Best Butterbur Supplements (without Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids)

Butterbur (Petasites hybridus) has a lot of health benefits, especially for treating migraines and respiratory allergies. However, there are also some health concerns about butterbur supplements because the plant contains pyrrolizidine alkaloids.

Here’s what you should know about butterbur supplements without pyrrolizidine alkaloids and the best choices.

 

Quick Picks:

• Best Overall: Linpharma Petadolex 75mg
• Best Budget Pick: Nusa Pure Butterbur Extract 100mg

 

Is Butterbur Safe?

Butterbur contains pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs), a chemical in plants which has several known health risks.  Some butterbur supplements are made with a process that removes pyrrolizidine alkaloids.  PA-free butterbur supplements are generally regarded as safe.  The main side effect is burping. GI issues such as diarrhea can also occur.

However, more long-term research needs to be done on whether PA-free butterbur supplements are actually safe.  Because of this, butterbur is not recommended for children, pregnant and breastfeeding women, or people with kidney or liver disease. (1)

 

What Are Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids?

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids are a natural toxin which plants make to defend themselves against herbivores.  They are not toxin by themselves. However, when PAs reach the liver, they interact with enzymes. The enzymes then become highly reactive which may cause DNA changes.

Chronic exposure to PAs may lead to liver cancer. Because of this, the WHO classifies them as group II hepatocarcinogens.  PAs are also linked to some other diseases, such as liver disease and hypertension.

Butterbur isn’t the only plant with PAs. Over 6,000 plants contain significant amounts of pyrrolizidine alkaloids – including black and green tea and marshmallow root.  Even honey can contain high amounts of PAs if the bees harvested plants containing it. (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)

 

Safe Levels of Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids

For healthy adults, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has set a threshold level of 7 nanograms (0.007 micrograms) of pyrrolizidine alkaloids per kilogram of bodyweight per day.  Many people, especially regular tea drinkers, consume much higher levels of PA per day than this. (9, 10, 11)

 

How Much Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids Does Butterbur Contain?

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids are mostly found in the stalks and roots of butterbur.  Leaf buds, leaf blades and petioles (thin leaf stem) have virtually no pyrrolizidine alkaloids. Some butterbur supplements will only use these parts to create a PA-free supplement. However, most butterbur supplements do contain PAs.

One study found that butterbur supplements contained between 0.1 and 4.48 micrograms per capsule.  This is far above the EFSA upper daily limits. (12)

 

How Butterbur without PAs Is Made

Butterbur supplements without pyrrolizidine alkaloids are generally made from a process called supercritical CO2 extraction.  The method uses carbon dioxide as a solvent to extract the healthy compounds in butterbur while leaving the toxic PAs behind. (13, 14)

Supercritical CO2 extraction is completely safe and reduces PA levels in butterbur to undetectable levels.  However, the process is requires special machines so butterbur supplements made this way tend to be very expensive.

*Supercritical CO2 is also often used to extract THC from marijuana.  It’s a pretty cool process. If you are into science, you can read about it here.

 

Third Party Testing Is Important!

Supplements are very loosely regulated.  Makers aren’t required to use standardized manufacturing processes or even test their products. Because of this, claims on supplement labels aren’t always accurate. For example, one study of 21 butterbur supplements, 6 of the supplements contained absolutely no active ingredient.

This just goes to show how important 3^rd party testing is.  Good supplement brands will share test results upon request (tests are done for each batch, so you have to request the latest tests).  They will also be clear about the methods used to remove PAs from their products.

 

Best Butterbur Supplements without Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids

All of the butterbur supplements below do not have PAs.  Almost all of the supplements are also standardized to contain a specific amount of active ingredient. The most reputable brands are listed first. There are also some budget butterbur supplements listed.

