Side Effects of Forsythia

Forsythia is a common plant in our daily life. It produces fruits. The fruits are picked when they ripen in autumn and can be used as medicine. Forsythia itself has a very good medicinal effect, with the effects of clearing away heat and detoxifying, reducing swelling and dispersing nodules. At the same time, Forsythia also has anti-inflammatory and bactericidal effects, which is very beneficial to health. However, Forsythia is cold, so does it have side effects on the body?

Forsythia suspensa can easily eliminate carbuncles and resolve nodules, and can promote urination and treat five types of stranguria. Forsythia suspensa is bitter and cold and can clear away heat, and is suitable for treating heat in the heart and kidneys. The powder for treating scrofula, goiter, and malignant ulcers is a holy medicine for discharging pus from ulcers. It tastes bitter and is cool in nature. Efficacy: Clears away heat and detoxifies. It is mainly used to treat exogenous wind-heat, the initial stage of febrile disease, high fever in febrile disease, rashes, sores, swelling and pus, scrofula, erysipelas, mastitis and other diseases.

Antipyretic and anti-inflammatory

It can significantly antagonize endotoxin-induced fever in rabbits, and can significantly inhibit exudation and edema caused by hyperpermeability of capillaries in the early stages of inflammation. Forsythia suspensa decoction or compound Forsythia suspensa injection has a cooling effect on the body temperature of artificially fevered animals and normal animals.

Antibacterial, antiviral, detoxification

It has significant broad-spectrum antibacterial effect, and its antibacterial components are forsythia phenol, forsythiaside A and volatile oil. Forsythiaside B has antifungal effects. Its volatile oil has a significant inhibitory effect on influenza virus. It also has anti-endotoxin effects.

Liver protection and antiemetic

It has a significant liver-protecting effect, can reduce liver cell degeneration and necrosis, significantly reduce transaminase, and can promote the restoration of liver glycogen and ribonucleic acid content to normal. Forsythia suspensa has a significant antiemetic effect, and its mechanism is to inhibit the emetic receptor area in the medulla oblongata.

Forsythia has an antiemetic effect in pharmacological experiments, but it is rarely used clinically for gastrointestinal diseases because it contains a large amount of saponins, which can irritate the gastric mucosa and cause nausea. Is it an antiemetic or a nausea suppressant? When treating fever, jaundice and other diseases, people without gastrointestinal diseases generally do not respond to doses below 15 to 30 g. For patients with chronic gastritis, a slightly higher dose may cause nausea. This is consistent with the theory in Traditional Chinese Medicine that bitter and cold foods damage the spleen and stomach. This may be the reason why it has traditionally been rarely used in the treatment of chronic gastrointestinal diseases.

Regulate blood pressure

It has a significant antihypertensive effect on hypertensive animals. It also has a significant pressor effect on hypotensive animals. It can dilate blood vessels, maintain vascular tension, increase cardiac output, improve microcirculation and blood perfusion, and thus stabilize blood pressure.

Anti-allergic

Forsythia has anti-allergic effects and can be used for immune diseases and allergic diseases, such as acute or chronic nephritis, allergic purpura, urticaria, allergic dermatitis, allergic pneumonia, etc. It can be used together with raw rehmannia, moutan bark, curcuma, and kochia scoparia.

Effects on the cardiovascular system

The oleanolic acid contained in the shell of Forsythia suspensa has a slight cardiotonic effect. Animal experiments have shown that Forsythia suspensa has a hypotensive effect. Generally, blood pressure can be reduced to 40% to 60% of the original level. Its hypotensive characteristics are rapid, significant, and short-lasting. There is no rapid tolerance to multiple injections. There is no obvious change in breathing when blood pressure is lowered. For adult cats with endotoxin shock and hypotension caused by typhoid vaccine, intravenous injection of 300% Forsythia suspensa injection (10g/kg) can first have a short-term blood pressure reduction, followed by a significant pressor effect. Its anti-endotoxin shock effect may be related to its vasodilation, increased cardiac output and improved microcirculation. The rutin it contains can enhance the density of capillaries, so it has a hemostatic effect on capillary rupture and subcutaneous hemorrhage.

Anti-pathogenic microorganisms

Forsythia has inhibitory effects on a variety of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Its concentrated decoction can inhibit Salmonella typhi, Salmonella paratyphi, Escherichia coli, Shigella dysenteriae, Corynebacterium diphtheriae, Vibrio cholerae, Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, etc. in vitro. The antibacterial effect of Forsythia in vitro is generally similar to that of Honeysuckle. It is the main antibacterial ingredient in Yinqiao Powder. The inhibitory effect of Honeysuckle on Salmonella, especially Salmonella typhi and hemolytic Streptococcus seems to be greater than that of Forsythia, while the inhibition of Shigella dysenteriae and Staphylococcus aureus seems to be better with Forsythia.

Other effects

Forsythia can inhibit the emetic effect of digitalis injected intravenously in pigeons and reduce the number of vomiting times, but does not change the latent period of vomiting. Its antiemetic effect is similar to that of chlorpromazine injection two hours later. It can also inhibit the vomiting caused by subcutaneous injection of apomorphine in dogs. Therefore, it is speculated that the principle of its antiemetic effect may be to inhibit the emetic chemoreceptor area of ​​the medulla oblongata. Forsythia injection has a significant and definite diuretic effect when injected intravenously into anesthetized dogs. Oleanolic acid has a slight diuretic effect. Forsythia decoction has a significant inhibitory effect on phosphodiesterase.