Myristica
fragrans. 肉豆蔻Ròu dòu kòu Nutmeg Family: Myristicaceae PART USED: Seed
FLAVOR: Pungent, acrid CHANNEL: Spleen, Stomach, Large Intestine.
FUNCTIONS GROUP: Astringents and Hemostatic
1. Hemostatic.
2. Astringe the intestine and relieve diarrhea. Promotes digestion.[3]
3. Warm the middle Heater and alleviate pain.[1,2]
Warms the internal region.[3]
4. Pushes Qi downwards.[3] INDICATIONS
1. Prolonged diarrhea due to Cold deficiency of Spleen/Stomach, also diarrhea
before dawn due to Spleen and Kidney Cold deficiency. Diarrhea, vomiting and indigestion.[3]
2. Cold Stomach with stagnation of Vital energy manifested as abdominal pain,
poor appetite and vomiting.[1,2] Abdominal
swelling and pain.[3] CONTRAINDICATIONS: Hemorrhoids, hot diarrhea, and toothache.[1,3] COMBINATIONS
NOTE- Mace, the spice ground from the red layer between the nutmeg
shell and its outer husk, is used as a carminative, stomach tonic, and stimulant.[1,3] PREPARATIONS:Decoction
3-10 g.[2] References
[1] A Complete English Dictionary of Medicinal
Terms in Chinese Acupuncture and Herbalism 1981- Henry Lu Chinese Foundations
of Natural Health- The Academy of Oriental Heritage, Vancouver, Canada.
[2] Medicated Diet of Traditional Chinese Medicine - Chief Editor- Hou Jinglun.
Associate Editors- Zhao Xin, Li Weidong, Liu Jianxin, Geng Chun-e, Li Guohua,
Li Shaohua. Geijing. Science & Technology Press 1994. ISBN 7-5304-1735-5/R.
309.
[3] Chinese System of Food Cures Prevention and Remedies. 1986Lu,
Henry. Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. New York. USA. Distributed in Australia
by Capricorn Book Co. Pty Ltd. Lane Cove, NSW. ISBN 0-8069-6308-5. Images
1. commons.wikimedia.org
by Ji-Elle CC SA 3.0 Unported license.
2. topfoodfacts.com
3. redstickspice.com
4. commons.wikimedia.org
by Ji-Elle CC SA 3.0 Unported license.
Inner Path can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the
use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.Cultivation, Harvesting and Supply.
The tree bears fruit when five to eight years old. There are two types of mace,
West Indian and East Indian. The fruit turn yellow when ripe and the pulpy outer
husk (pericarp) splits into two halves exposing a purplish-brown shinny seed surrounded
by a red aril. Usually the fruits are allowed to split and fall to the ground
before harvesting. They should be collected as soon as possible or the underside
of the fruit will become discoloured and the risk of mouldiness will be increased.
In some areas, a long pole is used to take opened pods directly from the tree.
This ensures a better quality harvest but can also result in damage to flowers
and younger fruit.[1] References
[1] en.howtopedia.org
Available at:www.herbies.com.auConstituents.
Nutmeg: Fixed oil "Nutmeg
Butter" 35[1] - 40% containing myristic
acid 60%,[1] palmitic acid,[1]
oleic acid,[1] linoleic acid,[1]
lauric acid,[1] myristicin,[1]
elemicin and safrol.[1]
Volatile oil 5[1]-15% containing camphene
and pinene as the major ingredients. Cymene, a-thujene,
g-terpinene, linalool, terpineol, myristine (about 4-5% of the oil), safrol,
elemicin, copaene, eugenol isoeugenol, methyleugenol.[1,2,3,4,5]
Also eugenol and myristicine. Terpenoids a and b-pinene.[1,2,3,4,5]
Also Diarylpropanoids, sclareol, fixed oils and protein.[2,5,11,12] Mace: Volatile oil, containing myristicin, elemene and safrole.
Monoterpene hydrocarbons such as camphene, a- and
b-pinene, sabinene, cymene, a-thujene
and the monoterpene alcohols linalool, geraniol, borneol.[7,8,9,10]
This is rather similar in composition to that of nutmeg but with higher concentrations
of myristicin.[6] References
[1] British Herbal Pharmacopoeia 1983 Published by the British Herbal Medicine
Association ISBN 0 903032 07 4.
[2] Sanford, K. J. and Heinz, D. E. (1971) Phytochem. 10, 1245
[3] Gottleib, O. R. (1979) J. Ethnopharmacol. 1, 309
[4] Sarath-Kumara, S. J. et al. (1985) J. Sci. Food. Agric. 36 (2),
93
[5] Rasheed, A. et al. (1984) Planta Med. 50 (2), 222
[6] Potter's New Cyclopaedia of Botanical Drugs and Preparations R.C.
Wren Revised by Elizabeth M. Williamson and Fred J Evans. First published in
Great Britain in 1988 and reprinted in 1989 and 1994 by the C. W. Daniel Company
Limited. 1 Church Path, Saffron Walden Essex. Published 1988 Printed and bound
by Biddles, Guildford ISBN 085207 1973.
