agrimonia pilosa

Agrimonia pilosa is a perennial herb in the Rosaceae family known as "xian he cao" (仙鹤草) in Chinese. It is widely used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) for its astringent and hemostatic properties. The aerial parts of the plant are harvested and dried for medicinal use. Traditionally, it is employed to stop bleeding (hemostatic), treat diarrhea and dysentery due to its astringency, tonify deficiency states such as fatigue or lassitude, relieve toxicity (antimicrobial/anti-inflammatory), and kill parasites. It has also been used for abdominal pain, sore throat, headaches, heat stroke, menstrual difficulties and various skin conditions including boils and eczema[3][6][7][9]. Key bioactive compounds include tannins (astringent effect), flavonoids like quercetin and kaempferol (anti-inflammatory/antioxidant effects), phenolic acids such as chlorogenic acid[7], vitamin K (promotes blood clotting)[6], triterpenes and coumarins[9]. In TCM theory it enters the heart and liver meridians with bitter/astringent flavor; neutral temperature; actions include stopping bleeding without retaining pathogenic factors[3]. Modern herbal sources note additional activities such as antibacterial/anti-inflammatory effects; hypoglycemic action; vasoconstriction; analgesic effect; cardiotonic activity[6].

Other names

xian he cao仙鹤草hairy agrimonyherba agrimoniaechinese agrimonypilose agrimonywoolly agrimonyasian agrimony