Using Black Walnut Hulls to Kill Parasites and Intestinal Worms
Black walnut hull is one of the best known natural treatments for intestinal worms and other parasites living within the human digestive system.
Potent compounds in the fresh green hulls of black walnuts make them an effective anti-parasitic, anti-bacterial and anti-fungal intestinal cleanser.
This guide has detailed instructions for using a liquid herbal extract made from green black walnut hulls, along with wormwood and cloves, to get rid of intestinal worms and other parasites living within your body.
The Parasite Problem
Parasitic organisms, like tapeworms, roundworms, pinworms and many others, are a serious, if often neglected and undiagnosed problem. Even in developed countries like the United States, millions of people have some form of parasitic infection.
These harmful organisms can enter our bodies through contaminated water or food (particularly under-cooked pork and raw seafood), mosquito bites, touching pets and other animals, or any infected surface and then touching your nose or mouth.
Once they find a suitable environment they start to breed and, through various life cycles, can survive in the human intestinal tract for many years.
Common parasitic worms, such as pinworms, roundworms, hookworms and tapeworms, are found predominantly in the lower intestine. Though other parasite species, like protozoa, have been detected throughout the human body, including the liver, bloodstream and even the brain.
It is often difficult for physicians to diagnose a parasitic infection. This is due to poor testing methods, lack of knowledge, and the wide range of symptoms they can be responsible for.
These can include, but are not limited to, regular intestinal upsets and pain, alternating bouts of diarrhea and constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, brain fog and fatigue, increased allergies, and a general decrease in immunity.
How Green Black Walnut Hulls Kill Parasites
Black walnut hull is a powerful vermifuge (a substance that kills parasites). It contains high concentrations of astringent tannins, natural iodine and compounds like juglone that have anthelmintic (worm-killing) properties.
The still green hulls of black walnut are recognized as having the highest concentrations of juglone, iodine and tannins. Concentrated liquid herbal tinctures made from green black walnut hulls, like this one on Amazon I use, are much more potent than most capsules or tablets, which are usually made from low quality bulk powders.
Black walnut hull extract is commonly used with two other anthelmintic herbs — wormwood and cloves. This combination is considered especially effective against a wide range of human parasites and intestinal worms.
Black Walnut, Wormwood and Cloves as an Anti-Parasitic Treatment
Dr. Hulda Clark popularized the protocol of using wormwood, green black walnut hulls and cloves together as a worm-killing treatment. While there are many positive reports of using this combination for intestinal parasites, it’s questionable just how potent or effective of a lot of the products out there are.
Despite having the Clark name on many of these preparations, as far as I can find from my research, Dr. Clark herself didn’t personally supervise the formulation of any of them and the strengths can vary greatly.
Dr. Clark was clear on 3 important points though:
- When using black walnut hulls for parasites, the fresh green hulls are much more effective than the older and darker dried hulls. Make sure any preparation you use clearly states how the source hulls for the product are harvested, like the one below that I use does.
- When using wormwood for parasites, regular Artemisia absinthium wormwood is better for intestinal worms and helminths. Dr. Clark did not use Artemisia annua, also known as sweet wormwood, in her treatments. Though there is some evidence this variety may be more effective against parasitic protozoa.
- Cloves used to kill parasite eggs should be non-irradiated and preferably freshly ground. This is because their volatile oils are an important factor and they can degrade over time.
Recommended Green Black Walnut Hull Extract
The best black walnut tincture I’ve found, that is guaranteed to be made from fresh green hulls, is this high-strength one from Herb Pharm. It’s wildcrafted and is particularly rich in juglone (5-hydroxynaphthoquinone) and iodine.
This brand has been around for decades and has a strong reputation for quality and potency. The larger bottle of this and the wormwood extract below are recommended, both for repeat parasite cleanses and for much better value overall.
Best Wormwood Tincture for Parasites
Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium) is a bitter herb with a long history of medicinal use. It contains many powerful active compounds, including sesquiterpene lactones, tannins and thujone. And, as the name suggests, is particularly good for treating intestinal worms like tapeworms, pinworms and roundworms.
Herb Pharm make this certified organic extract with hand-harvested Artemisia absinthium wormwood from their own Oregon farm. This brand are known for making strong herbal tinctures and customer reviews on this wormwood liquid extract are overwhelmingly positive.
If you want to deal with parasitic worms then make sure you don’t accidently get sweet wormwood extract, listed on the supplement facts panel as Artemisia annua. This related wormwood species is popular and potent in it’s own way, but likely more effective for microscopic protozoa parasites, like giardia and blastocystis.
Choosing Fresh, Non-Irradiated and Organic Cloves
Cloves and their volatile oils are important for dealing with parasite eggs in Dr. Clark’s protocol. They can be tricky though for several reasons.
Firstly because they lose potency when irradiated. Yet the majority of clove products you’ll find on the market will have been subject to ionizing radiation. Unless a brand is clearly labelled “non-irradiated” then expect otherwise.
They should also be organic and ideally as fresh as possible. Due to volatile oil degradation, pre-ground clove powders, capsules or liquid herbal extract won’t be as good for dealing with intestinal worms.
