IngredientsThe Tillandsia genus belongs to the Bromeliaceae family and is considered to be the most diverse genus, with more than 700 Tillandsia species identified. The genus comprises 649 described species, with different uses across different time periods. The two species most extensively studied for their medicinal and supplement-relevant properties are Tillandsia usneoides L. (Spanish moss) and Tillandsia recurvata (L.) L. (ball moss).
Commonly known as Spanish moss, Tillandsia usneoides is neither Spanish nor a true moss; it is a flowering plant that grows on trees in particularly humid locations. Spanish moss coexists peacefully with the trees it grows on, and it is considered a perennial "epiphytic" herb, meaning it grows on top of plants and absorbs moisture and nutrients from its environment. This plant clings to tree branches throughout much of the southeastern United States and is the region's trademark. Common in coastal subtropical environments, this plant sits high in oak and cypress trees, living off the abundant moisture and nutrients extracted from the air.
The Tillandsia genus is the most primitive of the entire bromeliad family. Most Tillandsia are epiphytic plants that are distributed from the south of the United States to the south of Argentina, growing by uptaking nutrients present in the air and rainwater.
Species of the genus Tillandsia are popularly known as "old man's beard," ball moss, hay ball, or Jamaica ball. Tillandsia recurvata is known in Brazil as "barba de velho" (old man's beard).
Tillandsia has been used in multiple preparation forms across traditional and investigational contexts:
Uses of T. usneoides L. are reported since the late-archaic and pre-Columbian cultures. This plant has been traditionally used on the American continent for the treatment of diabetes, rheumatism, hemorrhoids, and ophthalmic diseases. In Colombia, 25 species of the genus Tillandsia have been recorded, mainly in the Departments of Casanare and Boyacá, where T. usneoides is used by indigenous Zenúes in the Urabá region for the control of diabetes.
The plant has a long history of use by indigenous peoples throughout its range. The Houma Indians of Louisiana used it to treat fevers, while people in Brazil traditionally used it for a variety of medicinal purposes.
Tillandsia has a favorable reputation as medicine: for leucorrhea, rheumatism, ulcers, hemorrhoid treatment, as an anti-diabetic remedy, emetic, analgesic, purgative, contraceptive, antispasmodic, and diuretic.
Tillandsia usneoides decoction has been used for the control of diabetes mellitus, hemorrhoids, cough, bronchitis, rheumatism, inflammation, gastritis, and cancer, among other conditions.
Plants of the genus Tillandsia, such as T. recurvata, have different ethnobotanical uses, including the treatment of hemorrhoids, gastritis, arthritis, ulcers, sore throats, cancer, and diabetes.
Other research has reported T. usneoides as anti-hypertensive and active in rheumatism, hemorrhoids, cholagogue, diuretic, renal, and ophthalmic illnesses.
Traditional medicine has been reported to utilize the entire plant to treat various conditions, including heart conditions, rheumatism, bronchitis, fever, ulcers, diabetes, and to possess diuretic properties. At the level of the nervous system, it is also used as an analgesic and for the treatment of epilepsy.
In earlier days, green Spanish moss was brewed and consumed in the form of an herbal tea by expectant mothers, apparently to promote the production and secretion of breast milk in addition to making childbirth easier. In folk medicine, a tea prepared from this herb was also consumed to treat rheumatism. According to historical claims, this herb was used in Mexico for treating epilepsy among infants.
In the 19th and 20th centuries, T. usneoides was used in some manufactured products, as polish and for packing fruit. During the beginning of the 1950s, this plant was employed as a substitute for estrogen. Pharmacological investigations have revealed the plant to possess a weak antibacterial effect and estrogenic activity.
The main chemical constituents of Tillandsia belong to several groups, such as flavonoids, triterpenoids, sterols, and phenylpropanoids, which are known to have various important biological activities.
Tillandsia chemical composition includes cycloartane triterpenes and hydroxy-flavonoids, which are present in at least 24 species. Several extracts and compounds from Tillandsia spp. have been characterized across multiple peer-reviewed investigations.
Secondary metabolites identified include triterpenoids and sterols (51%), flavonoids (45%), and cinnamic acids (4%), obtained from organic extracts, presenting a wide range of biological activities such as antimicrobial, antiviral, antiherpetic, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, hypoglycemic, and anticancer activities.
Investigation of the extract of Tillandsia usneoides afforded 26 cycloartane derivatives, including multiple novel cycloartane compounds with unique structural configurations. Chemically, the plant has been found to contain four cyclopropane-containing triterpenes as well as at least one flavone glycoside.
