Fight Inflammation With Gardenias (or Zhi Zi)
Gardenias or "Zhi Zi" are a popular herb used to reduce inflammation.
July makes me think of Gardenias, whose beautiful full petals were adorned by Jazz singer Billie Holiday. The sub –tropical Asian variety of gardenia used in Chinese herbal medicine is called gardiniae jasminoidis or “zhi zi”. Gardenia is a commonly studied herb.
This popular herb is used to reduce inflammation. In formulations gardenia is effective for toxic swellings of the skin, hepatitis, cholecystitis, urinary tract infection, high fevers, and hemorrhagic disorders.
Interestingly a recent study in International Immunopharmacology displayed the anti-inflammatory components of gardenia jasminoidis and its effects in the reducing inflammationin in the large intestine and with cases of arthritis.
Clinically, Zhi zi can be mood regulating and several studies point to this influence in the body. A study in the European College of psychopharmacology cites gardenia’s anti-depressant like effects.
