Cogon root: A precious medicine to detoxify the liver and nourish the kidneys

Perhaps any of us have tried a cool glass of ginseng water on hot summer days.

But few people know that one of the ingredients used to make it is the roots of cogon grass, a wild plant that was previously considered the "enemy of farmers". And its benefits do not stop at a cup of cooling ginseng water.

Precious medicine from 2,000 years ago

Cold ginseng drink carts on the roadside have long been a familiar image of Saigon streets and cool glasses of sweet ginseng drink have entered the memory of everyone when thinking of this sunny, vibrant tropical city.

Not only does it bring income to beverage shops, cold glasses of ginseng water are also a source of livelihood for many people who make a living by digging up cogon roots.

A resident of Ward 15, District 8, Ho Chi Minh City, where nearly 40 households have been digging for cogon roots for decades, said: "Cogon roots have many segments like sugarcane segments and are sweet. Water boiled from cogon roots helps to clear urine, cool down, quench thirst, and detoxify. When boiled with sugarcane and corn, it becomes ginseng water, which is still sold on the sidewalk."

Cogon root is ivory to pale yellow in color, has many nodes, and is surrounded by scale leaves and rootlets. Cogon root contains 18% sugar (both glucose and fructose), which is why the root of this plant has a sweet taste; along with citric, malic, tartaric, oxalic, triterpene methylethers, arundoin and cylindrin acids.

It is not until now that people know its benefits, cogon root has been used as medicine for 2,000 years ago and is the first medicine recorded in the book Ben Jing. In addition, it is also present in many other ancient medical books such as Danh y biet luc, Ben Cao kinh so, Dac phu ban thao, Ben Cao cau chan.

Cogon grass is found in many countries and in each country, it is used to treat different diseases. In Cambodia, cogon root is combined with several other herbs to treat hemorrhoids.

In China, the roots of this plant are used to reduce fever, treat vomiting, and edema. In Africa, the grass is used to treat gonorrhea and urinary tract problems.

When using as medicine, you must cut off the roots above ground, take only the roots below ground, and clean the leaves, stems, and roots.

Oriental medicine calls the roots of cogon grass as mao can. From the original cogon grass roots, depending on the preparation method and the purpose of treatment, this medicine has different names. Fresh cogon grass roots, washed and chopped are called sinh mao can.

Soak the roots of the grass in water until soft, then cut into pieces, dry, and sift out the solids, then it is called white hairy root. Take the white hairy root and put it in a pot until the medicine turns black, then take it out to dry and you will get black hairy root.

Cool liver, good for kidneys

According to Oriental medicine, cogon root is sweet and cold, so it has a very good effect of clearing heat and quenching thirst. It also helps to eliminate blood stasis, promote urination, clear heat from the lungs and stomach; and is used to treat symptoms such as nosebleeds, hematuria, and urinary retention.

According to modern medicine, cogon root has the effect of rapid blood clotting, and Mao Can powder shortens the time of calcium recovery in plasma in experimental rabbits. Regarding the diuretic effect, modern medicine has proven it through experiments on rabbits.

Modern medicine believes that this effect is related to the nervous system or because the drug contains potassium salts. In addition, decoctions from cogon roots also have the effect of inhibiting bacteria, specifically Flexner and Sonnei bacteria that cause dysentery in humans. But perhaps the most mentioned effect of this herb is supporting the treatment of kidney disease.

Physician Huyen Thao (Hanoi) in an introduction to this medicinal herb shared: Clinical studies in China show that cogon root has a relatively good effect in supporting the treatment of acute nephritis, helping to shorten the treatment time. For chronic nephritis, cogon root has diuretic, anti-inflammatory and blood pressure lowering effects.

To support the treatment of acute nephritis, boil 200g of white hairy root with 500ml of water, simmer until 100-150ml remains, divide into 2-3 doses, use up within the day. Drink continuously for 1 month and you will see quite obvious results.

Or, you can also use Sinh Mao Can combined with Plantago, Honeysuckle, Licorice, Chinese clematis, Black Beans, Coptis, Perilla, and Gotu Kola for better results. Each of the above ingredients, 10g, pour into 3 bowls of water, boil down to about 1 bowl, drink after meals, use up within the day. Drink continuously for 15 days.

People with weak livers due to smoking, drinking too much alcohol or liver function problems can use remedies from cogon grass roots to purify, detoxify and cool the liver.

You can use cogon root to make drinking water in the following way: Take 200g of Sinh Mao Can and boil with 700ml of water, boil on high heat, when the water boils, reduce heat and continue to boil for 7-10 minutes, filter the water, drink instead of tea, use during the day. Drink continuously for 10-15 days. You can take a break for a while and then drink again for another 10-15 days.

Mao can also be cooked with lean pork to make a medicinal dish. Use 150g of raw Mao can, 50g of fresh white angelica, 150g of thinly sliced ​​lean pork. Put in a pot and boil until soft, season to taste, eat once a day, continuously for 10-15 days.

And many other uses

Not only used to support the treatment of liver and kidney diseases, cogon root is also present in many other medicines:

- Nosebleed: Use 36g of white hairy root, 18g of gardenia fruit, boil with 400ml of water, until 100ml remains, drink hot after meals or before bed. If using raw hairy root, use 80g, boil water and drink daily, drink when cool after meals, for 7-10 days.

- Boil 20g of Sinh Mao Can, drink after dinner while the medicine is still warm, use for 8 days.

- Diuretic: 30g of white hairy root, 40g of corn silk, 25g of Chinese clematis root, 5g of chrysanthemum, mix all together. Take 50g each time, steep with 0.75ml of boiling water, drink during the day; use for 10 days.

You can also use 50g of Sinh Mao Can, 15g of Sen Tu leaves, 10g of corn silk, 10g of pennywort, 8g of fish mint, boil and drink 1 dose per day, divided into 3 times. Use for 3-5 days.

- Blood in urine (due to urinary tract infection): Use mao can than, ginger (burnt) boiled with 400ml of water until 100ml remains, drink during the day while the medicine is still warm, should drink before dinner. Use for 7-10 days.

Note: People with weak fire and pregnant women should not use cogon root.

According to Health and Life