Lian Fang
StarNelumbo nucifera Gaertn.
Traditionally used for
- Menstrual & women's health
Cautions & contraindications
- Liver conditions
☯ TCM Properties
Dispels Stasis and Stops Bleeding; Drains Dampness; Invigorates Blood and Dispels Stasis
Traditional Chinese Uses
Lian Fang (lotus receptacle) is a warm, astringent herb used in Chinese medicine to stop certain types of bleeding — particularly postpartum hemorrhage and heavy uterine bleeding from Blood Heat or stasis. As an astringent substance derived from the lotus plant, it shares some properties with other lotus-derived herbs but focuses specifically on hemostatic action and the dispersal of residual Blood stasis after bleeding has occurred. It is gentle, food-grade, and appropriate for use in vulnerable populations including postpartum women.
Western Herbalism Properties
Relationships
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Botanical Description
Nelumbo nucifera is an aquatic perennial herb in the family Nelumbonaceae, native to Asia and tropical Australia. It grows from a thick, branching rhizome anchored in pond mud, sending up long petioles that bear large, peltate, water-repellent leaves rising above the water. Solitary flowers, 15-25 cm across, range from white to deep pink, with numerous yellow stamens surrounding a distinctive flat-topped, inversely conical receptacle. As the flower fades, this fleshy receptacle enlarges, hardens, and turns brown to form a woody, perforated seed-pod 5-10 cm across, with numerous pitted cavities each holding a single hard, ovoid seed. Lian Fang refers to this dried mature receptacle (seed-pod), harvested in autumn after seeds are removed for separate medicinal use.
Active Constituents
Lotus seedpod oligomeric procyanidins
Proanthocyanidin (condensed tannin) oligomersConcentration: proanthocyanidins measured at 10.6-331.0 mg/g of extract depending on preparation; the oligomeric fraction is about 53.6% dimer, 19.5% trimer and 1.9% tetramer with 10.9% catechin and 9.1% epicatechin monomers, linked mainly C4-C8
The signature chemistry of this part. Of all the lotus drugs the seedpod is the one rich in proanthocyanidins, and almost every pharmacological result published for Receptaculum Nelumbinis is attributed to this fraction. Their astringency is a plausible chemical correlate of the classical hemostatic use, though nothing links them directly to bleeding endpoints in people.
(+)-Catechin
Flavan-3-olConcentration: about 10.9% of the oligomeric procyanidin fraction
One of the two monomeric building blocks of the seedpod procyanidins and a contributor to its radical-scavenging capacity.
(-)-Epicatechin
Flavan-3-olConcentration: about 9.1% of the oligomeric procyanidin fraction
The other monomer of the seedpod procyanidins; extension units of the oligomers are predominantly epicatechin.
Quercetin-3-O-glucuronide
Flavonol glycosideConcentration: 122.44 mg per 100 g of the water extract, the dominant single flavonoid measured
The most abundant flavonoid of the seedpod water extract by a wide margin, and the main non-tannin phenolic of the drug.
Isorhamnetin-3-O-glucuronide
Flavonol glycosideConcentration: 30.27 mg per 100 g of the water extract
One of the methylated flavonol glycosides of the seedpod, present at similar levels to isoquercitrin.
Isoquercitrin
Flavonol glycosideConcentration: 29.44 mg per 100 g of the water extract
Quercetin-3-O-glucoside, a consistent minor flavonoid of the seedpod.
Isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside
Flavonol glycosideConcentration: 29.73 mg per 100 g of the water extract
Reported alongside the glucuronide in quantitative profiling of the seedpod.
Myricetin-3-O-galactoside
Flavonol glycosideConcentration: 11.52 mg per 100 g of the water extract
A minor flavonol glycoside of the seedpod.
Hyperoside
Flavonol glycosideQuercetin-3-O-galactoside, one of the flavonol glycosides catalogued among the roughly ninety compounds reported from the seedpod.
⚠ Drug Interactions
Other Nelumbo drugs substituted for the seedpod: He Ye (leaf), Lian Zi Xin (plumule), Lian Xu (stamen), Lian Zi (seed), He Di (leaf-base disc)
The six Nelumbo drugs are separately dispensed and are not chemically interchangeable. The seedpod is the only part rich in proanthocyanidins, and its published pharmacology is essentially all polyphenol-driven. The leaf and the plumule are by contrast alkaloid drugs, and the seed is a starch-and-protein food drug. Reviews of the lotus routinely pool compound lists across parts, so alkaloids such as nuciferine and liensinine appear in seedpod literature by aggregation rather than by measurement in the seedpod itself. A practitioner who accepts leaf or plumule against a Lian Fang prescription is giving a different medicine.
Clinical note: Dispense Receptaculum Nelumbinis specifically, and treat any pharmacological claim carried over from He Ye or Lian Zi Xin as not established for this part.
