White Peony Root

Introduction to White Peony

White peony root is the dried root of the Ranunculaceae plant Paeonia lactiflora. It is dug up in summer and autumn, washed, the head, tail and thin roots are removed, boiled in boiling water and then the skin is removed or the skin is peeled and then boiled, and then dried.

Effects of White Peony

It nourishes blood and softens the liver, relieves pain, and restrains yin and sweat. It treats chest, abdominal, and rib pain, diarrhea and abdominal pain, spontaneous sweating and night sweats, fever due to yin deficiency, irregular menstruation, metrorrhagia, and leucorrhea. Suitable for people with blood deficiency and yin deficiency who have chest, abdominal, and rib pain, liver pain, cholecystitis and gallstones; diarrhea and abdominal pain, and abdominal pain during menstruation in women; spontaneous sweating and night sweats; gastrocnemius spasm, limb cramps and pain, and restless legs syndrome; combined with licorice, it can relieve various chest, abdominal, and limb pains. Taboos: White peony root is cold in nature, so it is not suitable for people with cold and abdominal pain and diarrhea; it is not suitable for children during measles; and it is not suitable for people taking the Chinese medicine Veratrum.

The role of white peony root

1. Effects on the cardiovascular system: dilate coronary arteries and lower blood pressure (d-catechin and ethyl gallate have anti-thrombotic and anti-platelet aggregation effects).

2. Liver protection: It has a significant protective effect on liver damage caused by carbon tetrachloride, aflatoxin B1, and D-galactosamine.

3. Antispasmodic effect. It has an inhibitory effect on the intestinal tract and gastric motility, and significantly counteracts the uterine contraction caused by oxytocin.

4. Analgesic effect. It can inhibit the writhing, screaming and hot plate reaction of mice, has a synergistic effect on inhibiting the writhing reaction of mice, and can counteract the convulsion caused by pentylenetetrazol.

5. Enhance hypoxia tolerance, anti-oxidation and anti-fatigue. Intraperitoneal injection of white peony root water extract can significantly prolong the death time of mice under normal pressure hypoxia, and can significantly prolong the hypoxia survival time of mice under decompression conditions. Paeonia scabra total glycosides and peony total glycosides have a scavenging effect on oxygen free radicals. Paeonia scabra total glycosides can significantly inhibit the formation of liver lipid peroxidation and AlT increase. This shows that the components of white peony root have antioxidant effects. White peony root alcohol extract can significantly prolong the swimming time of mice.

7 major pharmacological effects of white peony root

1. Inhibitory effect on the central nervous system:

Intraperitoneal injection of paeoniflorin into mice can reduce spontaneous activity, prolong the sleep time of cyclohexylbarbital sodium, inhibit the writhing reaction caused by intraperitoneal injection of acetic acid, and counteract the convulsion caused by pentylenetetrazol.

2. Paeoniflorin has a dilating effect on the coronary blood vessels and hind limb blood vessels of dogs.

3. Paeoniflorin can inhibit gastric juice secretion in rats and prevent stress ulcer in rats.

4. Effects on smooth muscle:

Paeoniflorin has an inhibitory effect on isolated intestinal and in vivo gastric motility of guinea pigs and rats, as well as on rat uterine smooth muscle.

5. Anti-inflammatory Effects:

Paeoniflorin has a significant anti-inflammatory effect on carrageenan-induced paw swelling in rats.

6. Anti-liver damage:

Total glycosides of white peony can inhibit the increase of serum alanine aminotransferase (GPT) and plasma lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity in mice with liver injury; it also has a certain protective effect on pathological changes in liver tissue.

7. Effect on immunity:

Total glycosides of white peony have an enhancing effect on delayed-type hypersensitivity reactions in mice. In addition, they also have the effects of reducing the titer of trypsin and having antibacterial effects.  

Side effects of white peony root

White peony root is a famous traditional commonly used Chinese medicinal material in my country with a long history of application. Peony root was first recorded in the "Shennong Bencao Jing" of the Eastern Han Dynasty and was listed as a medium-grade product. It is recorded that "white peony root can cure abdominal pain caused by evil spirits, eliminate blood stasis, break up hard masses, relieve cold and heat hernia, relieve pain, promote urination, and invigorate Qi."

Tao Hongjing first divided white peony and red peony into two types, saying: "The best peony comes from Baishan, Jiangshan and Maoshan. It is white and big. There are also peony from other places, but most of them are red. The red ones are slightly beneficial." Ma Zhi's note says: "There are two types. The red one is beneficial for urination and gas, and the white one is pain-relieving and blood-dispersing. Its flowers are also red and white." Chen Cheng's "Bencao Bieshuo" states: "According to the "Benjing", peony grows in hills and valleys. Most of the ones used in the world are planted by people. If you want its flowers and leaves to be fat, you must add manure. Every August and September, take its roots and cut them. Because it is beneficial, it is sold as dried goods." It can be seen that cultivated peony was widely used as medicine in the Song Dynasty.

Acute toxicity of white peony root: 6g/kg methanol extract of peony root was injected intraperitoneally, and rats and mice showed spontaneous motor inhibition, piloerection, diarrhea, and respiratory inhibition. Half of the rats died, and all the mice died within 2 days. No abnormality was observed after oral administration. The LD50 of paeoniflorin injected intravenously in mice is

3.53g/kg, intraperitoneal injection is 9.53g/kg, and oral gavage is not fatal. The LD50 of total glycosides of white paeony for intraperitoneal injection in mice and rats is 125mg/kg and 301mg/kg, respectively. It is also reported that the LD50 of intravenous and intraperitoneal injection in mice is 159mg/kg and 230mG/kg, respectively. Oral gavage >2500mg/kg, no obvious symptoms of poisoning, and no death. Subacute toxicity: Rats were gavaged with peony methanol extract at 1.5g/kg and 3.0g/kg per day for 21 consecutive days. Increased urine protein was observed in the low-dose group. The high-dose group had a significant weight loss, and the red blood cells, hemoglobin, and hematocrit in the blood were significantly decreased. The mean corpuscular volume and red blood cell distribution range increased significantly, suggesting that it may be a megaloblastic anemia. The spleens of both dose groups were enlarged, and the weight gain was related to the dose. Splenic sinus dilation and congestion were observed. The lung weight also increased significantly.

Dietary precautions

Suitable for: People with blood deficiency and yin deficiency who suffer from chest, abdominal and flank pain, pain in the liver area, pain in cholecystitis and gallstones; people with abdominal pain in diarrhea, and abdominal pain in women during menstruation; people with spontaneous sweating, easy sweating and night sweats; people with gastrocnemius spasms, cramps and pain in the limbs, and restless legs syndrome; it can be used with licorice to relieve various chest, abdomen and limb pains.

Taboos: White peony root is cold in nature, so people with abdominal pain and diarrhea due to deficiency and cold should not eat it; children should not eat it during measles; people who are taking the Chinese medicine Veratrum should not eat it.