Boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum) is an indigenous North American medicinal plant belonging to the Asteraceae family. The leaves and flowering parts of Boneset were used extensively amongst North American tribes as a treatment for cold and fever. Native Americans also used infusions of this plant as a gastrointestinal aid to relieve stomach pains and as a laxative, as well as in the treatment of rheumatism, kidney conditions, and as a tonic for general debility, while it was also used topically for headaches and fevers, and as a poultice on broken bones. European settlers into the new continent around the 18th century adopted the use of this herbal medicine and extended it to treat malaria, yellow fever, dengue fever, arthritis, rheumatism, gout, and influenza. Today, Boneset continues to be utilised in the treatment of the common cold, influenza, fevers, respiratory and nasopharyngeal catarrh, rheumatism, arthritis, and malaria. Due to its antipyretic, anti-inflammatory, diaphoretic and immunostimulating properties, Boneset is a clinically important immune-supporting herb.
