Baihua Sour Vine Fruit, also known as Bairangekabuli in Uighur medicine, is the dried fruit of the plant Acidoton nitidus. It grows on slopes, roadsides, hills, or in sunny areas with sparse forests. It is produced in provinces and regions such as Fujian, Guangxi, Guangdong, and Yunnan in China, and is also found in countries abroad such as India, Sri Lanka, and Singapore.
【Morphological Characteristics】
Baihua Sour Vine Fruit is spherical, resembling pepper, with a diameter of 2-6 mm. It has wrinkled texture on the surface, ranging from grayish-white to dark reddish-brown. Under a magnifying glass, clusters of pistils can be seen at the top in a dot-like pattern. The lower end is attached with slightly protruding persistent calyx that is pressed against the fruit skin. Some fruits have a thin stalk measuring 1-3 mm in length. The fruit skin is brittle and easily peelable. The seeds are hard and the seed coat is brown, with an oval-shaped depressed hole at the bottom.
【Efficacy and Indications】
Baihua Sour Vine Fruit has a secondary drying and heating nature, with a slightly sour and sweet taste. It functions to generate dry heat, expel intestinal parasites, clear concentrated body fluids and abnormal viscous fluids and bile, dry dampness, promote tissue healing, enhance digestion, kill parasites, and relieve pain. It is mainly used to treat diseases caused by damp-cold or phlegm, such as intestinal parasites, damp-cold injuries, indigestion, toothache, and joint pain.
Research on the fruit shows that it contains berberine, also known as sour knee fruit acid, purple dandelion quinone, and a small amount of violanin essence. The fruit has the effect of killing intestinal parasites, and the effective component is enberine, while sodium salt of purple dandelion quinone has the effect of expelling roundworms.
【Clinical Applications】
1. For treating arthritis: Boil 9g of Baihua Sour Vine Fruit with an appropriate amount of milk and take orally.
2. For expelling intestinal parasites: Take 1-2g of Baihua Sour Vine Fruit on an empty stomach with an appropriate amount of sugar or honey.
3. For treating indigestion: Use with other digestion-enhancing medications.
Dosage: Take 5-10g orally.
Baihua Sour Vine Fruit is harmful to the intestines, and the corrective medicine is arabic gum. If this product is out of stock, an equivalent amount of small white beans or Lusongjiujia powder can be used as a substitute. Baihua Sour Vine Fruit can also be formulated into pills, decoctions, honey pastes, Hezi pastes, loose powders, and other preparations.
