What is Sage?

Introduction

Sage, also known as common sage or garden sage, is a perennial that grows to a height of 3 feet with blue-violet blooms in summer.1,2 Salvia officinalis originated in Southeastern Europe in the area that is now known as Albania and Bosnia.3 Today, although cultivated in some European countries (e.g., Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Germany, Poland, Romania, Serbia and Montenegro, and Spain) and the United States, more than half of the world’s supply is still wild-collected (mainly in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro), with increasing amounts being wild-collected under organic certification.4-10

Sage leaves are chewed whole; dried and ground into a powder; prepared as a fluid extract, tincture, or essential oil; or pressed fresh for the juice.3 The genus Salvia is fairly large, containing hundreds of species not addressed in this profile, which are employed for a wide variety of applications in traditional medicine in the regions to which they are native.11 Aside from S. officinalis, the most notable of these are Chinese sage root (dan shen; S. miltiorrhiza) and S. divinorum leaves, the reputed hallucinogen from Mexico.11

Continued Tomorrow

References
1. DerMarderosian A, Beutler JA, eds. The Review of Natural Products: The Most Complete Source of Natural Product Information. 3rd ed. St. Louis, MO: Facts and Comparisons; 2002.
2. Wichtl M, ed. Brinckmann JA, Lindenmaier MP, trans. Herbal Drugs and Phytopharmaceuticals. 3rd ed. Stuttgart: Medpharm GmbH Scientific Publishers; 2004.
3. Blumenthal M, Goldberg A, Brinckmann J, eds. Herbal Medicine: Expanded Commission E Monographs. Austin, TX: American Botanical Council; Newton, MA: Integrative Medicine Communications; 2000.
4. Foster S. Medicinal plants of Montenegro. HerbalGram. 2006;72:48-54.
5. European Herb Growers Association. Production of medicinal and aromatic plants in Europe. Status 2010. Available at: www.europam.net/ index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=6:inventory-production-of-mapsq&catid=8:inventory-production-of-mapsq&Itemid=11. Accessed January 17. 2011.
6. Kathe W, Honnef S, Heym A. Medicinal and Aromatic Plants in Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania: A study of the collection of and trade in medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs), relevant legislation and the potential of MAP use for financing nature conservation and protected areas. Bonn, Germany: German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation. 2003. Available at: www.bfn.de/fileadmin/MDB/documents/skript91.pdf. Accessed January 17, 2011.
7. Redzic S. Wild medicinal plants and their usage in traditional human therapy (Southern Bosnia and Herzegovina, W. Balkan). Journal of Medicinal Plants Research. 2010;4(11):1003-1027. Available at: www. academicjournals.org/jmpr/PDF/pdf2010/4June/Sulejman.pdf. Accessed January 17, 2011.
8. Baricevic D, Bernáth J, Maggioni L, Lipman E, compilers. ECPGR Report of a working group on medicinal and aromatic plants: First Meeting, 12-14 September 2002, Gozd Martuljek, Slovenia. 2004. Available at: www.bioversityinternational.org/fileadmin/bioversity/publications/ pdfs/984.pdf?cache=1295290021. Accessed January 17, 2001.
9. Censkowsky U, Helberg U, Nowack A, Steidle M. Overview of Word Production and Marketing of Organic Wild Collected Products. Geneva, Switzerland: International Trade Centre UNCTAD / WTO. 2007. Available at: www.intracen.org/organics/documents/Overview_World_ Production_Marketing_Organic_Wild_Collected_Products.pdf. Accessed January 17, 2011.
10. Donnelly R, Helberg U, in cooperation with Flora and Fauna International, UK, and Pecanac D. Balkans Herbal Development Initiative — Phase 1. Final Summary Report — Bosnia and Herzegovina. Environmental and Social Assessment, Economic & Activity Mapping, Export potential of Balkan Herbs to the European Union. Prepared for Southeast Europe Enterprise Development (SEED) and The Corporate Citizenship Facility (CCF). 2003. Available at: www.ifc.org/ifcext/enviro.nsf/AttachmentsByTitle/art_CCF-HDISerbMont/$FILE/HDI+Report+Serbia+and+Mo ntenegro.pdf. Accessed January 17, 2011.
11. Houghton PJ. Activity and constituents of sage relevant to the potential treatment of symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. HerbalGram. 2004;61:38

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