Tag: Foxglove

In the 18th century, physician William Withering famously documented the use of foxglove, a plant that all parts are highly poisonous, as an effective folk remedy for "dropsy" (congestive heart failure). This discovery revealed the complex ways **how does foxglove affect the body**, possessing powerful cardiac glycosides that both heal and harm depending on the dose.

Overdosing on foxglove can be fatal, as all parts of the plant are extremely poisonous. Contrary to a dangerous misconception, the toxic plant is not the source of a painkiller, but rather a powerful heart medication.

The medicinal use of the foxglove plant, commonly known as *Digitalis*, was first systematically documented by English physician William Withering in 1785. While many still confuse the terms, the answer to "Is digitalis digoxin?" is that digoxin is a specific drug derived from a species of the *Digitalis* plant, while *Digitalis* refers to the plant genus or the broader class of compounds known as cardiac glycosides.