Eucommia (Eucommia ulmoides) Benefits, Effects and How to Consume It Explained

Eucommia is a deciduous tree unique to China, and both its bark and leaves can be used medicinally; the bark is the Chinese herbal medicine commonly known as Eucommia bark. It has one obvious identifying feature: after the bark is broken, fine silvery-white rubber threads can be pulled out. Eucommia mostly grows in warm, humid hilly and mountainous areas, and it is cultivated in several provinces across the country.

In traditional Chinese medicine, Eucommia is warm in nature and sweet in taste, and it enters the liver and kidney meridians. It is often used to tonify the liver and kidneys and strengthen the bones and tendons, and it has a certain conditioning effect on soreness and weakness of the waist and knees and weakness of the bones and tendons. There is also a folk custom of using it to help support pregnancy. In daily health care, many people steep Eucommia in water or add it to soup, hoping to help relieve fatigue and strengthen the lower back and legs. However, these effects mostly come from traditional medicinal experience and cannot replace proper medical treatment.

There are mainly several common ways to consume Eucommia: first, slice the Eucommia bark and brew it in boiling water or simmer it over low heat to drink as tea; second, add an appropriate amount of Eucommia when making soup, such as Eucommia stewed pork ribs or Eucommia pork kidney soup, which tastes slightly bitter with a sweet aftertaste; third, make Eucommia tea from Eucommia leaves, which has a lighter taste and is suitable for daily drinking. In addition, there is also the practice of infusing Eucommia together with other medicinal materials in liquor.

Before consuming Eucommia, it is best to consult a Chinese medicine practitioner first and judge whether it is suitable according to your own body constitution. People with yin deficiency and excessive fire, and those during colds with fever, generally should not take it, and pregnant women should also follow a doctor's advice when using it. When buying, it is recommended to choose a licensed pharmacy, and you can check whether the cross-section of the bark has rubber threads to help judge the quality.