An Herb for Anti-Aging, He shou wu, fleeceflower root

Anti aging herbs in Asian medicine

There are many herbs for anti-aging or preventive medicine, probably ginseng or lysium fruit is the most known for their effect of anti-aging, but I like to start with he shou wu in anti aging herbal medicine.

He shou wu – Stop your hairs from graying

Pharmaceutical name: Radix Polygoni Multiflori

English: fleeceflower root, polygonum hosuwu

Properties: bitter, sweet, astringent, slight warm

Major known ingredients: chrysophanic acid, emodin, rhein, chrysophanic acid anthrone, lecithin.

Since the ancient china, he shou wu has been well known for its benefit to make hairs dark and people healthy. It helps with liver function and gets rid of fatigue, benefit the skin, strengthen the bone and muscles, and heart so that it also improves neurosis and sleep disorder.

 It helps anemia by generating blood, dysmenorrhea, uterus infection, chronic constipation and so on.
And he shou wu is the very powerful in lifting the energy of the elderly. Its effect on the kidney function keeps people from having grey hairs and shedding and if taken for a long term, it also prevents the aging.

Chinese consider He shou wu together with ginseng, gou qi zi as the three best herbs.

Actions and indications:

• Strengthen the brain and nourishing the blood

Hemorrhage, cerebral anemia, anemic condition for woman after delivery, weakness and fatigue after a long period of chronic disease and neurosis by calming the mind
With fu pen zi, suan zao ren, bai zi ren, It helps Headache with dizziness, forgetfulness, ADHD, insomnia with dreams

•  Strengthen the kidneys and the low back

It strengthens the low back and knees; the soreness and weakness of the back and knees. It also helps impotence, errection difficulty, spermatorrhea with rou chong long, bu gu zi, tu si zi

•  Regulate dysmenorrhea and calm the fetus

With shu di huang, sheng di huang, dang gui, huang qi, for dysmenorrhea, with Korean mistletoe and tu si zi for calme the fetus and stomach pain or hemorrhage during the pregnancy.

•  Moisten the intestines and relieves the toxicity

 Decoctions of he shou wu have shown an inhibitory effect in vitro against Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Shigella fexneri. It increases the absorption of glucose and amino acid in the small instestines and stimulate the intestines so as to relieves constipation. And in one clinical study, 88 patients with high level of cholesterol in the blood were given decoctions of he shou wu and in 78 cases the level of cholesterol decreased.

• Lower the blood pressure and prevent the arteriosclerosis

Without side effect, he shou wu lowers the blood pressure and inhibit cholesterol from accumutating on the liver.

Original picutre : Musangsa Woonsu Herb Gallery