The efficacy and function of wild licorice

There are so many medicinal herbs in the world, and it is inevitable that there are some that we are not familiar with. But as long as we have the spirit of learning throughout our lives, I believe we can slowly learn more medical herbs. So do you know about the medicinal herb wild licorice?

[Other names] Xiangyi, Zhuzicao (Fujian Folk Herbs), false licorice, wild licorice, false wolfberry (Guangxi Chinese Materia Medica), Four Seasons Tea (Southern Fujian Folk Herbs), Bingtangcao (Guangdong Chinese Medicine II), Tonghuacao (Guangxi Chinese Herbs), Jiejiezhu (Fujian Chinese Herbs).

[Source] The whole plant of Glycyrrhiza uralensis of the Scrophulariaceae family. It can be harvested throughout the year and used fresh or dried.

[Original morphology] Subshrub, 25 to 80 cm tall, completely glabrous. The roots are thick. The stem is erect, branched, and woody at the bottom. The leaves are small, opposite and whorled, lanceolate to elliptic or obovate, 5 to 20 mm long, mucronate at the apex, gradually narrowing at the base to form a short petiole, with serrated edges. The flowers are small, numerous, white, solitary or paired; there are 4 sepals, ovate-rectangular, about 2 mm long; the corolla is radial, 4-lobed, the lobes are elliptical, the flower diameter is 4-5 mm, and there is hair at the throat; there are 4 stamens, the anthers are arrow-shaped, yellow-green; there is 1 pistil, the style is slender, and the stigma is disc-shaped. The capsule is ovoid to spherical, 2 to 3 mm in diameter, with persistent style that cracks when ripe. Flowering period is between summer and autumn.

[Habitat distribution] Grown in wasteland and village edges. Distributed in Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Taiwan and other places. Produced in Guangxi, Guangdong, Fujian and other places.

[Properties] The dry stems are yellow-green, the twigs have fine stripes, and are smooth and hairless. The leaves are mostly curled, and the capsules are small spherical, often cracked, and tiny powdery seeds are released. The main root is cylindrical, straight or curved, often giving rise to lateral roots and regenerated fine roots. The main root is 10 to 15 cm long, with a root head diameter of about 8 mm and a middle diameter of about 5 mm. The surface is light yellow with longitudinal wrinkles. The texture is hard and brittle, the cross section is cracked, light yellowish green, the cortex is very thin, and the pith line of the wood is clear.

[Chemical composition] The whole plant (aerial part) contains 1.6% bioalkaloids, glycyrrhizin and the anti-diabetic ingredient amalin. The root contains about 1% mannitol and tannins. The root bark contains hexadecanoic acid, β-sitosterol and D-mannitol.

[Pharmacological action] Intravenous injection of water or alcohol extracts of the roots into anesthetized cats can cause a decrease in blood pressure and respiratory depression, and has an excitatory effect on the isolated toad heart. It inhibits the tension and movement of the isolated rabbit duodenum. It has a slight stimulating effect on the isolated rat uterus. It had no effect on the isolated guinea pig ileum and toad rectus abdominis muscle. The aqueous extract was highly toxic to mice, while the alcohol extract was almost non-toxic.

【Properties and flavors】 ① "Fujian Folk Herbs": "sweet, mild, non-toxic."

【Functions and indications】 Clears away heat and detoxifies, promotes diuresis and reduces swelling. It is used to treat lung heat cough, summer heat diarrhea, athlete's foot edema, measles, eczema, prickly heat, laryngitis, and erysipelas.

[Usage and Dosage] For internal use: decoct in water, 2 to 3 liang for fresh ones. For external use: mash and apply.

[Additional prescription] ① Treating edema caused by athlete's foot: 1 liang of fresh wild licorice and 1 liang of brown sugar. Decoction in water, take before meals, twice a day. (Fujian Folk Herbs)

【Excerpt】 《*Dictionary》

【Source】 From "Fujian Folk Herbs"

The above is an introduction to some relevant knowledge about wild licorice. Do you have a better understanding of it? I hope everyone can apply wild licorice in their lives to serve our health.