Antiosteoporosis Studies of 20 Medicine Food Homology Plants Containing Quercetin, Rutin, and Kaempferol: TCM Characteristics, In Vivo and In Vitro Activities, Potential Mechanisms, and Food Functions
Table 1
The list of 20 medicine food homology plants and their TCM characteristics.
Classification in TCM&
Botanical name
English name#(Chinese name)
Nature
Flavor
Attributive to meridian tropism
Efficiency in TCM
Heat-clearing CMHs
Portulaca oleracea
Purslane (Machixian)
Cold
Sour
Intestine, liver, and spleen
Clears away heat and relieves toxins, cools the blood, and stops bleeding.
Houttuynia cordata
Heartleaf Houttuynia herb (Yuxingcao)
Slight cold
Pungent
Lung
Clears away heat and relieves toxins, treats carbuncle and promotes pus drainage, and promotes diuresis to treat stranguria.
Prunella vulgaris
Common selfheal spike (Xiakucao)
Cold
Bitter and pungent
Liver and gallbladder
Clears away liver-fire and disperses stagnation.
Canarium album
Immature Tomentosa Terminalia (Qingguo)
Cool
Sweet and sour
Stomach and lung
Clears away heat and relieves toxins, eases the throat, and resolves phlegm.
Hovenia acerba
Raisin tree seed (Zhijuzi)
Neutral
Sweet and bitter
Stomach
Clears away heat and promotes diuresis, and relieves alcohol toxins.
Cichorium intybus
Chicory (Juju)
Cool
Bitter and salty
Spleen, liver, and bladder
Clears away liver-fire, relieves constipation, and promotes diuresis.
Tonics
Panax ginseng
Ginseng (Renshen)
Neutral
Sweet and slightly bitter
Spleen, lung, and heart
Invigorates renal qi, strengthens qi of the spleen and lung, promotes production of the body fluids to quench thirst, and calms the mind to promote intelligence.
Morus alba
Mulberry fruit (Sangshen)
Cold
Sweet
Heart, liver and kidney
Nourishes yin and enriches the blood, nourishes the liver, and invigorates the kidney.
Polygonatum sibiricum
Siberian Solomon’s seal rhizome (Huangjing)
Neutral
Sweet
Spleen, lung, and kidney
Moistens the lung and nourishes the kidney, invigorates the kidney, and benefits qi.
Lycium barbarum
Wolfberry fruit (Gouqizi)
Neutral
Sweet
Liver and kidney
Tonifies the kidney and benefits essence, and nourishes the liver and improves eyesight.
Rubus chingii
Palmleaf raspberry fruit (Fupenzi)
Warm
Sweet and sour
Liver and kidney
Benefits the kidney to preserve the essence and reduces the frequency of urination, and nourishes the liver to treat eye diseases.
The interior warming CMHs
Eugenia caryophyllata
Clove (Dingxiang)
Warm
Pungent
Spleen, stomach, and kidney
Warms the middle energizer to low the adverse rising qi, and promotes circulation of qi and alleviates pain.
Zanthoxylum schinifolium /Zanthoxylum bungeanum
Bunge pricklyath pericarp (Huajiao)
Hot
Pungent
Spleen, stomach, and kidney
Warms the middle energizer to alleviate pain.
Alpinia officinarum
Lesser galangal rhizome (Gaoliangjiang)
Hot
Pungent
Spleen and stomach
Expels cold and relieves pain, and warms the spleen and stomach to stop vomiting.
Diaphoretics with pungent-cool property
Morus alba
Mulberry leaf (Sangye)
Cold
Bitter and sweet
Lung and liver
Expels wind and heat, clears away lung heat and moisturizes dryness, and clears away liver-fire to treat eye diseases.
Chrysanthemum morifolium
Chrysanthemum flower (Juhua)
Cold
Bitter and pungent
Lung and liver
Expels wind and clears away heat, clears liver-fire to treat eye diseases, and eliminates toxic substances.
Phlegm resolving, antitussive and antiasthmatic CMHs
Siraitia acerba
Siraitia fruit (Luohanguo)
Cool
Sweet
Lung and spleen
Resolves phlegm and arrests cough, clears away lung heat and eases throat, and moistens the intestine to relieve constipation.
Hippophae rhamnoides
Sea buckthorn fruit (Shaji)
Warm
Sour and astringent
Lung, spleen, stomach, and liver
Resolves phlegm and arrests cough, and nourishes the spleen and stomach.
CMHs for invigorating the blood and removing blood stasis
Crocus sativus
Saffron crocus style and stigma (Xihonghua)
Warm
Pungent
Heart and liver
Promotes blood circulation to remove blood stasis, promotes menstruation, and alleviates pain.
Dampness-removing CMHs
Coix lacryma-jobi
Adlay (Yiyiren)
Cold
Sweet
Spleen, stomach, and lung
Promotes diuresis to resolve dampness and invigorates the spleen, treats Bi-syndrome, and clears away heat to drain the pus.
Notes. Botanical name, Chinese name, natures, flavors, attributive to meridian tropism, and efficiency in TCM are according to Chinese Pharmacopoeia (Chinese Pharmacopoeia Commission, China Medical Science Press, Beijing, China, 2020). #English name is according to the Chinese Herbal Medicine Name Dictionary (Z. W. Xie, Beijing Science and Technology Press, Beijing, China, 2004). &Classification in TCM is according to the Science of Chinese Materia Medica (D. C. Tang and J. Y. Xun, Publishing House of Shanghai University of TCM, Shanghai, China, 2003). Abbreviations: TCM, traditional Chinese medicine; CMHs, Chinese medicine herbs.