You use it to weave straw hats, but Li Shizhen used it to save lives

When I was a child living in my hometown, there were no playgrounds or toys at that time. We "made" them all by ourselves in the mountains, and every place was our paradise. Like a wild monkey, he runs around the mountains all day long. He has done everything from going up the mountains to catch birds to going down to the river to catch fish. I know better than anyone where the wild fruits in the mountains are and when they can be eaten. I don’t even know the names of the beautiful flowers, but I can just use them to play with.

At that time, I always liked to weave straw hats with flowers on them. I dreamed of making the kind that Concubine Xiang wore in “My Fair Princess”, so flowering vines were the best. The vines are flexible and can be woven into circles. The flowers on them would naturally appear on the straw hat and could even hang down, which really looked like Concubine Xiang’s hat.

When I grew up, I realized that the vine I was aiming at to weave the flower hat was actually the Clematis chinensis, a traditional Chinese medicine. The medicinal Clematis is the dried roots and rhizomes of the Ranunculaceae plants Clematis, Clematis chinensis, or Clematis chinensis. It is pungent, salty, slightly bitter, warm and slightly toxic in nature. It enters the bladder and liver meridians. It has the effects of dispelling wind and dampness, unblocking meridians and relieving pain. It is mainly used to treat rheumatic arthralgia, limb numbness, tendon spasm, flexion and extension difficulties, swollen and painful athlete's foot, and bones stuck in the throat.

Li Shizhen explained its name as: Wei, referring to its fierce nature; Lingxian, referring to its divine powers. Gave a very high evaluation. "Haishang Jiyan Fang": Smilax glabra, can dispel all kinds of wind, open up the twelve meridians, relieve the cold pus and water in the five internal organs, and has a mild laxative effect without thirst. If people take this, their limbs will feel light and strong, their hands and feet will feel warm and cool. "Pharmaceutical Chemistry": Lingxian is fierce and urgent in nature. It moves without staying, and it clears the twelve meridians. It is mainly used to treat wind, dampness, phlegm, and stagnation in the meridians, which lead to gout, pain and sadness in the joints, or swelling, or numbness.

Modern pharmacological research shows that Clematis chinensis has analgesic effects and promotes the contraction of smooth muscles. More importantly, it has anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial effects, significantly reducing infection and inhibiting inflammation. At the same time, Clematis extract has an assimilatory effect on glucose and can be used to lower blood sugar.

However, due to its strong medicinal properties, it cannot be taken for a long time, and those with weak constitutions should use it with caution. "Compendium of Materia Medica": Clematis has a warm nature and a slightly spicy and salty taste. Pungent taste dissipates qi, and salty taste dissipates water, so those with strong qi can take it to quickly cure rheumatism, phlegm and fluid diseases. Its nature is generally laxative, and long-term use may damage the true qi. Those with weak qi should not take it either.