Bitter leaf plant belongs to the ginseng family, also known as bird's foot plant, lang leaf, or southern ginseng. It grows wild in forest edges and mountainous areas, and is abundant from North to South Vietnam.

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In Quynh Luu district, Nghe An province, people use bitter leaves as a spice in soups. Bitter leaf soup is cooling, relieves heat, stimulates digestion, and benefits the liver.

Bitter leaves

In other regions, the bark of the bitter leaf tree is used as medicine under the name "five-leafed ginseng" (because it has nourishing and bone-strengthening effects similar to the five-leafed ginseng plant). The bark of the bitter leaf tree is harvested in spring and autumn, the outer layer is scraped off, and it is dried in the sun or in a dryer. These are slightly curved pieces of bark, light brown in color, and brittle in texture.

When preparing the medicinal herb, moisten it and let it steep until fragrant (about 7 days), then cut it into small pieces. It can be used raw or soaked in alcohol or ginger water, then stir-fried. According to folk experience, the bark of the bitter leaf tree is used to treat weakness, rheumatism, back and knee pain, male impotence, female infertility, and slow growth and walking in children. The herb has a bitter, astringent taste, a mild aroma, and a cooling nature. It is used in the following cases:

Treatment for swollen and painful feet due to chilblains: Bitter leaf bark, pine bark, betel nut, cyperus rhizome, perilla seeds, citrus peel, and burdock root, 8-16g each. Chop all ingredients finely, decoct with 400ml of water until only 100ml remains, and drink twice a day.

Treatment for rheumatism and muscle aches: 2 kg of bitter leaf bark, 1 kg each of rice tree bark, bone-pain vine, and frog foam tree stem. Chop all ingredients finely, dry them, and boil them in water to obtain 200 ml of liquid extract. Mix 200 ml of alcohol and 100 ml of syrup into the extract to obtain half a liter of finished product. Drink 50 ml daily, divided into two doses.

For treating neurasthenia, rheumatoid arthritis, neuralgia, back pain, and neck and shoulder pain: 0.035g of finely powdered bitter leaf bark, 0.005g of bitter leaf bark extract, 0.03g of concentrated Hyacinthus orientalis extract, and 0.013g of finely powdered processed Strychnos nux-vomica root are used to make one tablet. The maximum safe dose at once is 30 tablets, and the maximum daily dose is 80 tablets.

External use: 30g of bitter bark or leaves, combined with 30g of mulberry leaves, 20g of purple sugarcane leaves, and 20g of black turmeric root. All ingredients should be fresh, washed, crushed, soaked in 30-degree alcohol until just covered, heated, applied as a poultice, and secured with bamboo splints to treat bone fractures.

According to Health & Life - NT