Wild Yam Root Powder

The wild yam root powder is obtained from a species of yam in the Dioscorea genus. Unlike some of its relatives, this species does not contain a viable form of diosgenin, as some manufacturers of wild yam creams and other products claim. The powdered herb is usually encapsulated as a dietary supplement.

Wild yam is a perennial vine that occurs naturally in the eastern US. The plant is harvested in the fall for its woody, twisted rhizome, which is dried and ground into a powder.

Also known as colic root and rheumatism root, wild yam has a long history of use by women for various gynecological complaints. Although the root contains diosgenin, a precursor to progesterone, the synthesis of the latter takes place in a lab, not in the human body. However, wild yam root contains other active compounds that are responsible for its effects, such as beta carotene and phytosterols.

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