Botanical Name: Eriodictyon californicum

Common names: yerba santa (sacred herb), mountain balm, bear's weed, gum bush, gum plant, consumptive weed

The leaves have historically been used to treat asthma, upper respiratory infections and allergic rhinitis.Some native tribes used it as a poultice for wounds, insect bites, broken bones, and sores. It was also used in a steam bath to treat hemorrhoids. Yerba santa actually has a pleasant taste, so it's used as a food flavoring and as an additive to herbal syrups to disguise the taste of other ingredients.

The main active component of Yerba santa has been studied as a neuroprotective agent against multiple toxicities of the aging brain, including possibly Alzheimer's disease.