Glossy Privet: Top Health Benefits [2022 Results]

One of the oldest Chinese herbal medicines, Glossy Privet or Ligustrum lucidum has been used for over 2,000 years as an ancient remedy for weakness in the kidneys and liver. Native to China and Eastern Europe, the herb can now be found in almost any part of the world. In the United States, it has been used as an ornamental plant and hedge shrub since 1852.

Who Can Benefit from It

According to the Pharmaceutical Institute of the Academy of Medical Science of China, the Glossy Privet fruit contains nuzhenide, secoiridoids, olenropein, oleanolic acid, manitol, betulin, lupeol and salidroside. Other chemical ingredients in Glossy Privet include flavonoids, oleic acid, linolenic acid, palmitic acid and other fatty acids.

Due to its cooling effect, the dried and raw fruit of glossy privet is used in Traditional Chinese Medicine to relieve heat associated with emotional tension and even infection. People who benefit from its sweet and bitter taste are those with blurred vision, those who suffer from dizziness and those who are emotionally stressed.

Health Benefits of Glossy Privet

Glossy privet is also known for the following benefits:

• curing constipation, common cold, and congestion
• relieving achy joints due to rheumatism and arthritis
• reducing trouble sleeping
• stopping heart palpitations
• lessening facial dark spots
• promoting hair growth
• preserving youthfulness and extending lifespan

Modern researches have found that this superfood can also be used to reduce the side effects of chemotherapy in disease patients. Specifically, the plant has the capacity to increase white blood cells to prevent bone marrow loss due to the radioactive therapies. It can also be used to induce sweating, which can improve the patient’s immune functions.

Glossy privet also has cardiotonic and diuretic effects. Its substance has an invigorating effect on the heart that increases the strength of contractions of the heart muscle, thus enabling it to pump more blood throughout the body and to its extremities more efficiently.

Glossy Privet liquid extract supplementation can also promote the excretion of salt and water from the kidneys thereby increasing the volume of urine.

Liquid extracts of the plant also shows potential in preventing tumor growths and treatment of AIDS, Parkinson’s disease, respiratory tract infections, and hepatitis though more conclusive clinical trials and medical studies are needed before these claims can be substantiated.

From relieving menopausal problems, rheumatic pains, backaches, and to its more modern benefits, one cannot deny that glossy privet is one useful herb.

Alternative Names

The privet fruit is a member of the Oleaceae and medicinally referred to as ligustrum lucidum ait. It is also known for other alternative names such as Chinese Linguster, Chinese Wax-leaf Privet, Nu Zhen Zi (Glossy Privet Fruit) 女貞子 Nu Zhen Trueno and Yojungja.

An evergreen large shrub, the ligustrum tree can grow up to ten meters and blooms from June to July. Its blue-black fruit is usually harvested during the winter and can be made into a tonic.