The effects and benefits of glossy privet fruit include nourishing the liver and kidneys, improving eyesight, and darkening the hair.

Glossy privet fruit is the dried ripe fruit of Ligustrum lucidum, a plant in the Oleaceae family. It is usually harvested in winter when the fruit is ripe, and after being sun-dried or steamed it is used as medicine. It is a commonly used tonic herb in traditional Chinese medicine. The fruit is mostly oval or kidney-shaped, with a wrinkled surface, dark purple or grayish black in color, oily in texture, and sweet with a slightly bitter taste.

From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, glossy privet fruit is sweet and bitter in taste and cool in nature, entering the liver and kidney meridians. Its main effects are nourishing the liver and kidneys, improving eyesight, and darkening the hair, and it is often used for dizziness and blurred vision, tinnitus, soreness and weakness of the lower back and knees caused by liver-kidney yin deficiency, as well as premature graying of the beard and hair and blurred vision. In classic formulations, glossy privet fruit is often used together with yerbadetajo herb, and is also often combined with other tonic herbs to enhance the conditioning effect.

Modern research generally holds that glossy privet fruit contains various components such as oleanolic acid, polysaccharides, and flavonoids, and has certain medicinal potential, but the related effects still need to be evaluated under professional guidance, and it should not be taken on one's own as a health food in large amounts over the long term. People with spleen-stomach deficiency cold who are prone to diarrhea should use it with caution, and pregnant women and people with chronic diseases had best consult a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner before use, deciding whether to take it only after syndrome differentiation according to their constitution.

In addition to its medicinal value, the glossy privet tree itself is also a common landscaping tree species. With dense branches and leaves and tolerance of pruning, it is often used as courtyard hedges and street trees. After the fruit ripens in winter, it can also attract birds to feed, combining ornamental and ecological value, so it can be said that every part has its uses.