Chemically, T. usneoides contains specialized metabolites such as cycloartane-type triterpenes, flavones, and polyphenols. Several phytochemicals, such as cycloartane diol and cycloartane triol, are linked to the plant's observed bioactivity.
The CHCl₃ extract of Tillandsia recurvata yielded 5,3′-dihydroxy-6,7,8,4′-tetramethoxyflavanone, 1,3-di-O-cinnamoyl-glycerol, and ethyl ester of caffeic acid.
Phytochemical investigation of T. bergeri led to the isolation and identification of two flavones: penduletin and viscosine, isolated for the first time from this species.
A flavonoid of the flavanone class was isolated from T. recurvata (L.) L. with potent anticancer activity. The molecule was code named HLBT-100 (also referred to as HLBT-001).
Oral extracts of Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides), a non-parasitic epiphyte in the pineapple family, have been found in a few studies to reduce blood glucose in laboratory animals. The compound primarily responsible is called HMG, short for 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaric acid. T. usneoides has been used in the control of diabetes mellitus, and its activity is attributed in part to the presence of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaric acid (HMG), a highly toxic compound at high concentrations.
The hypoglycemic activity of this genus is related to the presence of 3,6,3′,5′-tetramethoxy-5,7,4′-trihydroxyflavone, which can modulate the expression of glucose transporter type 4 (GLUT4).
Several activities have been reported for T. usneoides, including microbicide activity due to the presence of a flavonol-type glycoside; hypoglycemic activity attributed to 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaric acid (HMG); and antiviral activity due to the presence of polyphenols.
Using headspace solid phase microextraction (HS-SPME) coupled with gas chromatography combined with mass spectrometry (GC-MS), researchers were able to identify 66 volatile compounds — monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, phenylpropanoids, and other compounds — across three fragrant Tillandsia species: 30 compounds in T. xiphioides, 47 compounds in T. crocata, and 43 compounds in T. caliginosa.
A broader study identified 65 volatile organic compounds across 14 Tillandsia species, with 8 predominant compounds — benzaldehyde, benzacetaldehyde, hexanol, hexanal, heptanal, octanal, nonanal, and furan-2-pentyl — being common across 10 of the species and hybrids.
Two distinct molecular mechanisms for the genus's hypoglycemic activity have been identified in preclinical research. First, HMG functions as an inhibitor of HMG-CoA lyase. Separately, the specific flavone 3,6,3′,5′-tetramethoxy-5,7,4′-trihydroxyflavone has been shown to modulate the expression of glucose transporter type 4 (GLUT4). GLUT4 translocation increases cellular glucose uptake in muscle and hepatic cells, providing a mechanism independent of the HMG-CoA lyase pathway.
In terms of potential mechanisms of action, the molecule HLBT-100 demonstrated effect on the cell cycle as evidenced by the accumulation of cells with sub-G1 DNA content, activation of caspase 3/7, DNA fragmentation, and culminating in apoptotic cell death.
HLBT-100 also demonstrated antiangiogenic potential by inhibiting capillary sprout and tube formation in a dose-dependent manner in the ex vivo rat aortic ring.
It has been reported that triterpenes and polyphenols enhance effector cell-mediated immune response, antigen presentation, and T cell recognition. These compounds have been identified as the main components of T. usneoides ethanolic extract, suggesting that this extract may have an important immunomodulatory activity.
A bio-guided fractionation using agar overlay bioautography as a screening method against 12 Gram-positive, Gram-negative, sensitive, and resistant bacterial strains demonstrated the inhibition of Gram-positive methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 29213 (MSSA), methicillin-resistant S. aureus N-SARM-1 (MRSA), and Staphylococcus caprae ATCC 35538 by the dichloromethane fraction of T. bergeri.
Evidence level: Preclinical (animal and in vitro) only. No human clinical trials identified.
Experimental rat models showed significant reductions in fasting blood glucose and serum CRP levels after ball moss administration. These findings indicate its potential effectiveness in managing Type II diabetes.
Medon, Broughton, and Keller (1985) reported antidiabetic activity of Tillandsia usneoides (Spanish moss) extracts in naïve diabetic and alloxan diabetic rats.
The key hypoglycemic constituent was identified in a landmark 1995 study. Witherup, McLaughlin, Judd, Ziegler, Medon, and Keller (1995) reported the identification of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaric acid (HMG) as a hypoglycemic principle of Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides) in the Journal of Natural Products.
