 

[not_James_Bond]

@serling78 Yeah, I have never felt good with Maca powder, think the fiber content is overkill for my digestion lol.

The Cascara I am using definitely works, too well sometimes, but I take it on an empty stomach first thing in the morning, it absolutely guarantees a bowel movement by late afternoon. I know it is clearing out 'more' faeces than usual and leaves me with a calm and clear feeling. I would stick with it by taking it EOD (every other day) and note your general wellbeing on the day after use.

 

[serling78]

@serling78 Yeah, I have never felt good with Maca powder, think the fiber content is overkill for my digestion lol.

The Cascara I am using definitely works, too well sometimes, but I take it on an empty stomach first thing in the morning, it absolutely guarantees a bowel movement by late afternoon. I know it is clearing out 'more' faeces than usual and leaves me with a calm and clear feeling. I would stick with it by taking it EOD (every other day) and note your general wellbeing on the day after use.

Thanks for the info. Much appreciated. I'll give a try for a longer period of time. I have been using Metamucil for months now which provides some relief but not enough and isn't consistent. I'm going to try to gradually move off Metamucil and onto cascara over the next few days and then just do cascara. We'll see how it goes...