Cowherb widely used in the treatment of dysmenorrhea

What is cowherb (Wang Bu Liu Xing)?
Cowherb is formally known as vaccaria, a genus in the pink family consisting of only one type annual species of Vaccaria hispanica. This herb is characterized by pale pink flowers and blue-gray, waxy herbage. It obtains a few other common names like cow soapwort, cow basil, cowcockle, and the like. The main medicinal part is the dried ripe seed of Vaccaria segetalis (Neck.) Garcke (Fam. Caryophyllaceae). It is native to Eurasia. In China it is mainly produced in Jiangsu, Hebei, Shandong, Liaoning, and Heilongjiang. And the best herb comes from Xingtai Hebei. Most of them are wild but some are cultivated. For medicinal purposes, the whole plant is reaped during summer when the fruits are ripe and the pericarp is not cracked yet. And then dry them in the sun, keep the seeds, remove impurities, and dry in the sun again. Medicinally it is used raw or fried. Habitats include wheat fields, field sides, and hills nearby farmland.

Vaccaria seeds health benefits
Normally many nursing mothers can secrete enough breast milk supply for their babies. But lack of breast milk bothers some others since benefits of breastfeeding are enormous. After all, compared to formula milk powder, breast milk can provide more comprehensive nutrition for infant’s growth. That’s where vaccaria seed comes in since it is widely known as "rice milk" in China.

The effect of vaccaria’s amazing power of promoting lactation and activating blood circulation has been recorded in many ancient Chinese medical classics and affirmed by many herbalists. Li Shizhen, the author of the "Compendium of Materia Medica", ever specifically wrote the scene of steady flow of breast milk after nursing mother had taken vaccaria seed. And he also used a metaphor to describe its amazing result – even the arrival of the emperor can’t stop it. And this is another anecdotal source of its name. Today in modern medicine, it has been widely used in the treatment of dysmenorrhea, amenorrhea, blocked milk ducts in nursing mothers, and other gynecological diseases. To enhance its ability of activating blood circulation to dissipate stasis, clinically it is often used along with Dang Gui (Dong Quai) and Chuan Xiong (lovage).

Modern pharmacological actions of cowherb seeds
1) Its decoction is anti-implantation and anti-pregnancy on mice;
2) It has excitatory effect on the uterus;
3) It promotes milk secretion;
4) Its water extract and ether extract have anti-tumor effects.