Scammony: Ancient Health & Medicine
- Sylvia Rose
- 10 hours ago
- 5 min read
Scammony (Convolvulus scammonia) is a powerful purgative, used to treat constipation and other health problems. It's taken as resin, used in Unani healing traditions and ancient Roman medicinal wine.
About Scammony
Scammony is a perennial climbing plant of the Convolvulaceae family, the same family as morning glories. It's a type of bindweed, primarily known for its resin, a potent purgative substance extracted from the roots.
Virgin scammony or scammonium is harvested from the living root and dried for use in traditional medicine. Due to lack of quality control, scammoniae resina is more standardized, obtained from the dry root by digestion with alcohol.
In alchemical digestion a sealed flask of matter is put into a heat source. In ancient times this is often horse manure. Heat generated by microbial activity in the manure slowly cooks the flask contents.
Digestion can be done in a fire-heated oven but temperature must be kept stable. The process is time-consuming. Many an apprentice labors six or more hours over the digestion flask if it's heated with flame. Today there are other options.
Also called scammony gum, the resin is valued as a laxative. Besides treating constipation, laxatives are commonly used as purgatives to detoxify the body.
Purging includes intense sweating, vomiting, urination and defecation, with medicines available to meet these needs. Scammony is also used for anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties.
Habitat
Scammony is native to the eastern Mediterranean and western Asia. It enjoys warmer climates of countries like Syria, Turkey, Greece and Iran. It takes 2-3 years for scammony to grow to full glory.
Climate: Warm, dry summers and mild winters with annual rainfall of less than 300 mm.
Soil Type: Well-drained, sandy, or loamy soil.
Sunlight: Plenty of sunshine.
Temperature: Scammony prefers temperatures between 20-30°C. It needs frost protection in colder months.
It favors open areas and hillsides, with a preference for dry environments. It can be found in bushy waste areas. Scammony can grow as a ground vine but often climbs other plants.
Scammonin (C34H56O16)
The active ingredient in scammony resin is the glycoside scammonin. This complex compound causes the herb's strong purgative effects.
When consumed, the resin is inactive until it moves from the stomach to the duodenum, where it comes in contact with bile. The taurocholate and glycocholate in bile create a chemical reaction to make a drastic gastrointestinal irritant.
Phytochemical analysis of the root shows it contains 8% resin. Other components include beta-methyl-esculetin, dihydroxy cinnamic acid, ipuranol, sucrose, reducing sugar and starch.
Toxic Properties
Scammony requires careful handling and dosage control. Doses over 5 grams can cause such symptoms as:
Severe diarrhea
Dehydration
Electrolyte imbalance
Abdominal cramping
Ancient Uses of Scammony
Relieves constipation: Scammony's extreme laxative action is a common remedy for constipation in ancient times.
Expels parasites: Scammony is considered effective against roundworm and tapeworm, used as an anthelmintic.
Balances humors: In Galenic medicine scammony is used to treat the believed imbalance of bodily fluids or humors, which is thought to cause a slew of different illnesses.
Reduces fever: It's used as an antipyretic.
Roman physician Dioscorides, a surgeon in Nero's army and author of De Materia Medica (50-70 AD), documents the use of scammony in wine.
"The root of scammony is dug up at the time of harvest, then pounded finely and bound in a linen cloth. Throw fifteen teaspoons of it into six pints of must [fresh-pressed grape juice] for thirty days. It purges the bowels, expelling bile and phlegm."
It's also an ingredient in a Greek variation of the Roman drink posca. Posca is a mix of water and wine vinegar imbibed by soldiers and peasants. The word becomes phoushka in the Greek Byzantine army by 6th century AD.
Greek physician Aëtius uses a recipe for a "palatable and laxative phouska". The drink includes fennel seed, cumin, pennyroyal, anise, thyme, celery seed, scammony and salt added to oxykraton or diluted vinegar.
An excerpt from King's American Dispensatory, 1898, by Harvey Wickes Felter, M.D., and John Uri Lloyd, Phr. M., Ph.D:
"Scammony is usually given in the form of an emulsion with sugar or sweet almonds. But when triturated with milk it is considered a superior preparation, as follows:
"Seven grains of pure scammony to be gradually triturated with 3 ounces of unskimmed milk, to which a few grains of ginger may he added, forms a safe purgative. Another form of using this gum-resin is that of biscuit.
"A paste is made of scammony, 1 drachm; Venice soap, 5 grains; sugar, 9 grains; biscuit, in powder, 1 ounce; and a few drops of water. Mix together, divide into 2 biscuits, and let them dry; 1 biscuit acts energetically. The dose of powdered scammony is from 3 to 12 grains; of the pure resin, half this quantity. Its use is always contraindicated by intestinal inflammation."
Unani Medicine
Unani medicine, or Unani Tibb, is a traditional healing system originating in ancient Greece with further Arab and Persian influences. It's practiced in South Asia and regions of the Middle East.
Unani physicians prescribe Saqmunia or resin of scammony for treatment of various illnesses such as skin diseases, chronic headache, bilious fever, conjunctivitis and jaundice. It's also added to other herbal preparations.
Saqmonia is used as a contraceptive for both male and female. A purgative drink is made by mixing of scammony and sugar in water. The drink is considered to expel all depositions and poisons.
Scammony Incense
Scammony resin is incorporated into incense. It's categorized as a gum resin, similar to other resins like myrrh and frankincense, all with strong aromatic qualities.
Facts about Scammony
Adulteration Concerns: Due to its value, scammony is often adulterated with other substances.
Botanical Beauty: Convolvulus scammonia is a visually appealing plant with delicate white, yellow or pink flowers, typical of the Convolvulaceae family.
Cultural Importance: Scammony is highly regarded in the ancient world, often compared to the prized resin of the mastic tree for its medicinal qualities.
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