Forsythia Fruit – 1 lb (454 g)

Forsythia Fruit, known in Chinese as 连翘 (Liánqiào) and scientifically as Fructus Forsythiae, is a valued herb in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). This TCM herb has been traditionally used to support natural wellness, maintain vitality, and encourage holistic balance. At TCMforyou.com, we provide premium-quality Forsythia Fruit carefully sourced to preserve its therapeutic properties.

As a herbal supplement, Forsythia Fruit helps promote overall well-being and supports natural energy, immunity, and balance. Integrating this herb into your wellness routine offers a gentle, time-tested approach to enhancing daily health. Whether brewed as tea, added to herbal remedies, or taken as part of a TCM formula, Forsythia Fruit provides a safe, natural way to experience the benefits of traditional Chinese medicine.

Trusted for centuries, Forsythia Fruit has been used in TCM to harmonize the body and encourage optimal functioning of key systems. At TCMforyou, we prioritize authenticity and quality. Each batch undergoes rigorous testing to ensure purity and potency, delivering an herbal product aligned with traditional practices.

Experience the natural support of Forsythia Fruit, promoting immune health, vitality, and holistic well-being. Embrace the wisdom of TCM and incorporate this gentle, effective herbal remedy into your daily wellness journey.

[Overview] This herb is also known as Dry Lotus Seed, Hollow Forsythia, Empty Shell, and Fallen Forsythia. It is the fruit of Forsythia suspensa (Thunb.) Vahl, a plant of the Oleaceae family. It is mainly produced in Shanxi, Henan, Shaanxi, and Shandong provinces, with Shanxi and Henan having the largest yields. The fruit is harvested in autumn when it is initially ripe and still green, then impurities are removed, it is steamed and sun-dried, commonly called “Green Forsythia”; when the fruit is fully ripe, it is harvested, sun-dried, impurities removed, commonly called “Old Forsythia.”

[Properties] Bitter in taste, slightly cold in nature. Enters the Lung, Heart, and Small Intestine meridians.

[Actions] Clears heat and detoxifies, reduces swelling and disperses nodules.

[Applications]
1. Used for externally contracted wind-heat or early-stage damp diseases with fever, slight chills, cough, and sore throat. Often combined with Lonicera japonica (Jinyinhua), Mentha haplocalyx (Bohe), Schizonepeta tenuifolia (Jingjie), and fermented soybean (Douchi), as in the formula Yin Qiao San (银翘散). If the pathogenic heat enters the interior with exuberant Qi-level heat, it can be combined with Anemarrhena asphodeloides (Zhimu) and Gypsum Fibrosum (Shigao). If the heat penetrates the Ying level causing delirium and faint rashes, it can be combined with Rhinoceros horn (Xijiao), Rehmannia glutinosa (Shengdi), and Ophiopogon japonicus (Maidong), as in Qing Ying Tang (清营汤). If the heat invades the pericardium causing coma and delirium, Forsythia heart is often combined with Scrophularia ningpoensis heart (Xuanshenxin), Lotus seed heart (Lianzixin), Bamboo leaf heart (Zhuye xin), Rhinoceros horn, and Ophiopogon japonicus, as in Qing Ying Tang.

2. Used for toxic heat sores and swellings, sore throat, and scrofula tuberculosis. This herb is known as the “Sacred Medicine for Sores.” For early-stage boils and carbuncles, it is often combined with Taraxacum mongolicum (Pugongying), Gleditsia sinensis thorn (Zaojiao ci), and Manis pentadactyla (Chuan Shan Jia), as in the modified formula Jia Jian Xiao Du Yin (加减消毒饮). For breast abscess pain, it can be combined with Trichosanthes kirilowii (Gualou), Citrus reticulata peel (Qingpi), and Citrus leaves (Juye). For intestinal abscess and abdominal pain, it can be combined with Patrinia scabiosifolia (Baijiangcao), Millettia reticulata (Hongteng), and Rheum palmatum (Dahuang). For sore throat and swelling, it is combined with Sophora tonkinensis (Shandougen), Isatis indigotica root (Banlangen), and Agaricus blazei (Mabo). For scrofula tuberculosis, it is often combined with Prunella vulgaris (Xiakucao), Fritillaria (Beimu), and Pinellia ternata (Banxia).

