What Is Skullcap? Skullcap (Scutellaria baicalensis) is an herb
commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine. Other names for
skullcap (alternatively spelled as "scullcap") include huang qin
and baikal skullcap. Uses of Skullcap In herbal medicine,
skullcap is typically used to treat the following: Benefits of
Skullcap To date, few clinical trials have explored the health
effects of skullcap. However, preliminary research suggests the
herb may be useful in treatment of these health conditions: 1)
Memory Impairment In a 2008 study on mice, scientists discovered
that oroxylin A (an antioxidant found in the roots of skullcap)
may help protect against memory impairment induced by amyloid
beta (a substance that forms the brain plaques associated with
Alzheimer's disease). 2) Prostate Cancer Compounds found in
skullcap may help slow the growth of prostate cancer tumors,
suggests a 2005 study on mice. Skullcap was a constituent of the
herbal formula PC-SPES, a dietary supplement that was taken off
the market becaus