Japanese Honeysuckle Flower

Japanese Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica) is native to Asia. The flower buds have been used in Chinese medicine and herbal tea. The flowers have a very strong sweet-vanilla smell to them. There are many active compounds in the flowers such as luteolin, bioflavonoids, saponins, and glycosides.

Health Benefits

Japanese Honeysuckle has anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, antiviral, and antioxidant properties that are beneficial for the human body.1 Japanese honeysuckle may protect cartilage (connective tissue) from destruction due to its anti-inflammatory effects.2,3 Japanese Honeysuckle may have neuroprotective properties and delay the progression of kidney problems caused by diabetes.4,5

References

  1. Shang X, Pan H, Li M, Miao X, Ding H. Lonicera japonica Thunb.: ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry and pharmacology of an important traditional Chinese medicine. J Ethnopharmacol. 2011 Oct 31;138(1):1-21. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2011.08.016. Epub 2011 Aug 16. Review. PubMed PMID: 21864666.
  2. Huh JE, Seo BK, Baek YH, Lee S, Lee JD, Choi DY, Park DS. Standardized butanol fraction of WIN-34B suppresses cartilage destruction via inhibited production of matrix metalloproteinase and inflammatory mediator in osteoarthritis human cartilage explants culture and chondrocytes. BMC Complement Altern Med. 2012 Dec 15;12:256. PubMed PMID: 23241445.
  3. Huh JE, Seo BK, Park YC, Kim JI, Lee JD, Choi DY, Baek YH, Park DS. WIN-34B, a new herbal medicine, inhibits the inflammatory response by inactivating IκB-α phosphorylation and mitogen activated protein kinase pathways in fibroblast-like synoviocytes. J Ethnopharmacol. 2012 Oct 11;143(3):779-86. PubMed PMID: 22885131.
  4. Kwon SH, Hong SI, Kim JA, Jung YH, Kim SY, Kim HC, Lee SY, Jang CG. The neuroprotective effects of Lonicera japonica THUNB. against hydrogen peroxide-induced apoptosis via phosphorylation of MAPKs and PI3K/Akt in SH-SY5Y cells. Food Chem Toxicol. 2011 Apr;49(4):1011-9. PubMed PMID: 21237235.
  5. Tzeng TF, Liou SS, Chang CJ, Liu IM. The ethanol extract of Lonicera japonica (Japanese honeysuckle) attenuates diabetic nephropathy by inhibiting p-38 MAPK activity in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. Planta Med. 2014 Feb;80(2-3):121-9. PubMed PMID: 24431014.