The story of Essiac original elixir

Essiac is the name of an herbal blend with a colorful history in North American folk medicine. The name "Essiac" is the surname Caisse spelled backward – named after Canadian nurse René Caisse, who began distributing the blend in the 1920s after receiving the recipe from a patient.

Ingredients

The classic blend consists of four herbs: burdock root (Arctium Lappa), sheep sorrel (Rumex Acetosella), rhubarb root (Rheum Palmatum), and slippery elm bark (Ulmus Fulva). All are plants with a long history of use in traditional herbal medicine in North America and Europe.

A part of alternative medicine history

During the 20th century, Essiac became one of the most talked-about examples of alternative herbal blends in North America, and the name lives on today as a historical curiosity in the history of herbal medicine. Modern health authorities have not found scientific support for any medicinal effects of the blend.