Oral iron salts and other polyphenol-sensitive oral drugs
The seedpod is a condensed-tannin drug, with proanthocyanidins reaching hundreds of mg/g of extract. Condensed tannins complex non-haem iron and other cations in the gut lumen as a general class effect. This has not been measured for lotus seedpod specifically, and the relevance is greatest where the herb is taken long term in a patient being treated for the anaemia its bleeding indication implies.
Clinical note: Separate iron supplements from the decoction by two hours where both are being taken.
Anticoagulants and antiplatelet drugs
Classical practice uses the seedpod raw to break Blood and burnt to ash to stop uterine flooding and blood in the urine, so the two forms are traditionally held to act in opposite directions. No coagulation study has been done on either the raw or the charred seedpod, so this remains an inference from the processing tradition rather than a demonstrated pharmacological effect.
Clinical note: Record which form was dispensed, and monitor patients on anticoagulants clinically rather than assuming either direction.
Paracetamol (acetaminophen)
Lotus seedpod extract reduced paracetamol-induced cytotoxicity, reactive oxygen species and apoptosis in HepG2 cells, acting on Fas/FasL binding and on Bax and tBid. This is an in vitro observation in a hepatoma cell line with no animal or human follow-up, and it must not be read as protection against paracetamol overdose.
Clinical note: Do not present this herb to patients as liver protection against paracetamol; overdose still needs acetylcysteine and emergency care.
Dosage
| Form | Amount | Frequency | Duration | Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| decoction | 5–10 g | Daily | — | — | 中国药典 2020 【用法与用量】5～10g。 【性味与归经】苦、涩，温。归肝经。 — Chinese Pharmacopoeia 2020, quoted verbatim; route and cautions preserved. Replaces a cleared category-filler value. |
Evidence Tier
Moderate evidence · 5 studiesRecorded studies by study design, strongest design at the top. This is a study-design tier only, not a GRADE rating: it does not weigh risk of bias, consistency or precision.
Systematic review / meta-analysis
0
Randomized controlled trial
0
Other clinical trial
0
Observational / case report
0
In vitro / animal
5
3 verified · 2 unverified
Show 5 studies
- Procyanidins Extracted From the Lotus Seedpod Ameliorate Age-Related Antioxidant Deficit in Aged Rats
- Procyanidins extracted from the lotus seedpod ameliorate scopolamine‐induced memory impairment in mice
- In vitro antioxidant activities of proanthocyanidins extracted from the lotus seedpod and ameliorative effects on learning and memory impairment in scopolamine-induced amnesia mice
- Hepatoprotective Activity of Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn. Seedpod Extract Attenuated Acetaminophen-Induced Hepatotoxicity
- Whole body radioprotective activity of an acetone–water extract from the seedpod of Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn. seedpod
Other / unclassified
0
Verified: design read from PubMed for a DOI that resolves to the cited paper Unverified: taken from the study's recorded description
Clinical Studies
Procyanidins Extracted From the Lotus Seedpod Ameliorate Age-Related Antioxidant Deficit in Aged Rats
Procyanidins from the lotus seedpod improved age-related deficits in antioxidant status in aged rats. One of the small group of in vivo studies performed on the seedpod fraction specifically rather than on lotus in general.
Procyanidins extracted from the lotus seedpod ameliorate scopolamine‐induced memory impairment in mice
Seedpod procyanidins reduced scopolamine-induced memory impairment in mice, with the authors attributing the effect to antioxidant and cholinergic mechanisms. Relevant to the chemistry of the drug rather than to its TCM indication of stasis-related bleeding.
In vitro antioxidant activities of proanthocyanidins extracted from the lotus seedpod and ameliorative effects on learning and memory impairment in scopolamine-induced amnesia mice
Characterised the radical-scavenging capacity of lotus seedpod proanthocyanidins in vitro and confirmed a behavioural effect in the scopolamine amnesia model in mice.
Hepatoprotective Activity of Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn. Seedpod Extract Attenuated Acetaminophen-Induced Hepatotoxicity
Lotus seedpod extract raised survival and lowered intracellular reactive oxygen species in paracetamol-treated HepG2 cells, and reduced apoptosis by decreasing Fas/FasL binding and Bax and tBid, preserving mitochondrial structure. Cell culture only.
Whole body radioprotective activity of an acetone–water extract from the seedpod of Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn. seedpod
An acetone-water extract of the lotus seedpod showed whole-body radioprotective activity in an animal model, attributed to the polyphenol content of this part.
Historical Texts
Ben Cao Shi Yi
Tang dynastyBen Cao Gang Mu
Ming dynastyReferences
- Yi-Fei Wang, Zi-Chun Shen, Jing Li, Tian Liang, Xiao-Fan Lin, Yan-Ping Li, Wei Zeng, Qi Zou, Jian-Lin Shen, Xiao-Yin Wang. Phytochemicals, biological activity, and industrial application of lotus seedpod (Receptaculum Nelumbinis): A review . Frontiers in Nutrition (2022) [DOI]
This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before using any herbal remedy, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking medications.
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