 

1. Linpharma Pentadolex

• 75mg per capsule
• Standardized to 15% petasines
• Supercritical CO2 extraction
• Gelatin capsules
• 60 capsules per bottle

Pendadolex is the name for a butterbur extract made with a proprietary method.  The extract is standardized to 15% petasines and has no detectable levels of PAs.

One independent analysis found that Pendadolax was the only butterbur supplement which consistently passed quality screenings. In other words, it actually contains the advertised amount of active ingredient and no PAs.

Unfortunately, this level of certainty comes at a cost. Pentadolex butterbur supplements are significantly more expensive that most other options.

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2. Enzymatic Therapy Pentadolex Pro-Active

• 50mg per capsule
• Standardized to 15% petasines
• Supercritical CO2 extraction method
• Gelatin capsules
• 60 capsules per bottle

This brand also uses Pentadolex butterbur in its supplements.  The difference is that it contains 50mg per capsule instead of 75mg. This supplement does cost less per bottle. However, when you break down the cost per mg of active ingredient, the prices end up almost exactly the same.

*This brand also contains 50mg of Pentadox but currently costs a lot more. Check prices though – they often change or are on sale.

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3. Nusa Pure Butterbur Extract

• 100mg per capsule
• Standardized to 15% petasines
• No pyrrolizidine alkaloids
• Vegan
• 200 capsules per bottle

This is a much more affordable option for PA-free butterbur supplements.  There are 200 capsules per bottle and each contains 100mg, so you get a very good deal when you look at the price per mg of butterbur.

Nusa Pure is generally a very reputable brand and they assure that their butterbur supplement is PA free. However, they don’t have any info about their extraction method.

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4. Preventa Migrane

• 75mg butterbur per capsule
• Standardized to 15% petasines
• Also contains 200mg feverfew (0.81% Parthenolide), 10mg calcium, 200mg riboflavin, 200mg magnesium citrate
• Non-chemical ion exchange
• Vegan
• 60 capsules per bottle

Preventa Migraine is one of the most popular butterbur supplements for migraine.  It also contains standardized feverfew, calcium, magnesium and riboflavin to help migraines.  The company actually sources their ingredients and makes the supplement in a GMP Certified Facility in the USA. They are also one of the most transparent when it comes to extraction methods.

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5. Swanson Butterbur

• 75mg per capsule
• Standardized to 7mg petasins per capsule (9%)
• No pyrrolizidine alkaloids
• Gelatin capsule
• 60 capsules per bottle

Here’s another affordable yet reputable brand of butterbur.  The butterbur is standardized for its active ingredient, but only to 9% compared to 15% with the supplements above.

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6. Solaray Butterbur

• 50mg butterbur per capsule
• Standardized to 15% petasines
• No pyrrolizidine alkaloids
• Vegan
• 60 capsules per bottle

The PA-free butterbur by Solaray is made in their lab in Utah.  They don’t readily provide information about the extraction process they use or 3^rd party test results.  It’s a very affordable butterbur supplement though.

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7. Vitanica Butterbur Extra

• 25mg per capsule
• Standardized to 15% petasins
• No pyrrolizidine alkaloids
• Also contains: Riboflavin, magnesium, ginger, feverfew and 5-hydroxytryptophan
• Vegan capsule
• 120 capsules per bottle

In addition to butterbur, Vitanica also contains other herbs which should help with headache and support blood vessels in the brain.  It is quite pricy for the amount of butterbur per capsule, but a lot of people like this formulation of ingredients.

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8. Nutricost Butterbur

• 75mg per capsule
• No pyrrolizidine alkaloids
• Vegan capsule
• 120 capsules per bottle

Nutricost butterbur supplement is one of the cheapest options – especially when you consider there are 120 capsules per bottle.  It doesn’t contain PAs. However, this butterbur supplement is not standardized so there is no guarantee that there will be a high amount of active compounds.  Nutricost is a popular, reputable brand though so many people still like this option.

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Image credit:”Pestwurz” (CC BY 2.0) by michaelmueller410