Pokeberries
Health Benefits

Pokeberries - Editor's Choice

| Modified on Sep 27, 2025
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Pokeberry Health Benefits on Earth Clinic.

Pokeberry, also known as Phytolacca Americana or pokeweed, is a striking plant native to the Eastern United States. Historically, it has been used in traditional medicine for a wide range of ailments—from arthritis and skin conditions to respiratory complaints. Despite its folklore popularity, pokeberry is also highly toxic, and safe use requires extreme caution.

Quick Facts

  • Traditional uses: Arthritis, gout, skin conditions, gland swelling, chronic cough.
  • Nutrient-rich shoots: Vitamins A, C, B complex, and minerals—only safe after careful preparation.
  • Toxicity risk: All parts of the plant are poisonous, especially raw berries, roots, and leaves.
  • Folk remedy: Known as “poke salad” or “poke sallet” in the South, where shoots are boiled in several changes of water before eating.

Medicinal Uses of Pokeberry

1. Anti-Inflammatory Properties

Pokeberry roots were traditionally used for their anti-inflammatory action. Folk medicine applied them to arthritis, gout, and swollen joints. Native American communities brewed decoctions for joint pain and stiffness.

2. Skin Conditions

Historical records describe pokeberry extracts for ringworm, scabies, acne, boils, and ulcers. Appalachian healers used berry pulp on wounds, while colonists applied sap to skin lesions.

3. Respiratory & Glandular Issues

Pokeroot teas were once used as expectorants for bronchitis, sinusitis, and chest congestion. It was also applied for swollen lymph nodes and tonsillitis. Today, these uses are largely historical due to safety concerns.

4. Immune & Cancer Research (Preliminary)

Modern studies have explored pokeweed proteins (such as PAP—pokeweed antiviral protein) for potential immune modulation and anti-tumor activity. While laboratory findings are intriguing, human evidence is lacking, and toxicity limits practical use.

Nutritional Value of Young Poke Shoots

When prepared properly (“poke sallet”), young shoots provide high levels of:

  • Vitamin C – 217 mg per cup (160 g)
  • Vitamin A – 696 μg
  • Iron – 2.7 mg
  • Manganese, Copper, Phosphorus, B vitamins

⚠️ Warning: Only shoots harvested before the plant matures, and boiled in several changes of water, are considered safe. Raw or improperly prepared shoots can be poisonous.

Pokeberry in Food and Coloring

Historically, pokeberries were used as dye for wine, textiles, and food coloring. Some old Southern recipes included cooked berries in pies. Today, due to toxic risk, this practice is discouraged.

Side Effects and Toxicity

Poisonous Properties

All parts of pokeweed—roots, stems, leaves, berries—contain toxic compounds (saponins, alkaloids). Ten raw berries may poison an adult; fewer can sicken children.

Common Side Effects

  • Nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps
  • Severe diarrhea, dehydration
  • Low blood pressure, dizziness
  • Respiratory depression in serious cases

Precautions

  • Avoid during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
  • Children should never consume pokeberry in any form.
  • Only young shoots, prepared with repeated boiling, have traditional culinary use.
  • Topical applications may still cause irritation or systemic absorption.

What Earth Clinic Readers Report

Over the years, Earth Clinic readers have shared diverse experiences with pokeberries:

  • Joint pain relief: Several readers reported eating a few ripe pokeberries daily (spitting out the seeds) for arthritis and rheumatism. Some claimed improved mobility and reduced swelling.
  • Immune support: A handful of users used pokeberry tinctures for chronic infections and lymphatic issues, noting energizing effects.
  • Detox & skin health: Some found pokeberry teas or tinctures helpful for skin eruptions and boils, though side effects like stomach upset were also reported.
  • Cautions shared: Many readers stressed the importance of correct preparation and warned against overconsumption, recounting nausea or dizziness from even small doses.

These reports are anecdotal and not a substitute for medical advice. Individual reactions vary widely, and pokeberry use carries real risks.

Conclusion

Pokeberry is a plant with a long tradition in folk medicine and Southern cuisine. It offers potential benefits for inflammation, immunity, and skin health, but its toxic nature makes it dangerous if used improperly. Always consult a healthcare professional before trying pokeberry remedies.

Keep reading below to see what our readers have to say about Pokeberries, and please let us know your experience!


The comments below reflect the personal experiences and opinions of readers and do not represent medical advice or the views of this website. The information shared has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease or health condition. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.

