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Herb library · Herb · Commiphora mukul (syn. Balsamodendron mukul)

Guggul

The gum resin of the mukul tree, known in trade as Indian bdellium, sold mostly for cholesterol. The research disagrees: a meta-analysis found lower cholesterol, while a careful US trial found LDL cholesterol went slightly up, and some people got a rash.

Traditional use

Called guggulu in Ayurveda. Dutt's 1877 compilation from Sanskrit medical works records that the Sanskrit writers wanted it fresh, moist and golden, set old dry resin aside as unfit for medicine, and that Hindu physicians used it in rheumatism, nervous, urinary and skin complaints, most often mixed into compound pills such as Yogarája guggulu. In 19th-century Indian markets it was sold as Indian bdellium, valued at about a third less than the African resin of the same name. Extracts of the resin have been widely used in Asia to lower cholesterol, and a standardized extract, guggulipid, has grown popular in the United States.

What studies show

  • Limited

    Cholesterol: the findings conflict. A 2021 meta-analysis of randomized trials found guggulu lowered total and LDL cholesterol modestly. A 2003 double-blind trial in 103 US adults eating a Western diet found no improvement over 8 weeks, and LDL cholesterol rose slightly (about 4 to 5 percent) compared with placebo.

Be careful of

Cautions

  • AllergyIn the 2003 US trial, 6 of the 67 people taking guggulipid developed an allergic-type skin rash, and none on placebo did.
  • ConditionIf you take medicine for cholesterol or heart disease, do not swap it for guggul; talk with your clinician first.
  • PregnancyNCCIH advises talking with your clinician before using Ayurvedic products while pregnant or nursing.
  • NoteSome Ayurvedic preparations include metals. The FDA warns that this makes some Ayurvedic products potentially harmful, and a 2015 survey found high lead or mercury levels in some of the supplements tested.
  • Ask a clinicianTalk with a clinician or pharmacist before using this if you take prescription medicines, are pregnant or breastfeeding, or are giving it to a child.

From the old books

What herbals and dispensaries of the past printed. History, in their words.

“According to Sanskrit writers, new or recently exuded guggulu is moist, viscid, fragrant and of a golden colour. It burns in the fire, melts in the sun and forms a milky emulsion with hot water.”
Udoy Chand Dutt, The Materia Medica of the Hindus (1877), p. 132. See the page of The Materia Medica of the Hindus, p. 132 (opens in a new tab) · Read the full passage from The Materia Medica of the Hindus, p. 132
“Indian Bdellium (Mhaisagúggal), the produce of B. Mukul, somewhat resembles the African drug in general appearance, the pieces often having portions of papery bark attached to them”
William Dymock, C. J. H. Warden and David Hooper, Pharmacographia Indica (1890), vol. 1, p. 310. See the page of Pharmacographia Indica, vol. 1, p. 310 (opens in a new tab) · Read the full passage from Pharmacographia Indica, vol. 1, p. 310

Sources

  1. Guggulipid for the treatment of hypercholesterolemia: a randomized controlled trial (JAMA, 2003) (opens in a new tab) · NIH · read September 25, 2026
  2. A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Ayurvedic Herbal Preparations for Hypercholesterolemia (2021) (opens in a new tab) · NIH · read September 25, 2026
  3. Ayurvedic Medicine: In Depth (opens in a new tab) · NCCIH · read September 25, 2026

Reviewed September 25, 2026.