Forsythia can effectively reduce melasma (facial pigmentation)

What is forsythia(Lian Qiao)?
Since the main medicinal part is the fruit, medicinally it refers to the dried fruits of Forsythia suspensa (Thunb.) Vahl, which is a plant that belongs to the family Oleaceae. Other names of forsythia include Golden Bell, forsythia fruit, Forsythiae Fructus, Forsythia Suspensa Fructus, Forsythia Suspensa Vahl, Fructus Forsythiae Suspensae, and so on. In China it is basically produced in Northeast China, North China, the Yangtze River, and Yunnan province. According to the different picking season, it is divided into two varieties – Qing Qiao (Green forsythia fruit) and Lao/Huang Qiao (old/yellow forsythia fruit). The former one is collected before the White Dew when the fruits are still green and barely ripe. And the latter is harvested before the Cold Dew when the fruits are fully ripe and yellow. Medicinally the green one is used raw and preferred since it is mainly for the purpose of clearing heat and dissolving lumps. In addition, it can be consumed in various ways, such as forsythia tea, extract, essential oil, essence, juice, and more.

Forsythia benefits
Forsythia is a versatile plant for a variety of purposes. To begin with, it looks like winter jasmine and blooms before leaves in early spring. Hence, its lovely yellow flowers and faint aroma make it one of the best ornamental tree options in backyard gardening. Actually many people love to grow them as a hedge. Then, all forsythia leaves, stems, fruits, and roots can be used for medicinal purpose. And its leaf is good at treating high blood pressure, diarrhea, sore throat and other ailments. Furthermore, its seeds can be extracted for edible oil and fat. Finally, the decoction of forsythia flower and unripe fruits has a good bactericidal, acaricidal, and skincare effect. Washing your face with this decoction in the morning or before going to bed, once a day, can effectively reduce melasma (facial pigmentation), malar rash, Acne, and wrinkles over time.

Modern research shows that forsythia is with broad-spectrum antimicrobial effect and significant anti-inflammatory effect, which can help skin build the inflammatory barrier, lower capillary permeability, reduce inflammatory exudate, and thereby eliminate the acne-induced local swelling. Meanwhile, it has a certain inhibitory effect on the secretion of the sebaceous glands, which can improve the over-oily skin and then tremendously reduce the possibility of an acne attack.