Smilax officinalis is a large perennial climber indigenous of tropical America. Its name is from the Spanish sarza, bramble, and parilla, a vine, alluding to the thorny stems of the plant. It has been traditionally used as a tonic, blood purifier, anti-arthritic, and as a treatment for syphilis. The root of the plant contains steroid saponins, including sarsaponin, smilasaponin, sarsaparilloside and its aglycones sarsapogenin, smilagenin and pollinastanol. Also parillin, pariglin, parillic and parillinic acids, basserin, salts of calcium, potassium, magnesium, sulfur and iron. Other active constituents are resins and a trace of volatile oil.
- Anti-inflammatory. Endotoxins are toxins deriving from bacteria cell walls. The herb or some of its saponins appear to bind endotoxins and cholesterol, and thus reduce the role of circulating endotoxins in aggravating inflammation and causing cell damage, especially in arthritic conditions. External use on arthritic or gouty joints has given results where all else has failed. But application must be continuous for a considerable time.
- Skin protector. Traditionally herbal medicine has used sarsaparilla as treatment for skin problems, such as acne, eczema and psoriasis. Persons with psoriasis have been shown to have high levels of circulating endotoxins. In a controlled study of 92 such people the endotoxin–binding sarsaponin greatly improved the symptoms of 62 percent and completely cleared 18 percent of the patients. Considering the usual persistence of psoriasis, this is effectiveness indeed. In addition, endotoxins can also compromise liver function, which is potentially disastrous for sufferers from psoriasis. Sarsaparilla turns out to be an effective herb against one of the most doggedly resilient skin conditions known, and without any known side effects.
- Anti-syphilitic. Sarsaparilla was used against syphilis since the 16th century. But it soon fell out of favor, partly because of the accoutrements of cure, like confinement to a warm room for 30 days, and a ban on booze and sex for 40 days. But the Portuguese and Chinese continued to use it; the Chinese with notable success in 90 percent of acute cases and 50 percent of chronic cases.
- Sexual rejuvenator? Claims made that sarsaparilla is a sexual tonic are without foundation. The herb may be a good general tonic, but the confusion about its sex potency seems to derive from the fact that sarsasaponegin can be synthetically transformed in the laboratory to testosterone. However, there are no reasons to think that this reaction does, or even that it can, take place in the human body.