Related Terms

• Akebia, anti-inflammatory, atopic eczema, dermatology, dictamnus, eczema, licorice, lophatherum, potentilla, red peony, rehmannia, schizonepeta, siler, tribulus.

• For more information on individual herbs, please see Natural Standard's Herbs & Supplements Database.

Background

• Zemaphyte® is a Chinese herbal remedy produced in the United Kingdom. The remedy contains licorice and nine other herbs. Zemaphyte® is most commonly used to treat steroid resistance eczema, childhood and adult eczema as well as atopic eczema.

• The powder formulation of Zemaphyte® is normally dosed according to packets. One or two packets is mixed in hot water and drank once a day.

Theory/Evidence

• Zemaphyte® is proposed to exhibit it's main effects by producing an anti-inflammatory response as well as act as an immunomodulator or immunosuppressive agent.

• Zemaphyte® has been proven in numerous clinical trials to reduce skin surface damage, erythema (redness of the skin) and itching as well as improve sleep quality.

• A randomized, placebo controlled trial comparing Zemaphyte® to other Chinese herbal remedies commonly used for eczema found that the patients who used Zemaphyte® had less surface damage, less redness and better sleep than patients who used other Chinese herbal remedies.

Side Effects/Drug Interactions

• Zemaphyte® has been associated with elevated liver function tests, diarrhea, uticaria (hives) as well as other rare but serious side effects.

• Zemaphyte® has been shown to interact with methotrexate.

• A qualified healthcare provider should be consulted before making decisions about therapies and/or health conditions.

Author Information

• This information has been edited and peer-reviewed by contributors to the Natural Standard Research Collaboration (www.naturalstandard.com).

Bibliography

Natural Standard developed the above evidence-based information based on a thorough systematic review of the available scientific articles. For comprehensive information about alternative and complementary therapies on the professional level, go to www.naturalstandard.com. Selected references are listed below.

1. Vender RB. 20 October 2006. www.skintherapyletter.ca

2. Zhang W, Leonard T, Bath-Hetal F, et al. Chinese herbal medicine for atopic eczema. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2005 Apr 18;(2):CD002291. View Abstract