Huai Chrysanthemum from Jili District

Huai Chrysanthemum from Jili District

　　Chrysanthemums can be divided into wild and cultivated varieties, and serve either ornamental or medicinal purposes. They generally come in colors such as white, yellow, purple, and green. It is said that there are over two thousand varieties of chrysanthemums worldwide, with a rich diversity in types and names. Aside from being used for decoration, they can also be consumed medicinally and as tea.

As a medicinal herb, “Huai Chrysanthemum,” produced in the Wen County area of Henan Province, is the most famous and is one of the Four Great Huai Medicinals. Other notable varieties include “Bo Chrysanthemum” and “Chu Chrysanthemum” from Anhui, “Hang Chrysanthemum” from Zhejiang, “Chuan Chrysanthemum” from Sichuan, and “Ji Chrysanthemum” from Shandong. Chrysanthemums have high medicinal value, and Huai Chrysanthemum is classified as a medicinal variety. Traditional Chinese medicine holds that chrysanthemums are cool in nature, having absorbed the pure qi of heaven and earth through the changing seasons, and possess effects such as clearing heat, detoxifying, dispelling wind, calming the liver, and improving vision. According to traditional Chinese medical experience, white chrysanthemums are particularly effective at calming the liver and improving vision, while yellow chrysanthemums are more commonly used to disperse wind and clear heat. Therefore, Huai Chrysanthemum is often used for improving vision, and Hang Chrysanthemum for clearing heat. The “Shennong Bencao Jing” states: “Consuming chrysanthemums makes the body light and prolongs youth,” indicating that chrysanthemums have certain tonic effects. Since the Han Dynasty, it has been customary to drink chrysanthemum wine during the Double Ninth Festival; today, chrysanthemums not only offer a refreshing fragrance that pleases the spirit but also help improve vision and relieve summer heat, alleviating symptoms such as blurred vision, dizziness, and headaches. Dried chrysanthemums can be placed in a cloth bag as a pillow filling, known as a “chrysanthemum pillow.” Sleeping on it allows one to enjoy its fragrance, which helps clear the mind, improve vision, and lower blood pressure. The “Compendium of Materia Medica” records that “chrysanthemum pillows improve vision.”

Modern medical research has proven that chrysanthemums have excellent antibacterial properties and can dilate coronary arteries, making them suitable for both internal consumption and external use. Pharmacological studies have confirmed that the heat-clearing and detoxifying effects of chrysanthemums stem from their broad-spectrum antibacterial action, effectively inhibiting many pathogens including skin fungi, staphylococcus, streptococcus, dysentery bacillus, pseudomonas aeruginosa, and influenza viruses. When made into an extract for external application, chrysanthemums can treat cervical erosion; when used in a decoction for fumigation and washing, they can treat eczema and skin itching. For conditions such as abscesses, boils, or inflamed lymph nodes, a decoction can be taken internally, and fresh chrysanthemums can be crushed to extract juice for topical application. Arthritis sufferers can make knee pads filled with chrysanthemums and aged mugwort for anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving effects. Combining chrysanthemums with heartleaf houttuynia and honeysuckle stems in a decoction can help prevent influenza. Drinking chrysanthemum tea also has an auxiliary blood pressure-lowering effect.

In recent years, the value of chrysanthemums has risen significantly. Medical research institutions have discovered that they are rich in flavonoids, compounds that help dilate coronary arteries and increase coronary blood flow, offering certain therapeutic effects for angina pectoris. Treating coronary heart disease patients with extracts of Huai Chrysanthemum has achieved an efficacy rate of over 58%, especially showing good results in patients who also suffer from hypertension and angina.