Rumor:

In the mountains of some rural areas, there is a kind of weed like this, which is called the "King of Medicine" by the local people. What kind of good treasure can it be called? What about the "King of Medicine"? It is said that this kind of weed can also cure cancer. The price is as high as three to four hundred yuan per 500g. If you can pick it, it is a treasure.

This "King of Medicine" also has another particularly beautiful name, called "Golden Thread Hanging Gourd", because the fruit it bears looks like a small gourd, so it also has this reputation. Its scientific name is actually Trifolium Clover, and the whole plant can be used as medicine, with the underground roots and fruits having the best medicinal effects.

Clover basically blooms from March to June every year, and bears fruit from April to autumn. Its flowering period is generally relatively long, and the fruit will appear about a month after the flowering ends. The fruit is bright red in color when ripe.

Three-leaf greens with a growth period of more than three years are selected for picking every year from the winter solstice to the hibernation of hibernation, because the roots of the three-leaf greens picked at this time have high starch content, good quality and the best medicinal effects.

It is sweet in taste, cool in nature, has nourishing effect, and is known as the best.

Three-leaf green is mainly produced in Hunan, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Fujian, Taiwan, Guangdong, etc. It grows in hillside shrubs, valleys, and under forest rock crevices by streams. Because of their different origins, Their growth shapes and medicinal properties will also be slightly different. However, they are all valuable medicinal materials, but the quantity is small, and not many people know them. Many people miss them as weeds.

The reason why Clover is loved by farmers is because of its medicinal value.

Refuting rumors:

Tetrastigma hemsleyanum Diels et Gilg is a perennial herbaceous climbing vine, with its Chinese scientific name Tetrastigma hemsleyanum Diels et Gilg, and its common name "Yizhu". The famous golden thread hanging gourd, snake aconite, stone spores, stone monkey, stone mouse, mountain tiger, thunder gallbladder, and broken stone bead are the genus Albertisia Becc of the grape family (Vitaceae). ) Tetrastigma Subgen. is a plant whose dried roots are used as medicine. It is mainly distributed in parts of the south such as Hunan, Hubei, Guangdong, Guangxi, Jiangxi, Fujian, Zhejiang, Chongqing, Sichuan, Guizhou and other places. It is also a local Commonly used folk medicines are recorded in "Chronicles of Traditional Chinese Medicine", "Dictionary of Traditional Chinese Medicine", and "National Compilation of Traditional Chinese Medicine", but are not included in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia.

The medicinal part of Clover is the root. It is cool in nature, slightly bitter in taste, and non-toxic. It has the functions of clearing heat and detoxifying, promoting blood circulation and dispersing stagnation, reducing inflammation and relieving pain, dispelling wind and phlegm, regulating qi and strengthening the spleen. It is commonly used among the people to treat high fever, chronic pharyngitis, tonsillitis, hepatitis, pneumonia, etc. Infectious diseases such as gastritis and lymphatic tuberculosis.

In recent years, relevant pharmacological studies have shown that Trifolia trifoliata, as a regional traditional Chinese medicine, has anti-inflammatory effects and has been found to have anti-tumor effects. Among them, the research department has successively carried out analysis of the respiratory system tumor inhibition of Clover. For example, Cheng Wei et al. reported that certain studies have been carried out on lung cancer cells A549, human lung cancer H1299, lung cancer A549 nude mouse transplanted tumors, Lewis lung cancer-bearing mice, etc.; Lin Jing et al.’s research suggests that total flavonoids are one of the main anti-tumor pharmacological substances of Trifolium aeruginosa. According to the plant distribution area, there are two main types of wild clover. One is Wisteria clover. The skin color of the vine near the roots is purple-brown in the mature stage. It is mainly distributed in Zhejiang, Jiangxi and other places north of 27.3° north latitude. The other is Ivy trifoliate. The surface color of the vine is bluish-white. It is mainly distributed in Fujian, Hunan, Guangxi, Yunnan and other places south of 27.3° north latitude. It is generally believed that Wisteria clover is an authentic medicinal species. However, the roots of Ivy trifoliate are cold in nature and its medicinal efficacy is not as good as that of Wisteria trifoliata. Authentic Wisteria clover tubers are scarce in quantity and the price is very high.

Because of the medicinal value of Triphylla trifoliata, especially in recent years, the results of modern pharmacological research on Trifolia triphylla extract have been discovered, the importance of the medicinal value of Triphylla trifoliata has increased. As a result, the price of clover has increased, and some profit-seekers have been driven by profits. People have indiscriminately excavated wild clover in the protected area, and even carried out destructive mining, destroying the ecological structure of the clover population. This makes it difficult to regenerate naturally. The current scale and output of artificial planting are still insufficient. The side cycle effect has also caused the price of clover to rise.

People who are not professional also use its miraculous effects and even regard its fruits as tonics and exaggerate them.

However, "the medicine is three parts poisonous." It was recently reported that the emergency department of Chenzhou First People's Hospital received three patients who were poisoned by eating raw trifoliate green tea. According to the family members, they bought Trifolium Amaranth fruit at the farmer’s market and heard that it can treat swollen lymph nodes. However, a few hours later, he developed numbness in the mouth and tongue, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea several times, and was rushed to Chenzhou First People's Hospital for further treatment. After receiving the diagnosis, the emergency department physician immediately assessed the patient's vital signs and asked about the patient's medical history. Based on the patient's medical history, symptoms, signs and auxiliary examinations, he diagnosed trifoliate poisoning because trifoliate has a direct gastrointestinal irritation effect.

Three-leaf green is an endangered Chinese herbal medicine, and its efficacy cannot be exaggerated just because it is rare.

Tonics need to be selected according to the person's physical characteristics, and the appropriate dosage and course of treatment also need to be determined, otherwise they will have adverse and harmful effects on the human body. When we know it, we must correctly understand its medicinal properties and use it correctly under the guidance of a doctor to cure diseases and maintain health.

Therefore, people need to be reminded that the inhibitory effect of Clover on tumors and other diseases is still under study and has not been included in relevant treatment guidelines. Moreover, the pharmacological effects discovered in the research are obtained from the extract of Trifolium aeruginosa through modern extraction methods, and cannot be achieved by the original medicinal material itself through conventional and traditional usage. We hope that patients will not believe in unrealistic rumors or blindly follow advertisements or certain commercial information. For the treatment of diseases, professional doctors should conduct diagnosis, determine the appropriate treatment drugs, dosage, and course of treatment, and observe problems that arise during treatment.

Producer: Popular Science China - Scientific Rumor Refutation

Rumor Refutation Expert: Li Ping, Deputy Director and Researcher of Beijing Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine

Review Expert: Feng Lei, Peking Union Medical College Hospital Chief Pharmacist