Common Rural Herb Toad Grass: Benefits, Effects, Contraindicated Groups, and Differences from Toadflax

Toad grass is also called warty toad grass, toad skin, Didan head, white rush grass, pig ear grass, rice spoon grass, seven-star grass, five-root grass, yellow toad turtle grass, and is a commonly used Chinese herbal medicine among the people. So what are the benefits and effects of toad grass? Who should not eat it? What are the differences from toadflax?

Toad grass is harvested after the flowers bloom in late summer and early autumn, then dried, and the whole plant is used as medicine. It is an annual herbaceous plant, and the pale purple to blue-purple ones are considered the best quality. It is cool in nature and bitter in taste, and grows on hillsides and beside muddy ground. Its surface looks bumpy and knotty, and because it closely resembles the skin texture of a toad, it was named warty toad grass. In fact, this grass can be found in abundance in rural areas with just one grab. There are many strange-looking plants in the countryside, and although people cannot name them, they have very good curative effects on certain illnesses.

Benefits and Effects of Toad Grass

1. Clearing heat and detoxifying

Toad grass is cold in nature and can clear heat, detoxify, reduce swelling and relieve pain. In the customs of some regions, toad grass is a main dish on Qingming Festival. Generally, poor families mix toad grass with batter to make pancakes, while better-off families stir-fry it with eggs to make a dish, implying the clearing away of the turbid qi and yin qi accumulated over winter and welcoming the spring. Ordinarily, people boil toad grass into a juice, and either take it orally, use it for washing, or apply it as a poultice, to treat mouth ulcers, pharyngitis, and sores and swellings, with remarkably good results.

2. Treating skin sores

The whole plant of toad grass is used as medicine, and it has curative effects on traumatic injuries, unnamed swellings and toxins, influenza, and more. Some people say: “For skin sores, one wash and they are better.”

3. Treating asthma

A decoction of toad grass can prolong the latency period of coughing induced by sulfur dioxide in mice, but has no antitussive effect; however, it can prolong the time for guinea pigs to turn over induced by histamine, meaning it has an anti-asthmatic effect. The volatile oil extracted from toad grass, made into an emulsion, has neither antitussive nor anti-asthmatic efficacy; if combined with the extract of Populus tomentosa Carr., it has an antitussive effect. Its alcohol extract can inhibit Staphylococcus aureus, Sarcina, and Bacillus subtilis in test tubes. The decoction in vitro (direct microscopic examination method 1.9mg/ml, culture method 3.9mg/ml) can inhibit or kill Leptospira.

Toad grass is used for sore throat, bronchitis, nephritic edema, and carbuncles; externally it treats mastitis, hemorrhoid swelling and pain, and bleeding. Toad grass has a marked effect on cough, sore throat, and chronic bronchitis.

Who should not eat toad grass?

Every medicine has its pros and cons, and toad grass is no exception. During consumption of toad grass, it must be filtered through boiling water before eating, so as to kill the germs within. Patients with chronic diseases, bodily weakness, or a cold constitution should try not to take toad grass, to avoid worsening their condition and bringing negative effects. Women should also avoid taking it during menstruation, because toad grass has a hemostatic effect and will prolong the menstrual period, which is harmful to the body.

What is the difference between toadflax and toad grass?

Toadflax and toad grass are the same plant, just called by different names.

How is toad grass eaten? What illnesses can it treat?

1. Treating cough

Go out into the wild and pick a handful of toad grass, rinse it clean, chop it finely with a knife, then put it in a pot, add water to one bowl, boil for a dozen or so minutes, then filter it out. Drink this filtered water as tea. Because toad grass is cool in nature and has an anti-inflammatory effect, it has a very good effect on treating cough.

2. Sore throat

After rinsing the toad grass picked from the wild, put it directly into the mouth and chew it, slowly swallow the juice chewed out of the toad grass, and spit out the residue. Because toad grass has the effect of reducing inflammation and relieving pain, it has a remarkable effect on treating sore throat.

3. Treating mumps

I believe many friends know that rural people have a small folk remedy for treating mumps, which is to wash the toad grass picked from the wild, then put it in a medicinal pot, boil it in water and drink it, or directly chop the toad grass finely to extract the juice and apply it directly under the ear at the mumps location. This method is very effective for treating mumps.

4. Treating colds

Besides being able to treat cough, sore throat, and mumps, toad grass is also very effective for human colds. When you have a cold, wash the toad grass clean and directly steep it in water to drink. Because toad grass has the effect of detoxifying and reducing swelling, it is also quite effective for treating colds.

5. Shingles

Wash the toad grass picked from the wild clean, then pound it together with alum. Because toad grass is cool in nature and has the effects of detoxifying and reducing swelling, and alum has antibacterial and waterproof effects, apply the juice of both externally to the shingles-affected area; it is very effective for the recovery of shingles.

6. Treating pneumonia

If the body has contracted pneumonia, or cough, high fever, and pulmonary edema caused by pneumonia, or even sore throat and common cold, all can be treated by boiling toad grass in water and drinking it, which can help the patient recover health quickly.