The efficacy and function of wolfberry

As a traditional Chinese medicine, wolfberry has great medicinal value and can treat many diseases. Let’s take a closer look at it below.

【English name】Bur Beggarticks

[Other names] Wujie, Wupa, Langye grass, wolf reflection grass, little ghost fork, bean dregs grass, needle bag grass, lead wallet, lead bag, wolf shame grass, cut Cai Mamba, fork grass, old crab fork, field chrysanthemum, ghost fork

[Source] Medicinal material source: the whole herb of wolfberry and dwarf wolfberry, which belong to the Asteraceae family.

[Original form] 1. Wolfberry, annual herb, 20-150cm tall. The stem is cylindrical or obtusely ridged and slightly square, green or purple, glabrous, and branched at the top. Leaves are opposite, the lower ones are smaller, undivided, with blunt teeth on the edges, and usually wither during flowering; the middle leaves are petiolate, 0.8-2.5cm long, with narrow wings; the leaf blades are oblong-lanceolate, 4-13cm long, undivided or nearly lanceolate, with larger terminal lobes, gradually narrowed at both ends, and serrated; the upper leaves are smaller, lanceolate-three-lobed or undivided. The capitulate inflorescence is solitary with a long peduncle; the involucre is disc-shaped, with 5-9 outer bracts, linear or spoon-shaped oblanceolate, obtuse at the apex, leaf-shaped, with warp hairs, and the inner bracts are brown with longitudinal stripes and clear or light yellow edges; the pedicels are linear-lanceolate, with brown stripes on the back and transparent edges; there are no ligulate flowers, the tubular flowers are bisexual, and the rim is 4-lobed; the anther base is obtuse, with an elliptical appendage at the apex, and the filaments are widened at the top. Achenes are flat, cuneate or obovate-cuneate, with barbed hairs on the edges, usually two thorns at the tip, and barbed hairs on both sides. Flowering and fruiting period is from August to October.

[Habitat distribution] Ecological environment: 1. Growing in roadside wilderness and waterside wetlands.

[Cultivation] Due to its biological characteristics, this plant has strong adaptability and can be found wild on hillsides, valleys, stream banks, grasses and roadsides. It likes warm and humid environment, and has strict requirements on soil. It can be planted in general soil, but sandy loam and clay loam rich in humus are preferred.

[Properties] Identification of properties: the stem is slightly square, branches grow from the base, roots grow on the nodes, and the surface is green with a slight purple-red color. Leaves are opposite, petioles are narrowly winged, middle leaves are often pinnate, lobes are elliptic or oblong-lanceolate, with serrated edges; upper leaves are 3-lobed or undivided, capitula are terminal or axillary; involucral bracts are lanceolate, leaf-like with ciliate lines; flowers are yellow-brown, without ligulate flowers. It has a faint smell and a slightly bitter taste.

[Chemical composition] There are few studies on the chemical composition of plants in this genus in China. The whole herb of Bidens spp. produced in the United States contains acetylenic compounds (C14-acetylene and C17-acetylene) and monoterpene diol (monoterpenediol); the root of Bidens graveolens Mart. (new proposal) contains geraniol, bicyclogeraniol, and cinnamyl acetate, and the above-ground part contains geraniol, bicyclogeraniol, and spaihulenol.

[Pharmacological action] The whole herb extract injected into animals has sedative, antihypertensive and slightly increased heart rate amplitude effects; internal administration can act as a diuretic and sweating agent.

【Nature and flavor】 Sweet; slightly bitter; cool in nature

【Functions and indications】 Clears away heat and detoxifies; promotes the flow of dampness; regulates menstruation. It is used to treat lung heat cough, hemoptysis, sore throat, dysentery, jaundice, irregular menstruation, amenorrhea, infantile carbuncle, tuberculosis, eczema, ringworm, and snake bites.

[Usage and Dosage] For oral use: decoct in water, 10-30g, double the amount for fresh product; or mash into juice and drink. For external use: take appropriate amount and mash it for application; grind it into powder and sprinkle or mix it for application.

[Discussions by various scholars] "Xinhua Compendium of Materia Medica": The whole plant: used for colds, whooping cough, and dysentery.

【Excerpt】 Chinese Materia Medica

The above is a detailed introduction to the effects and functions of wolfberry. Its selection should be based on your own needs, so that it will not harm your body and can achieve a good effect in improving the disease.