What exactly are the effects and functions of cactus?
Cactus is a plant that none of us finds unfamiliar; it carries many legendary qualities. Below, let us take a look at exactly what the functions of cactus are.
What exactly are the functions of cactus?
Uses of cactus
Medicinal methods for cactus: the whole plant is used as medicine. It can be collected in all four seasons. Used fresh or sliced and sun-dried.
Treating frostbite
Remove the spines from cactus and pound it into a paste, apply it to the affected area, bandage with gauze, and remove the dressing after 5 days. First- and second-degree frostbite can heal with one application; for third-degree frostbite (not applicable if already ulcerated), change the medicine once after 3 days of application, and it can also heal in 1 week.
Treating early-stage acute mastitis and mumps
Remove the spines from 2 pieces of cactus and pound them into a pulp, add 50 milliliters of 95% alcohol and mix evenly, apply externally to the local area, 2 times daily. More than 100 cases were treated and all healed. Alternatively, pound cactus into a pulp and squeeze out the juice, add an appropriate amount of flour and apply it to the affected area; the effect on treating mastitis is also good.
Treating gastric and duodenal ulcers
Experiments prove that cactus has the effect of stopping bleeding and protecting wounds, so it is suitable for people with ulcer bleeding. Usage: Remove the spines from fresh cactus, wash it clean, slice and sun-dry, then grind into powder. 1 gram each time, taken orally 2 times daily. For patients with low gastric acid, 1 to 2 liang of chicken gizzard lining powder can be added to each jin of cactus powder; for those with relatively high gastric acid, add 2 to 3 liang of cuttlefish bone powder, and mix. The dosage and administration are the same as above, with 21 days as one course of treatment. In clinical observation of 8 cases, symptoms such as upper abdominal pain, acid reflux, and black stools all disappeared or improved after taking the medicine; in 7 cases re-examined by barium meal, changes such as niche sign, poor filling of the duodenal bulb, and deformity also mostly disappeared.
Treating tinea capitis in children
For local external application of medicine, cactus paste is the first choice. At the same time, take heat-clearing and detoxifying medicine orally.
Sores, carbuncles, swelling and toxins, scald and fire burns, snake bites, etc.
Usually the fresh product is pounded into a paste for external application. Dosage and usage: fresh product 50 to 100 g, decocted in water for oral administration, or soaked in wine, or the dried product ground into powder and taken. For external use, pound and apply, or grind into powder and mix for application to the affected area.
Cactus for treating a huge perianal abscess
Decoct Qingchang Yin in water for oral administration. Peel off the spines and skin from cactus stems, pound into a paste, put it into a bag sewn from sterile gauze, sew the opening with thread, press flat to half a finger thick, and apply it to the affected area. When the medicine dries, replace it with fresh.
Treating pain of the heart and stomach due to qi, throat pain, and breast pain
For the former, combine with vinegar-processed Corydalis yanhusuo, Aucklandia lappa, white peony, etc.; for swollen and painful throat, combine with Scrophularia ningpoensis, Rehmannia raw root, Isatis root, etc.; the fresh product is pounded into a paste for external application.
Functions of cactus
Cactus: promotes the movement of qi and invigorates blood, clears heat and detoxifies, relaxes muscles and activates collaterals, dissipates blood stasis and reduces swelling. Treats pain of the heart and stomach due to qi, abdominal masses, dysentery, hemorrhoidal bleeding, cough, throat pain, lung abscess, breast abscess, boils, scald and fire burns, and snake bites.
Modern research believes that certain organic acids contained in cactus have a certain antibacterial effect, and that many sugar substances it contains have the effect of enhancing the body's immunity; in addition, it has a protective effect on the wound surface of gastric ulcers. In addition, besides being used for dysentery, asthma, stomach pain, and intestinal hemorrhoids with bloody discharge, cactus also has an auxiliary role in the treatment of nephritis, diabetes, palpitations and insomnia, arteriosclerosis, high blood pressure, obesity, etc., and in the treatment of low back pain caused by kidney disease.
Antioxidant
Cactus has a good antioxidant effect, eliminating free radicals and delaying aging.
Preventing and alleviating cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases
Cactus has the effects of lowering blood sugar, lowering blood lipids, and lowering blood pressure. Eating one piece of vegetable cactus every day can eliminate excess cholesterol, fat, and sugar in the body, thereby inhibiting arteriosclerosis and obesity, and playing a role in promoting the movement of qi and invigorating blood, clearing heat and detoxifying, and promoting metabolism. Eating cactus regularly can prevent the accumulation of too much glucose in the human body and has a certain blood sugar-lowering effect.
Improving the body's efficiency in using insulin
Especially for patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes, after fasting for several hours, eating heated cactus stems can effectively lower blood sugar, improve the body's efficiency in using insulin, and prompt glucose to enter human cells from the blood and be converted into fat-based energy.
The cactus ball known as a nighttime "oxygen bar"
Cactus balls mostly breathe at night when it is cooler and more humid. When breathing, they take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen. Therefore, placing a large plant like golden barrel cactus indoors is tantamount to adding an air freshener, which can purify indoor air. Thus it is also an ideal flower for indoor placement at night.
A master at absorbing dust
Do not underestimate the cactus ball; it is actually a master at absorbing dust! Placing a cactus ball indoors, especially a hydroponic cactus ball (because hydroponic cactus balls are cleaner and more environmentally friendly), can play a role in purifying the environment. In addition, placing a pot on the windowsill can not only purify the air, but also guard against thieves. Killing two birds with one stone.
It can play a role in purifying the environment. In addition, placing a pot on the windowsill can not only purify the air, but also guard against thieves. Killing two birds with one stone.