How to distinguish the authenticity of Cistanche deserticola?

With the development of science and technology, more and more scientific instruments have been invented, and Chinese medicine is not as prosperous as before, so many people basically don’t know about Chinese medicine. For example, Cistanche deserticola, although it is a very precious Chinese medicine, most people probably don’t know much about it, and the Chinese medicine market is also relatively chaotic now. So let’s take a look at how to distinguish the authenticity of Cistanche deserticola!

1. Cistanche deserticola is flat and cylindrical in shape, slightly thinner and slightly curved at one end, about 10 to 30 cm long and 3 to 6 cm in diameter. The surface is gray-brown or brown, densely covered with thick fleshy scales, and the cross-section is a patterned bundle. It has a soft and tough texture, the flesh is oily and not easy to break, the cross-section is brown with white spots and cracks; it has a faint odor and tastes slightly sweet.

2. Irregular shapes such as flat cylindrical, flat spindle, flat oval, flat round, etc., 6 to 8 cm long, 4 to 6.5 cm in diameter, reddish brown, grayish yellow brown or brown in surface, mostly twisted, densely covered with fleshy scales arranged in a slightly imbricate manner, dense on the upper part and sparse on the lower part, the tips of the scales have mostly fallen off, the remaining part is mostly more than 1 cm wide, the whole scale is slightly long triangular, about 1 cm high. It is heavy, hard, not tough, and difficult to break. The cross section has dot-like tubes arranged in rows, mostly gray-brown in color, and some have a black, hard, gelatinous outer ring. There are numerous dark brown dot-like vascular bundles, scattered irregularly, some with small cracks; it has a faint odor and tastes sweet and slightly bitter.

3. Modern pharmacological research has confirmed that the authentic Cistanche contains bioalkali, organic acids, glycosides and crystalline neutral substances. Its water extract or ethanol extract has a hypotensive effect, and its active ingredients can promote saliva secretion. Although the fake Cistanche tubulosa is also a plant of the Orobanchaceae family, it is only used as a traditional product in Xinjiang and is not included in the "Chinese Pharmacopoeia". It does not fully possess the effects of the authentic Cistanche, so it cannot replace the authentic Cistanche for medicinal purposes.

4. Cistanche deserticola is also known as Dayun, Cunyun and Cistanche deserticola. Cistanche deserticola is a parasitic plant that lives on the roots of the desert trees Haloxylon ammodendron and Tamarix chinensis. It has low requirements for soil and water and is a promising industry. Distributed in Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, Gansu and Xinjiang, it is known as the "Desert Ginseng". It is a commonly used tonic Chinese medicine with extremely high medicinal value. It is also a traditional precious Chinese medicinal material in my country and one of the most frequently used tonic medicines in kidney-tonifying and aphrodisiac prescriptions throughout the ages. Cistanche is warm in nature and sweet in taste. It enters the kidney and has the effects of nourishing the kidney and replenishing essence, moistening dryness, and lubricating the intestines. It is used to treat male impotence, female infertility, leucorrhea, metrorrhagia, cold pain in the waist and knees, blood deficiency and constipation.

The above introduces some issues about the authenticity of Cistanche. Although the current market in various industries is relatively chaotic, we should still pay more attention to it in normal times. In addition, we must do our own duties well and never do something fraudulent to make huge profits. This is unethical and illegal.