If this elephant tale sounds fanciful, consider the legend of Li Ching Yun, a Chinese herbalist who supposedly lived to be 256 years old because he regularly consumed gotu kola. These stories clearly show one thing—people on the Indian subcontinent and in the surrounding region plainly believed that gotu kola promoted longevity and a healthier life.

Medicinal use of gotu kola comes from the Chinese and Indian (Ayurvedic) herbal traditions. The herb normalizes the nervous system, improving mental activity and well-being, says Priscilla Evans, N.D., a naturopathic doctor at the Community Wholistic Health Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Gotu kola appears to have steroidlike properties, and in a number of studies, it also improved circulation. Either action could have a beneficial effect on the chemistry of the brain, says Dr. Evans. "We’re not really clear about the herb’s mechanism in the body, but we know it relaxes people and increases their mental clarity," she says.

Naturopathic doctors frequently mix gotu kola into their herbal formulas to help their patients relieve stress and rejuvenate the mind and body, says Irene Catania, N.D., a naturopathic doctor and homeopathic practitioner in Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey. Gotu kola tends to balance out the function of the adrenal glands, which secrete hormones in response to stress, she says.

"When you’re exhausted or burnt out, your adrenals are often fatigued," says Dr. Catania. "Gotu kola is a nice rejuvenating herb."

Studies have also shown that gotu kola works as a botanical treatment for high blood pressure, varicose veins, burns, and circulatory problems. In Ayurvedic medicine, it was a popular treatment for healing skin ulcers and treating leprosy.

In Sri Lanka, people eat the leaves in salads or use them to brew a medicinal tea. The entire plant, however, has healing properties. The most active compounds in the herb are triterpenes and saponin glycosides. The glycosides are particularly important. Animal studies have shown that large doses of two kinds of glycosides have a sedative or calming quality, while another type has anti-inflammatory properties. A fourth type seems to stimulate wound healing.

 

When researchers injected gotu kola extract into animals, they found that one of the glycosides seemed to increase the development and maintenance of blood vessels in connective tissue. That mechanism relates directly to its healing properties, because any time more blood is delivered to the site of a wound, the healing process is enhanced, says Dr. Catania.

Because gotu kola works well for skin conditions, it can be helpful in the treatment of cellulite and keloids, says Dr Evans. Cellulite is caused by a hardening of connective tissue cells below the skin’s surface. Gotu kola seems to be able to reduce or slow down this process.

"But you can’t just take a few capsules of gotu kola and expect cellulite to go away," Dr. Evans warns. "The herb is beneficial because it has a general strengthening and toning effect on connective tissue. It should be just one part of a therapy that includes diet, exercise, and massage." For keloids, gotu kola’s action is much more direct. Keloids are raised, irregularly shaped, progressively growing scars. They form when healing fails to proceed as it should, resulting in an excessive formation of collagen. In other words, the scar continues to grow until it eventually turns into a type of benign tumor.

Gotu kola makes scars mature faster by enhancing the later stages of the healing process. In a study, researchers gave an extract of gotu kola to 139 patients with keloids or hypertrophic scars—scars in which the cells had grown dramatically in size. After 2 to 18 months of treatment, 82 percent of the study participants showed signs of improved healing as a result of taking gotu kola.

Gotu kola strengthens the epithelium, the layer of cells that line the outside and inside of blood vessels and arteries, says Dr. Evans. It also strengthens the connective tissue sheath surrounding the vein, which makes it beneficial for preventing varicose veins.

"Gotu kola is an ideal tonic for the elderly," says Dr. Evans. Older people, she notes, are more likely to have problems with weakened blood vessels, particularly their veins. Also, it may take longer for their skin to heal after cuts, scratches, bruises, or similar injuries. Gotu kola helps with both of these problems—plus, it helps to improve mental clarity.

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