[7] Sanford, K. J. and Heinz, D. E. (1971) Pharm. Act Helv. 59
(9/10), 242
[8] Forrest, T. P. et al. (1973) Naturwissenschaft. 60,
257
[9] Forrest J. E. and Heacock, R. A. (1972) Lloydia 35, 440
[10] Baldry, J. et al. (1976) Int. Flav. Food. Add. 7,
28
[11] Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients used in Food Drugs and Bosmetics,
Albert Y. Leung. Pub. John Wiley & Sons Inc. (1980) NY
[12] Isogai, A. et al. (1973) Agric. Biol Chem. 37, 198 and 1479
Research. Extracts of nutmeg decrease kidney prostaglandin levels in rats,[1]
inhibit contractions of rat stomach strips produced by prostaglindin E2
and decrease levels of prostaglandin like material produced by isolated human
colon.[2] They also inhibit platelet
aggregation; this activity was found to be due to eugenol and isoeugenol.[3]
Nutmeg has been used successfully in the treatment of Chrohn's disease.[4]
However nutmeg oil decreases fertility in rats,[5]
and some constituents are carcinogenic.[6]
Large doses causes intoxication, hypnosis and tachycardia; these actions are thought
to be due to the hallucinogenic- myristicin, but some the other constituents have
hypnotic activity at least.[7,8] References
[1] Misra, V. et al. (1978) Ind. J. Med. Res. 67, 482
[2] Bennett, A. et al. New Eng. J. Med. 290, 110
[3] Rasheed, A. et al. (1984) Planta Med. 50 (2), 222
[4] Shafkan, I. et al. (1977) New Eng. J. Med. 296,
694
[5] Pecevski, J. et al. (1980) Toxicol. Lett. 7, 739
[6] Miller, E. C. et al. (1983) Cancer Res. 43, 1124
[7] Kim, et al. (1978) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 537, 22
[8] Effertz, B. et al. (1979) Z. Pflanzenphysiol. 92,
319
Pharmacological studies on Myristica fragrans--antidiarrheal, hypnotic,
analgesic and hemodynamic (blood pressure) parameters
J K Grover, S Khandkar, V Vats, Y Dhunnoo, D Das Abstract
Recurrent diarrhea is prevalent in developing countries, particularly in tropical
regions. A natural based antidiarrheal home remedy can serve as an ideal health
tool to limit diarrhea-related morbidity and mortality. In the traditional Indian
medical science of Ayurveda, nutmeg is one such plant said to possess antidiarrheal
activity. A study was therefore planned to assess the various pharmacological
effects (antidiarrheal, sedative, analgesic and blood pressure) of nutmeg. Both
Nutmeg crude suspension (NMC) and petroleum ether (PE), but not aqueous extract
(Aq), decreased the mean number of loose stools or increased the latency period.
NMC increased intestinal tone while PE had no such effect. PE had no effect on
guinea pig ileum, but inhibited the contraction produced by acetylcholine, histamine
and prostaglandin. NMC but not PE extract showed a significant but weak analgesic
effect. While PE effectively potentiated both phenobarbitone and pentobarbitone-induced
sleeping time, NMC was considerably less effective. NMC administered intraduodenally
did not produce much effect on blood pressure (BP), but potentiated the action
of exogenously administered adrenaline and nor-adrenaline. On the other hand,
PE in higher, but not lower, doses caused a precipitous fall in BP not blocked
by atropine. Thus, overall extracts of nutmeg showed a good antidiarrheal effect,
with a significant sedative property. The extracts possessed only a weak analgesic
effect, with no harmful effects on blood pressure and ECG.
Methods Find Exp Clin Pharmacol 2002 Dec;24(10):675-80. doi: 10.1358/mf.2002.24.10.802317.
PMID: 12616960 DOI: 10.1358/mf.2002.24.10.802317 pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
The Protective Effect of Myristica fragrans Houtt. Extracts Against Obesity
and Inflammation by Regulating Free Fatty Acids Metabolism in Nonalcoholic Fatty
Liver Disease
by Wenyu Zhao, Fanfen Song, Diangeng Hu, Haiqin Chen, Qixiao Zhai, Wenwei Lu,
Jianxin Zhao, Hao Zhang, Wei Chen, Zhennan Gu, OrcID andGang Wang* Abstract
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a disorder characterized by the excess
accumulation of fat in the hepatocytes. It is commonly associated with severe
obesity and inflammation. Free fatty acids (FFAs) are the key to regulate lipid
metabolism and immune response in hepatocyte cells. This study examined the effects
of AEN (alcohol extract of nutmeg, the seed of Myristica fragrans Houtt.) on the
inhibition of lipid synthesis and inflammation in vitro and in vivo and on high-fat
diet-induced obesity in NAFLD mice. Our results showed that AEN treatment could
downregulate the expression of lipid synthesis-related genes fatty acid synthase
(FASN) and sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1c (SREBP-1c) and lower the
lipid content of cells. AEN also inhibited FFAs-mediated inflammation-related
cytokines interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor a (TNFa) expression in
cells. In a mouse model, AEN reduced the bodyweight of obese mice and improved
NAFLD without affecting food intake. Further analysis revealed that AEN significantly
reduced inflammation level, cholesterol and lipid accumulation, blood glucose,
and other liver function indexes in mice fed with a high-fat diet. In conclusion,
AEN inhibited the aggravation of obesity and inflammation by downregulating lipid-gene
expression in the liver to ameliorate NAFLD.
Nutrients 2020, 12(9), 2507; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12092507
Received: 11 July 2020 / Revised: 5 August 2020 / Accepted: 17 August 2020 / Published:
19 August 2020 mdpi.com
FLAVOR: Pungent, acrid CHANNEL: Spleen, Stomach, Large Intestine.
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