Job's tears

Job's tears

　　Job's tears is a specialty of Hunan, also known as coix seed, Job's tears rice, Job's tears kernel, native corn, Job's tears, qishi, Job's tears bead, grass bead, Huihui rice, rice kernel, or six-grain. It is a well-known and widely eaten food in Hunan. With a sweet, bland, and slightly cool nature, it offers benefits such as promoting diuresis to reduce swelling, strengthening the spleen to eliminate dampness, relaxing tendons to relieve numbness, clearing heat, and draining pus. It is a commonly used diuretic and dampness-draining herb. Job's tears is also a beauty-enhancing food—regular consumption helps maintain glossy and smooth skin, fade freckles, age spots, pregnancy marks, and butterfly patches, and is effective against skin flaking, acne, chapping, pimples, and roughness.

　　Specialty Culture:

　　Legend 1

　　　　Job's tears is a traditional food for beautifying and nourishing the skin, as well as a commonly used medicinal remedy. With a sweet, bland taste and cool nature, it promotes diuresis, drains dampness, strengthens the spleen, nourishes the lungs, clears heat, and drains pus. It is the first choice for treating facial flat warts, acne, and melasma, which are damaging to appearance. Its skin-beautifying effects have been valued for a long time, especially by doctors and women. Legend has it that in ancient times, a woman with skin growths often secretly tasted the Job's tears wine (made from Job's tears and liquor) her husband, a doctor, was brewing. Over time, not only did the growths on her neck disappear unnoticed, but the wrinkles on her face also vanished, making her look much younger. Since then, the beauty-enhancing use of Job's tears wine has been passed down to this day.

　　Legend 2

　　　　Another legend tells of a young lady from a wealthy family in ancient times whose skin lacked elasticity and was as rough as a tung tree’s bark. Despite many treatments, nothing worked. Nearly 24 years old and with no suitors, her father grew anxious. Later, he heard that cooking porridge with Job's tears could cure the condition. So, he had her eat porridge cooked with about 50g of Job's tears three times a day and drink tea made by boiling 100g of clean Job's tears in water. Half a year later, the young lady's skin became as smooth as pearls, as delicate as jade, and radiant.

　　Specialty Efficacy:

　　　　1. Rich in various vitamins and minerals, Job's tears helps promote metabolism and reduce gastrointestinal burden, making it a nourishing food suitable for patients who are ill or recovering.

　　　　2. Regular consumption of Job's tears products can also help with chronic enteritis, indigestion, and similar conditions. It enhances kidney function and has diuretic and heat-clearing properties, making it effective for patients with edema.

　　　　3. Modern pharmacological studies have shown that Job's tears has anti-cancer properties. Among its anti-cancer components is the element selenium, which can effectively inhibit cancer cell proliferation and is useful as an adjunct treatment for gastric cancer and cervical cancer.

　　　　4. Regular consumption of Job's tears by healthy individuals can make the body feel lighter and reduce the risk of developing tumors.

　　　　5. Job's tears contains a certain amount of vitamin E, making it a beauty-enhancing food. Frequent consumption keeps the skin glossy and smooth, removes pimples and spots, improves complexion, and has some therapeutic effect on warts caused by viral infections.

　　　　6. Job's tears is rich in vitamin B, which is highly beneficial in preventing and treating beriberi.　　

　　　　Li Shizhen recorded in the Compendium of Materia Medica: “Job's tears can strengthen the spleen and stomach, nourish the lungs and clear heat, dispel wind and overcome dampness. When cooked into rice, it treats coldness in the body. When decocted for drinking, it promotes urination and relieves heat strangury.” In recent years, extensive scientific research and clinical practice have confirmed that Job's tears is also an anti-cancer medicine, with preliminary findings showing an inhibition rate of over 35% against cancer. No wonder there is a folk song in the Guilin region that goes:

　　“Job's tears surpass the ganoderma mushroom; its medicinal and nutritional value is high. Eating it regularly can prolong life and contribute to restoring youth.” Job's tears is an excellent tonic and medicinal food. According to pharmaceutical analysis, it contains 16.2% protein, 4.6% fat, and 79.2% carbohydrates. In winter, stewing Job's tears with pig’s trotters, spareribs, or chicken makes a nutritious dish. In summer, cooking it into porridge or serving it as a cold drink like iced Job's tears makes a great heat-relieving and health-boosting tonic. Both the seeds and roots of Job's tears can also be used medicinally to treat illnesses.