07/20/2018 / By Frances Bloomfield
Also known as “Bai Bei San Qi,” the Gynura divaricata is a plant known for being one of the most famous traditional Chinese medicine herbs. Widely distributed across southern China, G. divaricata has been utilized in the treatment of numerous diseases, ranging from diabetes to bronchitis to rheumatism to toothaches. Its leaves, stems, and roots can all be used for medicinal applications, and this may be due to its content of numerous and highly varied beneficial compounds. These compounds, their effects, and their uses are what a team of researchers has looked into for their study, published in the African Journal of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicines.
The team made use of a wide array of separation techniques to simplify the identification of the constituents of G. divaricata. These included high-performance liquid chromatography, capillary electrophoresis, and liquid chromatography–mass spectroscopy. Treatment with ethanol, petroleum, ether, and other chemicals was employed as well.
Flavonoids and phenolic compounds were uncovered, some already known and others only found during the course of the study. These compounds, according to the researchers, were responsible for the benefits associated with G. divaricata, most notably:
In addition, these compounds were also linked to the antihypertensive, hypolipidemic, antitumor, and antiproliferation effects of G. divaricata.
As for the culinary applications of G. divaricata, the researched touched on these too. Brewing the leaves and stems into a tea is said to be good for diabetes, while eating a soup of fresh shoots once every two or three days is believed to remedy gastrointestinal upset, improve insomnia, and lower hypertension. Adding the branches and leaves to pork dishes, claim the researchers, can enhance the nutritional value of these meals.
In conclusion, the researchers have recommended that more work be poured into analyzing the pharmacological mechanisms of this plant, as past studies haven’t done this in depth. “Therefore, strengthening the basic research of the G. divaricata in these areas is of great significance to the development of new medicinal resources and medical care,” they suggested.
Go to ChineseMedicine.news to read up on more studies or news stories on the multitude of herbs in traditional Chinese medicine.
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Tagged Under: alternative medicine, food as medicine, food cures, Gynura divaricata, herbal medicine, Herbs, medicinal plants, natural cures, nutrition, plant cures, plant medicine, research, TCM, traditional Chinese medicine