Where can I find sassafras?

Where can I find sassafras?

Sassafras trees grow throughout most of the eastern United States and west of the Mississippi River into Louisiana, Missouri, Arkansas, and eastern Texas and Oklahoma. They often spring up in abandoned fields as a pioneer species. They grow at forest edges, in hedgerows, in open fields and along roadsides.

Is sassafras illegal in the United States?

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration currently prohibits sassafras bark, oil, and safrole as flavorings or food additives. Among one of the biggest potential pitfalls of sassafras is its reported link with cancer. The FDA banned sassafras use in 1979 following research that showed it caused cancer in rats.

Why is sassafras root illegal?

The roots and barks of the sassafras tree contain a high concentration of the chemical named safrole. Safrole was listed as a carcinogen in rats by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and is hence banned at present. The safrole in sassafras root and bark can cause cancer and liver damage.

Where do sassafras trees grow?

Sassafras trees will grow in part shade to part sun and are soil tolerant. They will grow in clay, loam, sand and acidic soils, provided there is adequate drainage. The tree will do best in partial shade with a balanced soil with sand to aid in drainage. Also, choose a spot that is sheltered from heavy winds.

Does Walmart sell sassafras?

Sassafras (Sassafras Albidum) Tincture, Dried Root Bark Liquid Extract, Ague Tree, Herbal Supplement 15×4 oz – Walmart.com.

Can you still buy sassafras?

You can still purchase sassafras root bark (minus the safrole) in dry or powder form at many health food stores, and it’s a popular thickening agent in gumbos, an earthy additive to tea and an occasional flavor enhancer for stews and sauces.

Is it safe to drink sassafras tea?

But sassafras tea contains a lot of safrole, the chemical in sassafras that makes it poisonous. One cup of tea made with 2.5 grams of sassafras contains about 200 mg of safrole. That equates to a dose of about 3 mg of safrole per 1 kg of body weight. This is about 4.5 times the dose that researchers think is poisonous.

How do you harvest sassafras for tea?

If you want to harvest sassafras, go for a hike and find some — they’re easy to spot! Remember, the best way to know you’ve found sassafras is to cut a bit of the flesh off a stem or root and take a whiff. It should smell just like root beer. Pick the leaves to dry for filé.

Can you drink sassafras tea?

At that time, sassafras was used to flavor root beer. Since the 1970s, sassafras root can only be used as a flavoring if the safrole has been removed. Some health experts (most notably, Dr. Andrew Weil) still say that drinking sassafras tea is probably safe in moderation.

Is sassafras really poisonous?

It was also used as a tea. But sassafras tea contains a lot of safrole, the chemical in sassafras that makes it poisonous. One cup of tea made with 2.5 grams of sassafras contains about 200 mg of safrole. This is about 4.5 times the dose that researchers think is poisonous.

Is root beer made from sassafras?

It is, or at least once was, the main flavourful ingredient in root beer. Sassafras (a tree) and sarsaparilla (a vine) were traditionally used–along with other substances like licorice root, mint, nutmeg, and more–to flavour root beer.

Can you buy sassafras tea?

Safrole-containing sassafras root bark is still available, but for legal purposes, it can only be sold as a topical skin wash or potpourri. Sassafras tea is a beverage that’s made by boiling the root bark of the sassafras tree.