A detailed introduction to the function and classification of herbs.
major function
1. Herbs have many uses. All important grains are herbs, such as wheat, millet, corn, barley, sorghum and rice, which can be eaten by human beings.
2. Many animals in nature, as well as pigs, cows, horses, sheep and other domestic animals also eat herbs, so herbs are an important part of the food chain.
Some herbs can be found everywhere in daily life and can be used to make utensils. There are also houses made of bamboo in Southeast Asia.
4. Many grasses in nature are not only food for animals, but also produce a lot of oxygen to prevent soil erosion.
Many herbs are important sources of Chinese herbal medicine.
side effect
If a product uses the words "natural" and "herbal", it seems to make people feel safe. Actually, it's not entirely true. Examples abound. For example, tobacco leaves, coca leaves (the source of cocaine), marijuana (the source of banned marijuana) and poppy (the source of heroin and morphine) are all natural ingredients.
But they are harmful to health. Therefore, herbs can be divided into two categories: edible herbs and herbs without harmful side effects. When the formula is wrong or used improperly, it will be harmful to health. Some pharmaceutical manufacturers have no professional qualifications, so they can't use herbs or plants correctly when developing drugs. Other manufacturers are driven by business profits, completely ignoring the safety of consumers. Ephedra contains ephedrine as the active ingredient. Ephedrine is a common ingredient in diet pills, which can cause heart disease, blood poisoning and hemorrhagic stroke. The FDA has obtained 150 death reports related to ephedra. According to the journal Neurology, taking 32 mg of ephedra every day will increase the growth rate and increase the risk of stroke. However, the label of the drug containing ephedra shows that people should take as much as 100 mg every day. At present, ephedra has been banned as an auxiliary diet in the United States.
Herbs with high caffeine content
Sometimes, when ephedra is taken with plants containing a lot of caffeine (such as melon seeds), it will lead to sudden death such as stroke, spasm and high blood pressure.
Caffeine-rich herbs, including guarana seeds, kola nuts, tea trees and coffee beans. These herbs are widely cultivated all over the world, such as Masi and Sri Lanka.
They are very popular substances to lose weight because it is said that caffeine can promote metabolism. According to different varieties, the caffeine content of Guanana fruit is as high as 10%, the caffeine content of tea tree is about 3.5%, and the average caffeine content of coffee beans is about 2.2%.
Experts agree that excessive caffeine intake will lead to anxiety, insomnia, irregular heartbeat, addiction and even death in patients with hypertension.
When some of these plants containing a lot of caffeine are mixed with herbs with diuretic effect to become ingredients in diet pills, they will make the body excrete a lot of water and cause temporary weight loss. This makes people mistakenly think that the caffeine-rich diet pills they take can burn fat. In addition, excessive diuretics can damage the kidneys.
guar gum
Guar gum is a weight loss ingredient, which was banned in the 1990s. Guar gum is a complex carbohydrate,
When wet, it will swell, so you will feel full when you eat it. However, its side effects include severe stagnation of stomach, throat and intestinal yin. White willow bark
Bai Liu peel contains salicylic acid, which is the effective component of aspirin. The FDA pointed out that this herb is used in some children's medicines, but the labels of these medicines indicate that they do not contain aspirin.
White willow bark can cause some internal bleeding symptoms in adults who are sensitive to aspirin. The American Anti-Health Fraud Committee appealed to the public to pay attention to the fact that the use of white willow bark to treat chickenpox or flu in children will lead to a liver disease-Wright syndrome. broom corn millet
Panicum miliaceum refers to the herbaceous plants whose life span is only 1 year from seed germination, growth, flowering, fruiting to withering and death, that is, plants that can complete their life cycle in one growing season, that is, plants that bloom in the same year and die after fruiting in the same year, such as morning glory, chrysanthemum morifolium, gourd and cuiju.
Biennial herb
Biennial herbs, such as winter wheat, beet and broad bean, only grow vegetative organs in the first growing season (autumn) and die after flowering and fruiting in the second growing season (spring).
Perennialherb has a long life span, generally more than two years, such as chrysanthemum, orchid, lotus, water lily, clivia and so on. The roots of perennial herbs are generally thick, and some have tubers, tubers, bulbs and other organs. In winter, the parts on the ground are still sleeping quietly, and when the climate gets warmer the next year, they germinate and grow again. With the growth year after year, the underground roots or stems may gradually become larger and may branch. This provides us with the basis for identifying their age; Its age can be inferred from the number of branches in its underground part, the size, length and thickness of its stem or root. Perennial herbs can survive for more than two years. Some underground parts of plants are perennial, such as perennial roots or abnormal organs such as rhizomes, bulbs and tubers, while the aboveground parts die every year, and new branches will grow in the underground parts in the following spring, such as lotus roots, onions, taro, sweet potatoes and dahlias. In addition, the aboveground and underground parts of some plants are perennial. After flowering and fruiting, the aboveground parts still do not die, but can bear fruit many times, such as evergreen and Ophiopogon japonicus.
Herbs and herbaceous stems
The most striking difference between herbs and woody plants lies in the structure of their stems. The stem of herbaceous plants is "grass stem", which is densely covered with many relatively small vascular bundles and filled with a large number of parenchyma cells. The outermost layer of the stem is tough mechanical tissue.
The roots of perennial herbs are generally thick, and some have tubers, tubers, bulbs and other organs. In winter, the parts on the ground are still sleeping quietly, and when the climate gets warmer the next year, they germinate and grow again. With the growth year after year, the underground roots or stems may gradually become larger and may branch. This provides us with the basis for identifying their age; Its age can be inferred from the number of branches in its underground part, the size, length and thickness of its stem or root. Perennial herbs can survive for more than two years. Some underground parts of plants are perennial, such as perennial roots or abnormal organs such as rhizomes, bulbs and tubers, while the aboveground parts die every year, and new branches will grow in the underground parts in the following spring, such as lotus roots, onions, taro, sweet potatoes and dahlias. In addition, the aboveground and underground parts of some plants are perennial. After flowering and fruiting, the aboveground parts still do not die, but can bear fruit many times, such as evergreen and Ophiopogon japonicus. Herbs and herbaceous stems
The most striking difference between herbs and woody plants lies in the structure of their stems. The stem of herbaceous plants is "grass stem", which is densely covered with many relatively small vascular bundles and filled with a large number of parenchyma cells. The outermost layer of the stem is tough mechanical tissue.