In China, one of the most popular herbal teas is wang lao ji or wong lo kat in Cantonese. Wang lao ji is said to be a product that was traded and sold by Wang Zebang (nicknamed Wang Ji) from Heshan in Guangdong province in 1828.

It is currently sold as a herbal drink, the ingredients of which are seven different kinds of Chinese herbal plants: “Water, white sugar, mesona, dan hua, Bu Zha ye (Microcos paniculata Linn), chrysanthemum flowers, jin yin hua ( Lonicera japonica Thunb.), Prunella vulgaris and licorice (the “Dan hua” does not refer to eggs, but to the Apocynaceae species).

This is a seven-part series exploring the content of the Wang Lao Ji seven-herb tea drink in FB Liangcha-Herbal Tea.

One of the main herbs in Wong Lo Kat is Xia ku cao, or Prunella vulgaris, commonly known as self-healing, total healing, heart of the earth, and is a medicinal plant of the genus Prunella. It is a perennial herb found in Europe, Asia, and North America and grows by spreading its roots underground. The flowers bloom depending on the weather and other conditions, but generally from June to August.

For medicinal purposes, the entire plant is harvested when the flowers bloom and dry. The leaves and small flowers are all edible.

Heal all is both edible and medicinal and can be used in salads, soups, and stews. Medicinally Heal All has been used in alternative medicine for centuries on almost every continent in the world and for almost every ailment.

• Plant components: betulinic acid, D-camphor, delphinidin, hyperoside, manganese, oleanolic acid, rosmarinic acid, rutin, ursolic acid and tannins.
• Medicinal properties: antibacterial, antipyretic, antiseptic, antispasmodic, antiviral, astringent, carminative, diuretic, astringent and tonic.
• Medical uses: fever, diarrhea, sore mouth and throat, internal bleeding, and weakness of the liver and heart.

There is a clinical analysis that shows that it has antibacterial action, inhibiting the growth of pseudomonas, Bacillus typhi, E. coli, Mycobacterium tuberculi. Therefore, it supports its use as an alternative medicine internally and externally as an antibiotic and for wounds and diseases that are difficult to heal.