3. Used for heart fire rising causing mouth and tongue ulcers, or heart fire descending causing small intestine heat strangury with painful, scanty urination. It can be combined with Imperata cylindrica root (Baimaogen), Akebia quinata (Mutong), Coptis chinensis (Chuanlian), and Rehmannia glutinosa (Shengdi).

4. Used for heat stagnation in the upper and middle jiao, symptoms include body heat, irritability, thirst, sore throat, mouth ulcers, constipation, and dark urine. It can be combined with Gardenia jasminoides (Zhizi) and Rheum palmatum (Dahuang), as in Liang Ge San (凉膈散).

Additionally, this herb can be used for dysentery, enteritis, and psoriasis.

[Dosage and Administration] Internal use: decoction, 6–15 g; or incorporated into pills or powders.

[Cautions] Use with caution in patients with spleen and stomach deficiency.

[Modern Research]
1. Chemical Constituents: Forsythia fruit contains forsythiaside, forsythiaside aglycone, dextrorotatory resin phenol, dextrorotatory resin alcohol glucoside, rutin, forsythoside A, C, D, E, forsythoside glycosides, salidroside, forsythial cyclohexanol, isoforsythial cyclohexanol, forsythial cyclohexanone, as well as ursolic acid, β-amyrin acetate, and others.

2. Pharmacological Effects: Forsythia is a broad-spectrum and effective antimicrobial agent. In vitro tests show inhibitory effects on various bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus, Moraxella catarrhalis, and hemolytic streptococcus; it also inhibits certain fungi and has activity against leptospira and Trichomonas vaginalis. The volatile oil from Forsythia seeds shows significant anti-influenza virus activity. Forsythia has antiemetic effects, inhibiting apomorphine-induced vomiting, possibly by suppressing the chemical receptors in the medulla oblongata responsible for vomiting. It significantly reduces liver degeneration and necrosis caused by carbon tetrachloride in rats and lowers alanine aminotransferase levels. Intravenous injection of aqueous extracts significantly lowers blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive rats; forsythiaside aglycone also has antihypertensive effects. It also inhibits phosphodiesterase, lipoxygenase, and elastase activities.

3. Clinical Reports:
1) Bacterial dysentery: Using Forsythia, Flos Lonicerae (Erhua), Phellodendron amurense (Huangbai), and Cortex Fraxini (Qinpi) each 30 g, decocted with 500 ml water to 300 ml, used as an enema. Thirty cases treated, all cured after one course. [Jiangxi Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 1991, 22(6):55]
2) Constipation: Forsythia 15–30 g brewed or decocted as tea for 1–2 weeks, discontinued upon bowel movement. Effective for various types of constipation. [Shandong Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 1985, (5):44]
3) Burns: Kushen (Sophora flavescens) 60 g and Forsythia 20 g powdered and sifted through 80 mesh sieve, mixed with 200 g sesame oil. Used to treat 36 cases of first- and second-degree small-area burns; except for 12 cases initially treated with Sijiqing that developed purulent scabs and were switched to this treatment, the other 24 cases healed within 10 days. [Intermediate Medical Journal, 1983, (7):31]
4) Psoriasis: Forsythia 400 g, Scutellaria baicalensis (Huangqin), and Folium Isatidis (Daqingye) each 300 g prepared into an injection containing 2 g crude drug per 2 ml vial. Intramuscular injection, 2 ml twice daily for 2 weeks to 2 months. Sixty cases treated with an overall effective rate of 80%. [Chinese Herbal Medicine, 1982, (10):48]