Cat's Claw Herbal Complex

	Size Item Code 60 2721 30 2720

Cat’s claw (Latin - Uncaria Tomentosa) is a member of the Rubiaceae plant family and is also known in Spanish as uña de gato and by the native Indians as vilcacora. It is a large perennial climbing liana (woody vine) indigenous to the Amazon rainforest and other tropical regions of South and Central America. The plant has a fissured yellowish-green coloured bark with small yellowish-white flowers. Its name is derived from the hook-like paired thorns that grow along the vine and are curved like a cat’s claw, enabling the vine to climb heights of up to 30m (100ft) into the rainforest canopy. The indigenous Indian tribes of Peru have used the herb for more than 2,000 years. One of the tribes that has the longest recorded historical use is the Asháninka, their tribal name means “belonging to the Inca”. The largest commercial source of the plant comes from Peru through extensive cultivation, harvesting the roots and the wild plant is banned by the Peruvian government to prevent the extinction of the plant. Cat’s claw is now cultivated elsewhere, especially in Austria, where it has been extensively studied for more than twenty-five years. The dried inner bark or root of the herb is commonly used in herbal preparations.