The efficacy and function of Chinese poppy

Poppy is a medicinal material. If we have some understanding of its medicinal value, we can use it correctly to treat some related diseases in life. Let’s take a look at it below.

[Alias] Mountain poppy, wild poppy, Tibetan nasturtium.

[Source] Medicinal material source: the husk or whole herb of Papaver somniferum, a plant of the Papaveraceae family.

[Original form] Poppy is a perennial herb. The whole plant is sparsely covered with fine hard hairs and has white latex. Root fusiform. The rhizome is stout, solitary or multi-capital, straw-like, and enclosed in imbricate, enlarged leaf sheaths. There are more than 10 leaves, all basal; with long petioles; leaf blades ovate or ovate-triangular, 7-20cm long, up to 13cm wide, pinnately divided, with 3-4 pairs of lobes, ovate, deeply pinnately divided or shallowly lobed, sometimes the base lobes split for the third time, the lobes are oblong, narrowly ovate or lanceolate, with obtuse or rounded apex; entire; sparsely covered with fine hairs on both sides. Flowers are solitary during the flowering season, with 1 to more than 10 peduncles, 15-48cm high, sparsely covered with closely attached micro-hard hairs; sepals are about 1.5cm long, with long soft hairs on the outside, falling off when flowering; petals are 4, 2 whorls, the outer 2 are larger, obovate, 1.5-3cm long, with irregular crenates on the edges, orange-yellow; stamens are numerous, 1.2-1.6cm long, filaments are awl-shaped, anthers are oblong, about 2mm long; ovary is obovate, 0.7-1.5cm long, sparsely covered with micro-hard hairs, stigmas are 4-6, forming a radiating disk, with deeply notched crenates on the edges, flat. The capsule is oblong or obovate-spherical, covered with slight hard hairs, and about 0.7-1.5cm long. Seeds small, striated, brown. The flowering period is from June to August, and the fruiting period is from July to September.

[Habitat distribution] Ecological environment: Growing on hillsides, ditchside grasslands or alpine meadows at an altitude of 1800-2650m.

[Chemical composition] The fruit of Papaver somniferum contains nudicauline, amurensinine, re-framidine, nudicaulonol, papaverine and cedine. The whole plant also contains amurine and amuroline. The flowers contain pelargoni-din-3-gentianoside and nudicaulin.

[Pharmacological action] 1. Antitussive and antiasthmatic effects: The water decoction and its total bioalkali have shown antitussive effects in preliminary animal experiments. It has a significant dilating effect on the trachea of ​​isolated guinea pigs and an antiasthmatic effect in the guinea pig histamine spray test.

【Nature and flavor】 Sour; slightly bitter; cool; slightly toxic

[Functions and indications] Astringes the lungs and stops cough; astringes the intestines and stops diarrhea; relieves pain. Mainly used for chronic cough and wheezing; chronic diarrhea; chronic dysentery; headache; stomachache; heart and abdomen pain; rheumatic pain; traumatic injury

[Usage and Dosage] For oral use: decocted in water, 3-9g. Grind into powder, 2-3g.

【Note】 Do not take this medicine if you have phlegm-heat or excess evil.

【Excerpt】 Chinese Materia Medica

In the above article, we analyzed the Chinese poppy and learned that its functions and effects are very wide-ranging. As long as we know more about the medicinal properties of traditional Chinese medicine, we will not panic when we encounter diseases.