Pueraria pseudohirsuta, P. montana var. lobata. P. lobata, P. omeinsis, P. phaseoloides  葛 根 Gé gēn   Kudzu vine, Pueraria   Family: Leguminosae   
PART USED: Roots and flowers- best in Spring before the grave-sweeping festival (approximately Easter); also in Autumn after the first frost.
Nature: Neutral, Cool     FLAVOR: Sweet, pungent, acrid, pleasant    CHANNEL: Spleen, Stomach.
FUNCTIONS
GROUP: Exterior clearing- Cooling
1. Clears pathogenic Heat from the superficial muscles: fever, headache, stiff or tight upper back and neck.[5] Dispel Wind Heat.[4] Reduce fever.[1] Produce fluids. Moistens and nourishes muscles and tendons.[4] Disperse Heat in muscles.[4]
2. Promote production of body fluid to quench thirst. Nourish the fluids and stops thirst.[4,5]
3. Vents measles: with fever, aversion to cold, to hasten recovery from measles with incomplete expression of the rash.[5]
4. Invigorating the Spleen Yang to stop diarrhea. Alleviates diarrhea.[1,5] Astringent.[4] Helps to stop sweating.[4] Bacterial dysentery and Hot diarrhea.[4] Relieves hunger,[1] and counteracts alcoholic intoxication.[1]
5. Treats symptoms of hypertension: headache dizziness, tinnitus, praesthesias.[5] Increases blood flow in brain.[4]
ACTIONS
INDICATIONS- Not usually used by itself.[4]
1. Exterior syndromes due to affection by Wind Heat penetrating the Taiyang level:[4] showing as fever, headache with stiffness of neck and back, thirst. Exposure caused cold and fever.[1]
2. Extreme thirst in febrile diseases and polydipsia in diabetes. Thirst due to Stomach Heat, especially in cases of externally contracted Heat.[5]
3. Measles at an early stage: fever, aversion to cold and inadequate eruption of measles.[5] Incomplete measles to speed up rash breakout.[1]
4. Diarrhea.[1,5] Dysentery.[1] Enteritis.[1] Dysenterial disorders due to Heat. Diarrhea due to Spleen deficiency when combined with other herbs.[5]
5. Headaches: dizzyness, stiff neck, tinnitus, numbness in limbs.[4]
5. Alcoholic intoxication.[1]
6. Diabetes. Angina pectoris.[4] Hypertension. Sudden deafness: due to spasms of blood vessels in ear.[4]
PATENT COMBINATIONS
- Cold and Flu with Wind-Heat Syndrome: Release Exterior Wind and Clears Heat Cold and Flu Combination- Gan mao qing re chong ji.
- Exterior Wind Cold in patients with Lung and Spleen Qi Deficiency with Phlegm Damp retention: Releases exterior Wind Cold, disperses stagnant Qi and harmonises the Middle Jiao, transforms Phlegm, tonifies Qi Ginseng & Perilla- Shen su yin.
- Febrile illness due to exterior Wind Heat or Heat and Toxicity: Clear Heat and resolves Toxicity, releases exterior Wind-Heat Isatis & Forsythia- Xiao er tui re chong ji.
- Blood stasis or exterior pathogens in the muscle layer: Dispels Blood stasis, releases exterior Wind, nourishes the Yin Pueraria Combination- Yu feng ning xin pian. 
COMBINATIONS
CONTRAINDICATIONS: An excessive consumption could cause harm to the Stomach Qi.[2]
PREPARATIONS: Decoction. Roots 4-9 g, Flowers 3-6 g.[1] Roots  9-15 g.[2] Roots 6-12 g.[5]
Boil or fresh juice, also for external application.[2] Good quality is big, solid, white, and powdery. It should not be very fibrous.[5]
10-20 g.[3]  For diarrhea, expecially due to Spleen deficiency the root drug should be roasted until yellow.[3,5] 6-18 g.[4
         
HABITAT: Found growing on hillsides and roadsides.
DESCRIPTION: Pueraria is a perennial vine. Whole plant hirsute, covered by coarse yellowish-brown hairs. Root tuber: thick and fleshy. Leaves: alternate, long-petioles, trifoliate compound, leaflets broadly ovate. Flowers: in summer-autumn, purplish-red disk-like flowers appear from leaf axils to form racemose inflorescences. Legumes: long and flat surface covered by yellowish-brown hairs
References

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.

