The efficacy and function of gourd

I wonder if you have ever heard of gourd. Gourd seeds are very beneficial for regulating our bodies and can also play a good role in treating some diseases. Today let us look at the relevant knowledge about gourd seeds.

[Other names] Sweet gourd (The Book of Songs), sweet gourd (A Thousand Gold Food Therapy), street-cleaning gourd (Qingyi Lu), dragon honey melon, heavenly melon (Southern Yunnan Materia Medica), long gourd (Compendium of Materia Medica), flat cattail (Collection of Flowers and Plants).

[Source] It is the fruit of the gourd plant of the Cucurbitaceae family . Harvested in summer.

[Original morphology] Annual climbing herb with soft hairs; tendrils are branched. Leaves are alternate, leaf blades are cordate-ovate to reniform-ovate, 10-40 cm long, width is roughly equal to length, slightly angular or 3 shallowly lobed, apex mucronate or obtuse, margin with short teeth, base cordate; petiole is 5-30 cm long, with 2 glandular teeth at the top. The flowers are solitary, blooming in the evening and withering early; the male flowers have long petioles, which are longer than the petioles; the female flowers have shorter petioles. The calyx is 2 to 3 cm long, funnel-shaped, 5-lobed, with narrow triangular teeth and covered with soft hairs; there are 5 petals, white, broadly ovate or obovate, 3 to 4 cm long, 2 to 3 cm wide, with wrinkled edges. The male flower has three stamens, the anthers are combined, one anther has one chamber, and the other two anthers have two chambers each; the female flower has an ovary elliptical, with villi, a short style, and three stigmas, each with two lobes. The fruit is obovate-oblong or oblong-rod-shaped, slightly soft and green when tender, and the skin becomes hard and white or yellow when ripe. Seeds numerous, white, obovate-long, truncate or bi-angular at tip. Flowering period is June. Fruiting period is July.

[Habitat distribution] Cultivated in most parts of the country.

【Nature and flavor】 Sweet, cold.

【Functions and indications】Diuretic, heat-clearing, thirst-quenching and restlessness-relieving. Treat edema, abdominal distension, restlessness, heat, thirst, and sores.

[Usage and Dosage] For oral use: decocted in water, 2-4 liang for fresh product; or burn it and grind into powder. For external use: burn the medicine, grind it into powder and apply it on the affected area.

【Note】 "Qianjin·Food Treatment": "Bian Que said that people suffering from foot ulcer and swelling should not eat it."

[Additional prescription] ① To treat a newborn baby with no skin all over the body: burn a gourd into ashes, mix with oil and apply it on the baby.

【Excerpt】 《*Dictionary》

[Source] 1. "Tang Materia Medica": The taste of gourd is sweet, sometimes bitter and similar to Yue melon. The long one is more than a foot long, and the head and tail are similar. It has similar properties to sweet gourd, and both taste better than winter melon.

Through the above description, we know what gourd is and what effects it has. The medicinal value of gourd is very high, it is beneficial to improve the immune system, and it is a worthy choice for us.