Zi Hua Di Ding (Viola Yedoensis)

Zi Hua Di Ding (Viola Yedoensis)

What Is Zi Hua Di Ding

Zi Hua Di Ding is also known as Viola Yedoensis, which is a perennial herb belonging to the family Violaceae. It first appeared in <Compendium of Materia Medica> in 1,578 AD.

This plant likes light and moist environments. It is adaptable and easy to reproduce and often grows in fields, slopes, grasslands, or shrubs. It is distributed in Korea, Japan, the lower reaches of the Yangtze River in China, and the Far East of Russia.

In the spring and autumn of each year, people gather all the parts of Viola yedoensis, wash them with water, remove their impurities, cut them into segments, use them directly, or dry them in the sun, and make them into Chinese herbal medicines.

Viola Yedoensis

Zi Hua Di Ding contains apigenin, luteolin, kaempferol, quercetin, acacetin, chrysoeriol, rutin, naringenin, caffeic acid, quinic acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, trans-p-hydroxycinnamic acid, palmitic acid, lauric acid, succinic acid, volatile oils, alkaloids, amides, steroids, lactones, phenols, and sugars.

According to <Compendium of Materia Medica>, the medicinal nature of Zi Hua Di Ding is relatively cold, with a bitter and pungent taste. It has a certain therapeutic effect on the pathological changes of the heart and liver meridians.

In traditional Chinese medicine, it is often used to clear heat and remove toxins, cool blood and alleviate swelling, and treat acute mastitis, acute appendicitis, acute tonsillitis, acute pneumonia, pulmonary infection, and surgical suppurative inflammation.

About 50 kinds of traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions contain it, such as Shuanghu Qinggan Granule, Wu Wei Xiao Du Yin, and Zhen Zhu An Chuang Wan.

Benefits

  • Anti-inflammation, inhibiting xylene-induced swelling of the mouse ear, and carrageenan-induced edema of the mouse foot.
  • Anti-oxidation, scavenging DPPH radicals and hydroxyl radicals.
  • Increasing pancreatic lipase activity, promoting the decomposition and absorption of triglycerides in the stomach and intestines.
  • Inhibiting hepatitis B virus, New castle disease virus, and respiratory syncytial virus.
  • Removing heat toxins and relieving skin swelling and pain, and treating furuncles, carbuncles, and erysipelas caused by heat toxins.
  • Cooling blood and alleviating swelling, treating acute mastitis and acute appendicitis.
  • Clearing the liver heat and alleviating redness and swelling of the eyes caused by liver heat.
  • Inhibits Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Streptococcus uberis, Streptococcus agalactiae, Streptococcus lactis, and Leptospira.
  • Animal experiments have found that it has a strong inhibitory effect on tumor tissues of tumor-bearing mice modeled on U14 cervical cancer cells.
  • Studies have found that its dimethyl sulfoxide extract has strong in vitro anti-type I HIV activity.

Combinations

Side Effects

  • At present, there is no literature report that Zi Hua Di Ding has toxic effects, and no data is showing that taking it will cause serious adverse reactions.
  • Excessive use of it may cause loss of appetite, nausea, or vomiting.

Precautions and Warnings

  • The dosage of Zi Hua Di Ding should be controlled between 15-30g.
  • When using fresh Zi Hua Di Ding, it is recommended to mash it for external use.
  • It can be made into decoctions, pills, or powders.
  • People who are allergic to Zi Hua Di Ding should not take it.
  • Patients with deep abscesses should not take it.
  • Patients with deficiency-cold in the spleen and stomach should not take it.
  • Pregnant women and children should not take it.