Constituents
Research

Anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities of constituents isolated from Pueraria lobata roots.
Jin SE, Son YK, Min BS, Jung HA, Choi JS.
Abstract
In order to evaluate the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities of Pueraria lobata roots and its active components, in vitro inhibitory activities against lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced nitric oxide (NO) production, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) protein expression, and tert-butylhydroperoxide (t-BHP)-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation in RAW 264.7 cells, as well as in vitro scavenging activities against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), peroxynitrite (ONOO(-)), nitric oxide (NO·), superoxide anion (·O(2)(-)) and total ROS, and inhibitory activities against ONOO(-)-mediated tyrosine nitration, were determined. Repeated column chromatography was performed to isolate four known compounds from the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant EtOAc fraction: daidzein; genistein; puerarin; (+)-puerarol B-2-O-glucopyranoside; four known compounds from the anti-inflammatory n-hexane fraction: lupenone; lupeol; puerarol; coumestrol; seven known compounds from the antioxidant n-BuOH fraction: allantoin; 3'-hydroxypuerarin; daidzein 8-C-apiosyl-(1→6)-glucoside; puerarin; genistin; 3'-methoxypuerarin; daidzin. Among these compounds, lupenone and lupeol reduced NO production, as well as iNOS and COX-2 protein levels in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. Furthermore, lupeol showed significant inhibitory activity against intracellular ROS generation by t-BHP. Meanwhile, 3'-hydroxypuerarin showed marked ONOO(-), NO·, total ROS scavenging activities, and weak ·O(2)(-) scavenging activity, while 3'-methoxypuerarin showed ONOO(-) scavenging activity and weak NO· and O(2)(-) scavenging activities, suggesting that existence of the 3'-hydroxyl group in puerarin plays an important role in the scavenging of ONOO(-), NO·, and total ROS, as well as inhibiting the ONOO(-)-mediated tyrosine nitration mechanism. These results indicate that P. lobata roots and its constituents may be a useful therapeutic and preventive approach to various inflammatory diseases and oxidative stress-related disease.
PMID: 22644850 DOI: 10.1007/s12272-012-0508-x Arch Pharm Res. 2012 May;35(5):823-37. doi: 10.1007/s12272-012-0508-x. Epub 2012 May 29. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Efficacy and Safety of Pueraria lobata Extract in Gray Hair Prevention: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study
Seong Jin Jo, Hyoseung Shin, Seung Hwan Paik, Sun Jae Na, Yingji Jin, Won Seok Park, Su Na Kim, and Oh Sang Kwoncorresponding author
Abstract
Background
Graying of hair-a sign of aging-raises cosmetic concerns. Individuals with gray hair often look older than others their age; therefore, some dye their hair for aesthetic purposes. However, hair colorants can induce many problems including skin irritation, allergic reaction and hair-breakage.
Objective
This randomized, double-blind clinical trial was performed in order to examine the effects of APHG-1001, a compound including an extract from Pueraria lobata, on graying hair.
Methods
A total of 44 female subjects were randomly treated with either APHG-1001 or placebo twice daily for 24 weeks. Using the phototrichogram analysis, a count of newly developed gray hair was estimated. Investigator assessment and subject self-assessment were also performed in order to evaluate the efficacy of the compound.
Ann Dermatol. 2013 May; 25(2): 218–222.
Published online 2013 May 10. doi: 10.5021/ad.2013.25.2.218
PMCID: PMC3662917
Results
The mean number of newly developed gray hair at 24 weeks was 6.3/cm2 in the APHG-1001 group and 11.4/cm2 in the placebo group; the difference was statistically significant (p<0.05). However, the investigator assessment and subject self-assessment did not show any significant change in the gross appearance of hair grayness by the end of the study. No severe adverse events in either group were observed. Moreover, the incidence of adverse events did not differ between the groups.
Conclusion
This clinical trial revealed that APHG-1001, which contains an extract of P. lobata, could prevent the development of new gray hair without any remarkable adverse effects. Thus, it can be considered as a viable treatment option for the prevention of gray hair. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The Root Extract of Pueraria lobata and Its Main Compound, Puerarin, Prevent Obesity by Increasing the Energy Metabolism in Skeletal Muscle.
Jung HW, Kang AN, Kang SY, Park YK, Song MY.
Abstract
Radix Pueraria lobata (RP) has been reported to prevent obesity and improve glucose metabolism; however, the mechanism responsible for these effects has not been elucidated. The mechanism underlying anti-obesity effect of RP was investigated in high-fat diet (HFD) induced obese mice and skeletal muscle cells (C2C12). Five-week-old C5BL/6 mice were fed a HFD containing or not containing RP (100 or 300 mg/kg) or metformin (250 mg/kg) for 16 weeks. RP reduced body weight gain, lipid accumulation in liver, and adipocyte and blood lipid levels. In addition, RP dose-dependently improved hyperglycemia, insulinemia, and glucose tolerance, and prevented the skeletal muscle atrophy induced by HFD. Furthermore, RP increased the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator-1 alpha (PGC-1α) expression and phosphorylation of adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) in skeletal muscle tissues. RP and its main component, puerarin, increased mitochondrial biogenesis and myotube hypertrophy in C2C12 cells. The present study demonstrates that RP can prevent diet-induced obesity, glucose tolerance, and skeletal muscle atrophy in mouse models of obesity. The mechanism responsible for the effect of RP appears to be related to the upregulation of energy metabolism in skeletal muscle, which at the molecular level may be associated with PGC-1α and AMPK activation. PMID: 28054981 PMCID: PMC5295077 DOI: 10.3390/nu9010033 Nutrients. 2017 Jan 4;9(1). pii: E33. doi: 10.3390/nu9010033. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Thermal stability of kudzu root (Pueraria Radix) isoflavones as additives to beef patties
S. Kumari, J. M. Raines, J. M. Martin, and J. M. Rodriguezcorresponding author
Abstract
Kudzu root, Pueraria radix, extracts are a rich source of isoflavones. This study investigates the thermal stability of Pueraria radix extracts as a natural nutraceutical supplement in beef patties. The extract contained puerarin, diadzin, genistin, ononin, daidzein, glycitein, calycosin, genistein, formononetin and biochanin A; however, puerarin, daidzein and glycitein were the main components. The isoflavones concentrations in the spiked beef patties with kudzu root extracts were unaffected by cooking.
J Food Sci Technol. 2015 Mar; 52(3): 1578–1585. Published online 2013 Aug 28. doi: 10.1007/s13197-013-1112-x
PMCID: PMC4348274 ncbi.nlm.nih.gov