How to Make Pokeberry Extract

Posted by Kim (Shreveport LA) on 06/21/2022
★★★★★

Editor's Choice

That's bs! Poke salad, that's what we here in the south call it. We ate so much of this as a child, never had one single thing happen to all 11 of us. We'd boil it 3 xs every time we'd pour out the boil water add new and repeat. We live in a time where omg everything's bad for u. And I bet y'all would come up with some stupid reason why kids shouldn't ever drink out of a water hose? Oh we surely will get sick from latex poison. Bs. I thank God for poke salad BC we didn't have too much to eat outside of whatever we'd grow. We'd pick black berries and sloes and poke salad u name it and we all survived and we eat it to this very day. I'm preparing some right now.

We'd call poke salad a spring tonic we never ever got sick from any thing - stomach bugs flues fevers. so if poke's so toxic why are we all so healthy after eating it for yrs? How's your health?


Poke Herb Photos

Posted by Mama To Many (Tennessee) on 08/07/2017
★★★★★

Editor's Choice

Here is a close up of pokeweed.

Poke is tall now in TN; some plants are 6 feet tall!

This picture shows the bright magenta berry stem. Most of these berries have been picked clean by the birds. They will digest all but the seeds and then pass the seeds along for new poke plants next spring. The seed is the most dangerous part.

The green berries are not ripe. The deep purple berries are ripe. Some people will swallow a berry a day and let the seed pass through (the seed is the most toxic part, other than the root.) The berry a day is for arthritis.

Poke root tincture is used by some for Lyme disease, a DROP at a time. (Not a dropperful.)
Poke root oil is used for breast tumors.

In the spring the leaves used to be boiled in three changes of water for a "tonic" food. If the plant is taller than a foot, the plants are too old to harvest the leaves, so they say.

Poke berries make a fun homemade ink for children, with supervision of course.

Poke is a perfect example of "the dose makes the poison." Poke is classified as poisonous, but when used carefully by those who know what they are doing it can be a great benefit.

~Mama to Many~


Gout and Joint Pains

Posted by Joyce (Tn.) on 01/08/2017
★★★★★

Editor's Choice

Gout:

Pick your pokeberries (poke sallet) next fall. Great for all joint pains. My brother had a bad attack of gout and hobbling with a walker. Said doctor told him he would have to live with it because he had nothing else to try. Picked him a bag of ripe pokeberries and carried to him. Had a little trouble in talking him into eating asparagus also, because he said the doctor told him it was bad for the gout. My reply was it was bad for the gout but it was good for him. Two days later with about 15 to 20 pokeberries 4 times per day and plenty of asparagus, he was walking without limping, without pain and without the walker.

When you have a bumper crop of pokeberries, just dehydrate the excess that you can't use while fresh and ripe. For those who want to get more sophisticated and make a pokeberry tincture or extract, just google "how do I make a herbal extract or tincture. Basic rule of thumb is two most common diluents is alcohol and vinegar. Fresh herb is equal parts of herb to diluent. Using dehydrated herb use ratio of 2 parts diluent to one part dehydrated herb.


How to Make Pokeberry Extract

Posted by Joyce (Joelton, Tn) on 07/25/2008 490 posts
★★★★★

Editor's Choice

Response to Sandra

"To Joyce from Joelton,Tn. Gout: What is the method used with Pokeweed for Gout? Do you make a paste and wrap the foot, or do you ingest them? Please advise? What are the exact measurements for this herb?"

I started doing this by putting berries in l gallon jug and using enough Vodka to just cover the berries. Put tight lid on and let set a week or two, moving jug around a little every two to three days. After that, just strain off the liquid and store in brown or green bottles. Beer bottles work fine for storage. (You can also use your potato masher (or whatever you have) to kind of sqush those pokeberries before straining the liquid off.

For those of you who are interested in doing your own herbs, when using fresh herbs your ratio is l:l. If using dehydrated herbs the ratio is l part herb to 2 parts diluent.

I can't remember where I read it, but I do recall reading that you shouldn't treat children under l2 with poke, because it hastened the setting of the long bones (arms & legs). There might be something to this because my family ate a lot of poke sallet and many of us have normal size bodies but short arms and legs. I might also add that most references recommend parboiling through 3 waters before ingesting, but my family (and others that I know who ate their share of it) only parboiled through one water (water discarded) before proceeding to finish cooking it and eating it.