Goji berry herbal extract more
Name: Lycium barbarum
Family: Solanaceae
Origin: China
Form: water/alcohol extract
Parts: berry
“Wolfberry” and “Goji Berry” are the common names for the fruit of the Lycium barbarum, a species of boxthorn, of the family Solanaceae. Goji berries have been grown in the fertile Himalayan valley of China, Mongolia and Tibet for centuries. Colloquially known as the “happy berry,” Goji is so popular it is celebrated in a two-week festival in Ningxia, China. The Ningxia Hui region of northern China, where Goji berries are grown and eaten on a daily basis, has 16 times as many centenarians as the rest of the country. And as residents of the region age, they are much more active, healthy and vibrant than their peers in Western cultures. The berries can be eaten raw, consumed as juice or wine, brewed into a tea, or prepared as a tincture. Some say the Goji berry’s taste falls somewhere between a date and a cranberry, or between a cranberry and a cherry. Its harvesting process is quite unique. When ripe, the oblong, red berries are tender and must be picked carefully or shaken from the vine into trays to avoid spoiling. Because of this, Goji berries are almost never found in their fresh form outside of their production regions. The fruits are preserved by drying in full sun on open trays. Goji berries have been associated with Traditional Chinese Medicine as long as recorded Chinese history and used to cure a wide variety of ailments, but especially to treat deficiencies of chi. As early as the first century A.D., the ancient Asian medical text “Divine Farmer’s Handbook of Natural Medicine” (by Shen Nong Ben Cao) extolled this berry’s medicinal virtues. They are renowned in Asia as one of nature’s most nutrient-rich natural foods and believed to increase energy and strength, enhance immune system function, improve eyesight, protect the liver, enhance mental acuity, and improve circulation. Goji berries are also reported to sustain youth, hence its reputation as the “longevity fruit.”