The best option is to get fresh and non-irradiated cloves, like these popular organic ones on Amazon, and grind them up in a spice mill or coffee grinder just before using them. You could also use a pestle and mortar to crush them up.
I’ve ground up enough cloves for a week’s treatment before and kept them in sealed container in the fridge. In my opinion these ground cloves still tasted quite strong and potent a week later, though I wouldn’t store them for much longer.
Black Walnut, Clove and Wormwood Combination Formulas
Having used them myself, I feel confident that both the cloves and green black walnut hull and wormwood tinctures recommended above are high-strength, well-sourced and effective. I can understand a busy person preferring a combination formula though that has all 3 anti-parasitic herbs in an easy to take blend.
I recently found a good organic wormwood, clove and black walnut combination formula from Peak Performance, a well-known American brand that make all their products in the USA in a cGMP facility with 3rd-party safety testing. Every ingredient is USDA-certified organic and the customer reviews are positive on this product’s effectiveness against parasites and for intestinal detox here on their Amazon store.
Taking this blend, I’d personally double the suggested dosage after testing at a smaller dose for negative side effects. Like the separate extracts, this anti-parasitic blend should be taken on an empty stomach before food.
This black walnut, clove and wormwood concentrate could also make for a good preventative formula to take when traveling in higher risk areas. Preventing parasitic worms from ever starting their breeding cycle within your gut is much easier than getting rid of them once they’ve laid their eggs.
Dosage and Treatment for Intestinal Worms
The suggested treatment method and dosage for using these 3 anti-parasitic herbs is listed ahead. For best results follow these instructions before each main meal of the day.
If you can only do the cleanse once a day, then in the morning before breakfast, is the most effective timing.
1. Cloves First to Deal with Parasite Eggs
Start with the cloves first on an empty stomach. Volatile oil compounds in them, like eugenol and caryophyllene, attack parasite eggs and make them more vulnerable to the black walnut hull and wormwood to come.
If you are using the fresh cloves then crush or grind up around half a dozen. Stir them into a small glass of water and then quickly drink them down.
Follow this with another glass of water. You want cloves out of the stomach and into the small intestine as soon as possible. Try half this amount for the first day to test your tolerance if you have a sensitive stomach. 
2. Follow with the Wormwood and Green Black Walnut Hull Tinctures
Ideally, black walnut and wormwood extracts would be taken at the recommended dosage shortly after the cloves, also with a large glass of water and before any food. I usually wait around 15 minutes after drinking my clove water before taking them.
Many of us are rushed for time though, especially in the morning, and having them together would likely be fine as well. Most important to my mind is taking the cloves, wormwood and black walnut hull on an empty stomach before eating.
A full dropper of the green black walnut hull extract and 20 drops of their wormwood liquid herbal extract is the suggested dosage for the Herb Pharm brand. Check the label if you are using alternative products.
3. Parasite Cleanse Side Effects
You should be prepared for a temporary worsening of any symptoms, usually referred to as a “die-off” reaction, healing crisis, or Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction, when you first begin a serious parasite cleanse.
The signs of this can include feeling tired and rundown, headaches, brain fog, and even mild nausea. Usually you’ll feel better after visiting the bathroom.
Stopping the cleanse for that day, and reducing the dosage by half the next day, will usually lessen these symptoms. Then you can slowly increase the dosage in the following days to build up your tolerance.
Always trust what your body is telling you though and consult a healthcare professional if negative side effects are prolonged or worsening.
Timing and Duration
First thing in the morning is the best time for parasite killing treatments as there’s less digesting food to interrupt their passage through the gastrointestinal system.
Cloves taken on an empty stomach can then weaken the protective coating around the worm’s eggs. Follow these with black walnut hull and wormwood liquid extracts to kill as many parasites and eggs as possible.
Ideally, this treatment would be repeated again before lunch and in the evening before dinner.
While a midday and evening treatment is recommended, if you are using black walnut, wormwood and cloves more as a preventative, or have a limited supply of the herbs, then the morning parasite cleanse is the most important one. 
Repeat Cleanses
It’s recommended to repeat this treatment daily for a full week, at least every morning. You can then take two weeks off from the last day you used it and then repeat it again for another week.
Intestinal worms and other human parasitic organisms are tenacious little critters and unfortunately one treatment is rarely enough.
Ideally do a full week long cleanse, taking it three times a day before main meals. Follow this with a two week break. Then do another treatment for a week.
Two months of five week long treatments will give most people the best chance of dealing with the different breeding cycles of intestinal parasites, such as pinworms, tapeworms, roundworms, hookworms and whipworms.
Alternative Treatments
Another antiparasitic cleanse that I and many other people have had success with is this parasite killing papaya seed smoothie.
If I ever suspected parasites again (I travel regularly and it does happen), I’d use both the green black walnut hull, wormwood and cloves treatment above, alternated weekly with the papaya seed smoothie.
There are many positive comments about the effectiveness of this recipe and I’d recommend reading the link above and people’s (sometimes graphic but ultimately relieving) results with using it in the comments.
I hope this page has provided useful instructions for using black walnut hulls for parasites and intestinal worms. As well as the benefits of combining them with wormwood and cloves to increase their effectiveness.
Please share this information with friends. It’s likely some of them are affected by parasites, whether they know it or not.