What Is the Difference Between Houpo and Houpo Flower? Understanding the Differences Between the Two at a Glance

Houpo and Houpo Flower are two different medicinal materials, but they come from the same plant, so many people think the two are the same. In fact, there are differences, so what are the differences between Houpo and Houpo Flower?

1. The Difference Between Houpo and Houpo Flower

Houpo is the bark of Houpo, a plant in the Magnoliaceae family. It is pungent and bitter in taste and warm in nature, and has the effects of descending qi, relieving fullness, drying dampness and resolving phlegm, and is suitable for food stagnation. Houpo Flower is the unopened flower bud of the Houpo tree. Its nature and taste are the same as those of Houpo, but its medicinal strength is relatively weak; however, it has an aroma that Houpo does not have. Under certain circumstances, the two can be used interchangeably.

2. Effects and Functions

1. Regulating qi and relieving bloating

After being processed, Houpo can regulate qi and also dry dampness. It can keep qi and blood flowing smoothly in the human body and has a particularly obvious therapeutic effect on the abdominal fullness that people often experience. It is commonly used to treat abdominal distension and pain and dampness obstructing the middle jiao, with especially good therapeutic results.

2. Descending qi and soothing the middle

Descending qi and soothing the middle is one of the important effects of the Chinese medicine Houpo. It can remove food stagnation and also relieve stagnation, accelerate the breakdown and excretion of undigested food in the human body, and reduce the burden on the human stomach and intestines. It has obvious therapeutic effects on conditions people often experience, such as constipation due to heat accumulation, food stagnation with qi stagnation, and dry bound stool. For treatment, it needs to be decocted in water and taken.

3. Dispelling cold and relieving cough

Houpo is mild in nature after being used as medicine. It can remove cold toxins from the human body and also prevent wind-cold from harming the human body. Usually, when people have wind-cold common cold, externally contracted wind-cold, cough and asthma, and excessive phlegm and other conditions, they can take the Chinese medicine Houpo. It can dispel cold and also resolve phlegm and relieve cough, and will quickly reduce the discomfort the human body experiences.

4. Strengthening the stomach and promoting digestion

Houpo also contains a large amount of volatile substances. This substance can stimulate human taste and also accelerate the secretion of saliva, gastric juice and various other digestive fluids, and can produce mild stimulation on the stomach and intestines, accelerating the speed of gastrointestinal peristalsis. Regular use can strengthen the stomach and promote digestion, and can also increase appetite and promote digestion. It has a very obvious therapeutic effect on poor appetite and indigestion in humans.

The effects and functions of Houpo and Houpo Flower are similar, and the difference between the two is relatively small, but Houpo Flower is milder; however, its output is relatively low, so Houpo is generally used.