T. usneoides has been used by the indigenous Zenúes in the Urabá region for diabetes management. However, few studies have been published on T. usneoides. The scientific validation of these activities has not been performed in depth. All current evidence for antidiabetic activity remains at the preclinical stage.
Evidence level: Preclinical (in vitro and murine in vivo). No human clinical trials identified.
HLBT-100 from T. recurvata (in vitro, NCI60 panel):
A flavonoid of the flavanone class was isolated from T. recurvata with potent anticancer activity, code named HLBT-100. The compound inhibited brain cancer (U87 MG), breast cancer (MDA-MB231), leukemia (MV4-11), melanoma (A375), and neuroblastoma (IMR-32) with IC₅₀ concentrations of 0.054, 0.030, 0.024, 0.003, and 0.05 µM, respectively. The molecule also exhibited broad anticancer activity in the NCI60 panel inhibiting especially hematological, colon, CNS, melanoma, ovarian, breast, and prostate cancers. Twenty-three of the NCI60 cell lines were inhibited with GI₅₀ values <0.100 µM.
This paper describes for the first time the anticancer activity of HLBT-100 isolated from T. recurvata. The broad and selective anticancer activity of HLBT-100, evidenced by its potent activity against IMR-32, a CNS cancer cell line, while not being active against neuro-2a, a normal CNS cell line, makes the molecule a potential candidate for further development targeting especially those cancers that remain in the unmet need category such as glioblastoma multiforme and acute myeloid leukemia.
T. usneoides extract in murine breast cancer and melanoma (in vivo):
In a 2022 study, researchers evaluated the effect of ethanolic extract of T. usneoides in vitro and in vivo in models of 4T1 breast cancer and B16-F10 melanoma. In vitro evaluations with both cell lines showed that the extract has cytotoxic activity and induces apoptotic cell death. However, its effect on ROS production and glucose uptake was opposite. In vivo, only in the 4T1 model, a significant decrease in tumor size was found in animals treated with the extract, accompanied by an increase in dendritic cells and activated CD8⁺ T cells, and a decrease in myeloid-derived suppressor-like cells (MDSC-LC) and Tregs in the tumor microenvironment.
The extract regulated the metabolism of the 4T1 and B16-F10 cell lines in an antagonistic manner, with a significant impact on the tumor microenvironment, apparently related to the enhancement of an effective antitumor immune response, allowing the reduction of the 4T1 tumor but not of B16-F10. This demonstrates cancer-type-specific responses and significant limitations of generalizing any antitumor claims.
Jamaican ball moss (T. recurvata) in vitro cytotoxicity:
In vitro research showed that a crude chloroform extract of the Jamaican ball moss was cytotoxic against five human cancer cell lines: A375 (melanoma), BC (breast), DU-124 (prostate), MCF-7 (breast), and PC-3 (prostate cancer). Additionally, more recent studies showed that the methanol extracts were cytotoxic against five histogenic cancer cell lines. The study found that extracts were cytotoxic against five cancer cell lines, including PC-3 and MCF-7, with IC₅₀ values below 20 µg/ml.
All anticancer evidence for Tillandsia remains strictly preclinical. No human clinical trials have been conducted.
Evidence level: Preclinical (in vitro) only. No clinical trials in humans identified.
A phytochemical study of Tillandsia usneoides L. (Spanish moss) was conducted, from which a flavonol type of glycoside having weak antibacterial activity against M. aureus was isolated.
A more recent and targeted investigation in T. bergeri published in 2022 used bioautography-guided fractionation: a bio-guided fractionation was performed using agar overlay bioautography as a screening method against 12 Gram-positive, Gram-negative, sensitive, and resistant bacterial strains. The results showed the inhibition of Gram-positive MSSA, MRSA, and Staphylococcus caprae ATCC 35538 by the dichloromethane fraction. The isolation and identification of two flavones — penduletin and viscosine — were isolated for the first time from T. bergeri. The combination of these compounds with vancomycin and cloxacillin showed synergistic activity.
Several extracts and compounds from Tillandsia spp. have been reported with pharmacological actions, including antifungal, anti-HSV-1, and microbicide activities.
Evidence level: Preclinical (in vitro) only. No clinical trials in humans identified.
The antiviral activity of several medicinal plants from the Brazilian Atlantic Tropical Forest was investigated against two viruses: herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) and poliovirus type 2 (PV-2). Cuphea carthagenensis and Tillandsia usneoides extracts showed the best antiherpes activity. T. usneoides dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, and n-butanol extracts showed inhibition of HSV-1, strain 29R/acyclovir resistant. Only L. alba ethyl acetate extract showed antipoliovirus activity.
