The efficacy and function of Tibetan pepper seeds

Tibetan pepper seeds are a very common Chinese medicinal material in daily life. They have high medicinal and nutritional value to the human body, and are not too difficult to purchase. Let’s analyze several aspects of Tibetan pepper seeds below.

[Source] Medicinal material source: The seeds of Zanthoxylum bungeanum of the Rutaceae family.

【Original form】 Climbing shrub, 1m high. Young branches slightly pubescent, then almost glabrous, dark gray, with short, downward-curved prickles. The odd-pinnate compound leaves are alternate, papery, and 10-15cm long including the petiole; the petiole is 1-2.5cm long, the surface of the petiole and rachis is sunken into small grooves, covered with short soft hairs, and with short and downward-curved spines; the petiolules are very short; the leaflets are 9-15, ovate, broadly ovate or oblong ovate, 2.5-5m long, 1.5-3.5cm wide, with acute or cusp at the apex, broadly cuneate or nearly rounded at the base, with sharp serrations on the margins, and thick glandular dots on the serrations and back of the leaves, dark green and shiny above, light green below, with 10-14 pairs of lateral veins, connected into a net before reaching the leaf margin, the vein net is very dense, slightly convex on both sides. The inflorescence is terminal and dioecious; the rachis and pedicels are almost glabrous, sometimes with short, downward-curved prickles. The fruit pedicel is round, 5-8mm long, and the carpels are usually 4. When immature, the follicles are nearly spherical, with a diameter of 4-5mm. When mature, the fruit lobes are larger, with a diameter of 6-7mm. The peel is brown-brown, and the oil spots on the peel become sunken and pit-shaped after drying, which are gray-black to brown-black. The seeds are spherical, black and shiny. Fruiting period is September-October.

[Habitat distribution] Ecological environment: Growing in evergreen broad-leaved forests at an altitude of 2000-2900m.

【Nature and flavor】 Bitter; warm

【Functions and indications】Diuretic and anti-edema. Mainly used for edema, ascites, and urinary incontinence

[Usage and Dosage] For oral use: decocted in water, 3-6g.

【Excerpt】 Chinese Materia Medica

In order to let more friends know about Tibetan pepper seeds, you can introduce them to your friends so that more people will know how to use Tibetan pepper seeds as a medicine.