Rene instructed her to puchase Turkey rhubarb for the making of the formula. She apparently did use Indian rhubarb at one point, but later changed to Turkey, claiming that it was less bitter and more palatable. I called Frontier again this morning and spoke with one of their herbalists. The cultivation of R.palmatum was given high priority in the 18th century. R.palmatum is one of the most widely used Chinese herbs.
Rhubarbs contain anthraquinone glycosides, which act as strong laxatives.
These rhubarbs vary slightly in chemistry but are used interchangeably. Unless I am missing something in the expansive library I have accumulated, I have found that not one source says that R.palmatum is of poorer quality to R.officinale. Absolutely not true, once again. It's uncertain exactly when rhubarb first reached Europe, although it was no later than the ninth century. This book is the story of Canadian nurse Rene Cassie and essiac, an herbal formula used by Cassie for over 50 years to treat cancer patients.