He Shou Wu: The Hair-Blackening Herb for Liver and Kidney Health
Health Lab- Feb 10
- 4 min read
Updated: Apr 28
He Shou Wu, a revered Chinese herb, is famous for its ability to blacken hair and promote overall vitality. Known scientifically as Polygonum multiflorum, it has been a staple in traditional Chinese medicine since the Jin Dynasty, with records in texts like Emergency Prescriptions for the Elbow noting its use for pain relief, muscle growth, and skin conditions.
The Compendium of Materia Medica from the Ming Dynasty praises its ability to nourish the liver, kidneys, blood, and essence, strengthen muscles and bones, and darken hair. Ranked among China’s top herbs alongside ginseng, Ganoderma lucidum, and Cordyceps sinensis, He Shou Wu holds a prestigious place in herbal medicine. This article explores its characteristics, types, benefits, modern uses, and precautions.
What Is He Shou Wu?
He Shou Wu is a perennial plant from the Polygonaceae family, and its medicinal part is the tuberous root. These dark brown roots are lumpy or irregular, with a reddish-brown, wrinkled surface marked by shallow grooves, horizontal protrusions, and fine root scars. They are heavy, firm, and hard to break.
When cut, the root reveals a light yellow-brown or reddish-brown interior with a powdery texture and cloud-like vascular patterns. He Shou Wu has a faint smell and a slightly bitter-sweet taste.
Types of He Shou Wu
He Shou Wu comes in two main forms, each with distinct uses:
Raw He Shou Wu: Used for detoxification, reducing swelling, preventing infections, and relieving constipation.
Processed He Shou Wu: Steamed with black bean juice, this form nourishes the liver and kidneys, boosts blood and essence, blackens hair, strengthens bones, reduces dampness, and lowers blood lipids.
He Shou Wu vs. Bai Shou Wu
Despite similar names, He Shou Wu and Bai Shou Wu are entirely different:
He Shou Wu: The reddish-brown tuber of Polygonum multiflorum, it’s heavy, bitter-sweet, and used for liver, kidney, and hair health.
Bai Shou Wu: The tuber of Coix lacryma-volucrata (Vasaceae family), it’s light yellow-brown or gray-brown, cylindrical or hammer-shaped, with a sweet taste and bitter aftertaste. It nourishes the body, promotes hair health, supports digestion, and has fewer side effects, making it popular in health supplements.
Health Benefits
Processed He Shou Wu is a powerful tonic with a wide range of benefits, particularly for conditions caused by liver and kidney deficiencies or low blood and essence levels. Its key effects include:
Hair Health: Prevents premature graying and promotes darker, healthier hair.
Energy and Vitality: Relieves fatigue, dizziness, insomnia, forgetfulness, and weakness in the waist and knees.
Sensory Support: Reduces tinnitus and improves hearing.
Overall Wellness: Offers anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-aging effects, lowers blood sugar and lipids, protects the liver, boosts immunity, enhances memory, and supports nerve health.
The plant’s vine leaves, known as Ye Jiao Teng, are also medicinal. They treat insomnia, restlessness, and dizziness due to yin and blood deficiencies, often combined with calming herbs like cassia seed, jujube seed, or cypress seed.
Modern Applications
Modern research has expanded He Shou Wu’s applications, confirming its pharmacological benefits, including:
Heart Health: Lowers cholesterol and triglycerides, reducing the risk of atherosclerosis.
Anti-Aging and Immunity: Its antioxidants slow aging and boost immune function.
Anti-Inflammatory and Anticancer: Shows promise in reducing inflammation and inhibiting cancer cell growth.
Chronic Disease Management: Improves symptoms in conditions like hypertension caused by yin deficiency. A study of 126 patients found that combining He Shou Wu with Western medicine improved symptoms and reduced recurrence rates compared to Western medicine alone.
He Shou Wu is now used in supplements, teas, and treatments for chronic diseases, extending its reach beyond traditional Chinese medicine.
Precautions
While He Shou Wu offers many benefits, it requires careful use:
Toxicity Risk: Raw He Shou Wu is toxic and must be processed to be safe. Long-term use of either form can irritate the stomach, causing diarrhea or vomiting.
Liver Damage: Reports over the past 20 years link He Shou Wu to liver issues. Regular liver function tests are essential for long-term users.
Medical Guidance: Consult a healthcare provider before use, especially for those with pre-existing conditions or on medications.
hinese Name | 何首烏 |
Chinese Pinyin | Heshouwu |
English Name | Tuber Fleeceflower Root |
Latin Pharmaceutical Name | Polygoni Multiflori Radix |
Category | Roots and rhizomes |
Origin | The dried tubular root of Polygonum multiflorum Thunb.(Polygonaceae) |
Production Regions | Primarily produced in Shaanxi, southern Gansu, and the eastern, central, southern and southwestern regions of China. |
Macroscopic Features | Lumps or irregular fusiform. Externally reddish-brown, wrinkled, with shallow grooves, and long transverse raised lenticels and thin scars of root. Heavy, firm texture, difficult to break. Fractured surface is pale yellowish-brown or pale reddish-brown, powdery; cortex has 4~11 abnormal vascular bundles, with a cloudy brocade pattern, central xylem is relatively large, sometimes with a woody center. faint odor; slightly bitter and sweet and astringent. |
Quality Requirements | Superior medicinal material has heavy, firm texture. |
Properties | Bitter, sweet, astringent. |
Functions | Resolves toxin, disperses swelling-abscesses, stops malaria, moistens intestines, frees stools. Apply to sores and abscesses, scrofula, wind rash and pruritus, deficiency due to chronic malaria, constipation induced by dryness of the intestine. |
Processed Form | Zhi he shou wu: Irregular wrinkled lumps, externally black-brown or brown, uneven surface. Firm texture, fractured surface is horny, brown or black. faint odor; slightly sweet and astringent taste. Property is bitter, sweet, astringent; slightly warm; belongs to liver, heart and kidney channels. |
Technical Terms | 'Cloudy brocade pattern’: This refers to numerous abnormal vascular bundles on the cortex of the tuberous root’s horizontally cut surface, which form a pattern similar to the shape of clouds, also called ‘cloud lines (yun wen)’. |
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