Flaxseed

Chinese Name: flaxseed

[category] seed

[synonyms] flaxseed (bojifang), tick flaxseed (compendium), flaxseed (pharmacology of Chinese Medicine).

[source] it is the seed of flax. For plant morphology, please refer to "flax".

[collection] from August to October, when the fruit is ripe, cut the whole grass, bundle it into small bundles, dry it in the sun, beat the seeds, remove the impurities, and dry it in the sun.

[medicinal material] the seed is oblate ovoid, thin on one side, blunt at one end, pointed at the other end, and tilted to one side, about 4-6 mm long, about 2-3 mm wide, and about 1.5 mm thick. The surface is brown, smooth and glossy; small pits can be seen under the magnifying microscope, the hilum is located in the concave part of the tip, and the ridge is light brown, located on one side of the edge. The seed coat is thin. After removing it, the endosperm can be seen as brown film. There are two large cotyledons with one side flat and one side protruding. They are yellow and rich in oil. The radicle is toward the tip of the seed. Immersed in water, the mucus in the epidermis expands into a mucus sheath, which surrounds the whole seed. Chewing with mucus, oil like, no gas. The best color is red brown, bright, full and pure.

It is mainly produced in Inner Mongolia, Heilongjiang, Liaoning and Jilin. In addition, it is also produced in Sichuan, Hubei, Shaanxi, Shanxi and Yunnan.

This product is used as "flaxseed" in many areas. The flax recorded in "Materia Medica" should be regarded as the plant of flax family, and the two should not be mixed. See article "black fat hemp".

[chemical composition] the seed contains 30-48% fat oil, 18-33% protein, 5-12% viscosity, 12-26% sugar, organic acids and vitamins. In addition, there is a small amount of cyanoside, that is, linolenoside. The immature seeds contain starch and disappear at maturity.

Flaxseed oil is a yellow liquid pressed at normal temperature. It has special gas and light taste. In the air, the quality of flaxseed oil is gradually concentrated, the color is gradually deepened, and the gas and taste are also gradually enhanced. The main components of the oil are linolenic acid 21-45%, linoleic acid 25-59%, oleic acid 15-20%, palmitic acid, stearic acid and other glycerides. In addition, it also contains eicosyl ferulate.

[pharmacological action] the seed contains mucilage and oil, so it has the function of lubricating and relieving irritation, and can be used to treat local inflammation. There are different opinions on the treatment of digestive tract, respiratory tract and urinary tract inflammation. Flaxseed oil has a laxative effect. Linolenoside can regulate the secretion and motor function of small intestine, and it can produce cyanic acid. The cyanic acid content of this plant can reach 0.17-1.5%; when the cyanic acid content is 0.008-0.08%, it is dangerous to livestock. When making linseed oil or flax fiber, it can cause non allergic dermatitis because it contains some irritant substance.

Flaxseed oil contains a large amount of unsaturated fatty acids, so it is used to prevent hyperlipidemia or atherosclerosis. However, long-term feeding of linoleic acid on animals (rabbits) has no special protective effect on blood cholesterol level and atherosclerotic lesions (worse than sunflower oil), and the clinical effect is not significant.

Sweet and smooth.

① "Ben Cao Tu Jing": "it tastes sweet, mild and nontoxic. "

② "Diannan Materia Medica": "it is sweet and pungent in taste, flat in nature and non-toxic. "

[Guijing] 1. Bencao Jingshu: "the blood points of foot Jueyin meridians. "

② "Ben Jing Feng Yuan": "enter Yangming Jing. "

[function indications] for leprosy, prurigo, alopecia and dry stool.

① "Ben Cao Tu Jing" says: "it's good for treating sore and tinea caused by strong wind. "

② "Diannan Materia Medica": "treating tuberculosis. "

③ "Manual of Chinese herbal medicine": "Tongda small intestine, Jiedu Zhitong. Treatment of intestinal heat, erysipelas. "

④ "Medicine science": "treating lung carbuncle and spitting pus blood. "

⑤ "Common folk herbs in Kunming": "seeds and roots: calming the liver, smoothing Qi, dredging intestines. Treatment of orchitis, hernia, chronic hepatitis, liver wind, headache, constipation. "

[usage and dosage] oral administration: decoction, 3-5 yuan; or powder. External use: tamping or frying and washing.

[should avoid] stomach weakness, diarrhea and pregnant women should not take.

[prescription selection] ① for treating gale disease and itching all over the body: flaxseed, Arctium lappa, wolfberry, Vitex trifolia (stir fried in one place to make the smoke come out), Sophora flavescens, Trichosanthes kirilowii root, Fangfeng (Qulu) and Tribulus terrestris. On the eight flavor, with the pestle for the end, every 15 money medicine, into the light powder two money, a mix. Each service at the end of Qian's life, under the tea, one for hollow, one for daytime and one for lying. Five or seven days after taking the medicine, first in the teeth, out of the stinky yellow saliva, all over the body pain, after the second, convenient under the pus blood, this is the root of the disease. (Bo Ji Fang Zuixian SAN)

② Treatment of seborrheic alopecia: fresh willow branch, flaxseed each one or two. Take it by frying. (Jiangxi Chinese herbal medicine)

③ Treatment of cough and asthma: flaxseed, Wendan skin, fried. (Jiangxi Chinese herbal medicine)

Chinese PinYin : Ya Ma Zi