Evidence level: Preliminary. Animal studies and limited early human data on isolated HMG compound. No robust clinical trials identified for the whole plant.
The HMG compound from T. usneoides has structural relevance to lipid metabolism. Studies have examined the effects of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaric acid on plasma and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in familial hypercholesterolemia, published in The Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. Participants in those studies were genetically predisposed to high cholesterol levels, and they experienced limited side effects. However, these investigations relate to isolated HMG as a pharmacological compound and do not constitute evidence for whole-plant or standard extract preparations of Tillandsia.
The broader pharmacological classification confirms: several extracts and compounds from Tillandsia spp. have been reported with pharmacological actions including hypolipidemic activity.
Evidence level: Early preclinical (in vitro, rat neurons). No human data available.
Traditional medicine has been reported to utilize the entire plant for the treatment of heart conditions, rheumatism, bronchitis, fever, ulcers, diabetes, and to possess diuretic properties. At the level of the nervous system, it is also used as an analgesic and for the treatment of epilepsy. Compounds such as cycloartane-type triterpenes and methoxylated flavanones have been reported in the plant. Research has aimed to determine the chemical composition of Tillandsia usneoides and evaluate its biological activity in inducing neuroplasticity in cortical neurons of rat embryos.
Evidence level: Preclinical only. No human clinical trials identified.
Other Tillandsia genera exhibit anti-inflammatory and cytotoxic activity in vitro against different tumor cells. The anti-inflammatory traditional use of the plant — including for rheumatism and gastritis — has been frequently referenced in ethnobotanical surveys, but has not been validated in controlled human studies.
No standardized dosages for human consumption have been established through clinical trials. The following dosages and formats are reported strictly as they appear in the cited preclinical or historical literature:
No peer-reviewed human clinical trial defining dosage, standardized extract concentration, or safe dosing range for Tillandsia preparations as a dietary supplement has been identified in the literature searched.
T. usneoides has been used in the control of diabetes, and its activity is attributed to the presence of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaric acid (HMG), described in the literature as a highly toxic compound. The mechanisms and dose thresholds of HMG toxicity in humans have not been fully characterized in the available literature on the plant itself, though HMG-CoA lyase inhibition at high doses would be expected to interfere with ketone body synthesis and energy metabolism.
A critically important safety consideration for plant material collected from wild or urban environments is the well-documented capacity of Tillandsia usneoides to absorb and bioaccumulate heavy metals from its surrounding atmosphere. T. usneoides, known as Spanish moss, was identified to rapidly and effectively absorb mercury (Hg). T. usneoides was increasingly used as a bioindicator because Hg content accumulated in its body shows a linear relationship with atmospheric Hg concentration. Heavy metal concentrations in plant specimens collected from contaminated sites have been found significantly higher compared to control sites, with an increasing concentration pattern as follows: Cd < Cr < Pb < Cu < Zn.
This bioaccumulation property means that plant material gathered from near industrial zones, highways, or heavily trafficked areas may carry substantial loads of lead, cadmium, chromium, copper, zinc, and mercury — posing a direct toxicological risk to individuals who consume or prepare decoctions from wild-harvested material without testing.
Pharmacological investigations have revealed the plant to possess estrogenic activity. The flavone glycoside(s) appear to be responsible for these actions. This constitutes a potential interaction concern for individuals taking estrogen-sensitive medications or with hormone-sensitive conditions, though no human data characterizing the magnitude or clinical significance of this estrogenic effect are available.
Given that HMG is structurally related to the pharmacological target of statins (HMG-CoA reductase), potential interactions with cholesterol-lowering medications, antidiabetic agents, and drugs relying on ketone body metabolism are biologically plausible, but have not been characterized in clinical studies.
With 71% of Jamaican patients reporting herbal remedy use before doctor consultations, understanding potential adverse interactions is essential. Existing monitoring systems are inadequate for tracking unique dietary supplement formulations.
No systematic human safety trials, formal toxicological studies in humans, acceptable daily intake (ADI) values, or regulatory monographs from the WHO, EMA, EFSA, NIH ODS, or Commission E for Tillandsia species used as dietary supplements were identified in the sources searched. Few studies have been published on T. usneoides, and the scientific validation of its activities has not been performed in depth. The absence of a formal safety profile underscores that safety data for human use remain essentially absent from the peer-reviewed record.
Health conditions that Tillandsia may help support.
Body systems that Tillandsia may help support.
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