This plant has been used as a home remedy for enlarged prostate for centuries. However, scientists are not always open to researching home remedies.
That all changed with a new study in the latest Journal of Ethnopharmacology in which this plant was tested.
Metapanax delavayi is a wild evergreen plant from southern China with edible leaves. Chinese people use the fresh leaves to make an herbal tea to treat prostate infections and fever.
The active ingredient in Metapanax delavayi is liangwanoside II.
The researchers conducted experiments on rats with enlarged prostates by giving them liangwanoside II orally at different doses: 30, 60, and 120 milligrams per kilogram of body weight.
They then evaluated the effects by measuring the weight of the prostate, assigning a score on the prostate index scale, and checking the levels of prostatic acid phosphatase in the rats’ blood. Elevated levels of prostatic acid phosphatase indicate an enlarged prostate.
Their findings were promising.
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1. Liangwanoside II reduced prostate weight.
2. It improved prostate tissue health.
3. It lowered prostatic acid phosphatase levels in rats with enlarged prostates.
4. There were 16 metabolites of liangwanoside II in the rats’ bodies that could enter the bloodstream and reach their prostates.
5. Liangwanoside II and its metabolites work together to reduce inflammation, balance hormones, reduce oxidative stress, and restore a healthy balance of cell growth and cell death.
If these findings are correct, liangwanoside II from the Metapanax delavayi plant can treat an enlarged prostate. Best of all, it doesn’t just reduce urinary symptoms; it actually reduces prostate size.
Unfortunately, liangwanoside II supplements aren’t readily available online or in health food stores.
The Metapanax delavayi plant is sold by many nurseries online and offline. It carries leaves all year around and grows as a shrub to 10 feet tall, meaning that you won’t have a shortage of leaves to pick if you plant it.