Devil's Claw Herbal Complex

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Devil’s claw (Latin - Harpagophytum Procumbens) is a member of the Pedaliaceae plant family and is also commonly known as wood spider and the grapple plant, “harpagos” is a Greek word meaning grappling hook. It is a weedy perennial and thrives in clay or sandy soils, and is indigenous to Southern Africa, especially the Kalahari desert, Botswana, Namibia and the island of Madagascar. The plant has bright red-purple flowers with a central taproot and secondary tubers (storage roots). It derives its colourful name from the appearance of its tough hooked, claw-like seed pods. For thousands of years, the Khoisan bush-man of the Kalahari Desert and other indigenous African tribes have used devil’s claw root primarily for its beneficial properties. Devil’s claw is one of the bitterest of all herbs, which may attribute to its beneficial digestive properties. Devil’s claw was introduced in Europe from Africa in the early 1900’s by English and Dutch explorers, it is now a popular herb in Europe, especially in Germany, where it has been extensively studied for many years. The dried secondary tuber of the herb is commonly used in herbal preparations.