Hintoniae latiflorae cortex

Hintoniae latiflorae cortex, also known as Hintonia bark or Mexican fever bark, is a drug used in herbal medicinal products as an adjunctive dietary therapy for incipient or mild type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Currently no monograph from EMA, HMPC, Commission E.

Hintoniae latiflorae cortex contains flavonoids, (including 7-methylluteolin and quercetin), polyphenolic compounds (neoflavonoids of the coutareagenin type, 5-O-ß-D-galactopyranosyl-4'-hydroxy-7-methoxy-4-phenylcoumarin and other neoflavonoid glycosides), phenolic carboxylic acids(chlorogenic acid) and catechol tanning agents (see below vegetable tanning agents).

Hintonia bark has hypoglycemic and robotic effects. The blood pressure-lowering effect is achieved by the ingredient coutareagenin.

Hintoniae latiflorae cortex is used as a dietary adjunct therapy for beginning or mild type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Hintonia bark powder can be taken 3 times a day with a heaped teaspoon as decoction. Alternatively, one capsule can be taken 3 times daily as a standardised dry extract with meals.

For an aqueous-ethanolic extract (1: 5) a diaarhoea could be observed in one case. Suspected liver damage has not been confirmed by investigations.

There are no known contraindications.

So far, no studies have been initiated to precisely determine the interactions with other ingredients.

1. Schilcher H (Ed.) in, Guide to Phytotherapy, Urban & Fischer Verlag (2016) Munich, p.157 f.