No, you’re not going to rub butter on your head. Butterbur root, or Petasites hybridus, is a perennial shrub used in ancient times and has recently been rediscovered for medicinal purposes including migraine headaches. Here is a photo of the flower:
A 2004 study in Neurology studied the effects of butterbur for the prevention of migraine headaches. They enrolled 245 patients and separated them into three groups. One group received placebo while the other two groups received 50mg twice a day or 75mg twice a day of butterbur, respectively. The group that received 75mg twice a day had an improvement over placebo in the prevention of migraines. In the placebo group, a reduction of 28% in the frequency of migraines was noted (not bad!). The 50mg group only saw a 32% reduction (not significant). The 75mg group, though, had a reduction of 45%! That means these people experienced almost half as many migraines compared to not taking this herb. That’s as good as several prescription medications! Butterbur is very well tolerated and has been in use in Germany since 1988. If you suffer from migraine headaches you may want to consider this herbal therapy.
