Dazzled by purchasing supplements produced from Royal Virgin plant (Crinum latifolium L.), we are much dizzier when visiting some stores selling Crinum latifolium L. dried leaves.

All types

Regard to the area selling the most Crinum latifolium L. leaves, we must talk about Chinese traditional medicine street on Hai Thuong Lan Ong Street, District 5, Ho Chi Minh City. Pretending to be a patient buying Crinum latifolium L. leaves for treating uterine fibroids, I was warmly offered by a female shop owner with huge dried leaf packing on her hand. She said, “This is 500g, the price is 45,000 VND. I guarantee you because many people buy it here. Each day I sell dozens of kilograms”. Seeing my hesitation, she added, “This is first class, if you want to get the cheaper price, you should buy second class with just 25,000 VND per half a kilo”. I wondered why drugs also have first and second classes, she said that the latter has poor quality, may be mixed or bad leaves.

Going to another store, I was also offered to buy them with the same price, there were also some people asking to buy them. The special thing was that most dried leaf packings did not inform the origin of their manufacture place, indications and dose. With only a dried leaf packing, no one can ensure that they are Crinum latifolium L. leaves or not.

At a store on Dien Bien Phu Street, District 1, a female shop owner instructed me the use of product even though she did not know what disease I use Crinum latifolium L. for. She said, “Drink within 7 days, take 7 days off. Decoct a handful of leaves in for 15 minutes and drink this decoction instead of mineral water. To treat your disease, you have to take this for a long time, so if you are near here you should buy 1 kg, if not, take about 4-5 kg”. Crinum latifolium L. leaves sold here have no origin. On the packing, there is only a cover sheet saying the use. Especially on this cover sheet, Crinum latifolium L. is informed to treat all diseases such as indications: treating blood bleeding, stagnant, dropsy, inflamations, antidotal, poisoning, uterine fibroids, ovarian fibroids, breast fibroids, leucorrhoea fibroids, BPH, goiter, adenoids tumor viscera, and even cancer detected early.

Using fresh leaves is more ensured

Since 1989-1990, it has been rumored to seek for Crinum latifolium L. fresh leaves to treat uterine fibroids and cancer for women, as well as prostate fibroids and cancer for men. Now many people are treating their diseases according to the remedy transmitted through words of mouth.

The uses of its leaves are indeterminate. A young fellow asked, “My mother is 43 years old, and has had fibroid removed by surgery 3 years ago, but now she has this disease again. I heard that drinking the decoction of these leaves daily will help to lessen tumor, or even remove it. I am so confused”. Other one said, “I also catch breast fibroids which have not been undergone surgery, and I started to take this remedy: drinking ground ginseng root with water and the decoction of dried Crinum latifolium L. leaves (if possible, the fresh is the best) daily instead of mineral water. I have taken this remedy for 2 days, the result is still unknown, and I just feel sleepier”.

Due to the treatment effects of Crinum latifolium L. on BPH and uterine fibroids, many people plant them in pots for both ornamental and medicinal use. “People often handed down experience that decocting fresh Crinum latifolium L. leaves and drinking it instead of water can prevent cancer. This deed is very dangerous because the seedlings have not been properly identified whether they are Crinum latifolium L. or not. Besides, Crinum latifolium L. planted in pot doesn’t have substances treating cancer", Pharmacist - Dr. Tram, Director of Thien Duoc Co., Ltd. said that planting Crinum latifolium L. is not easy because unlike other types of "fresh vegetables" or other fruit-trees, the production of Crinum latifolium L. from manufacturing to harvesting and processing is under a strict process without pesticides or chemical fertilizers. If planted in the wrong crop or under the wrong process it is not clean herbal source and bioactive substance for treatment will disappear.

Biologists said Crinum latifolium L. must be propagated naturally. If it is propagated by tissue culture methods, the newborn plant will have different bioactive substance. Therefore, Crinum latifolium L. plantation always requires purity. If the plant is created by crossbreeding, it will not have the treatment effect like Crinum latifolium L.

Pharmacist - Dr. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Tram.

Users should buy Crinum latifolium L. leaves with clear origin; otherwise, they will certainly spend money on a quack doctor and only get worse because there are many different Crinum plants in Vietnam such as sea lily (Crinoideae) and white flower Crinum plant. Dried Crinum latifolium L., Crinoideae and white flower Crinum leaves are exactly alike in flavor (tobacco scent), color (pale yellow), size and width of leaves. That makes the discrimination among them by naked eye difficult. They must be distinguished by genetic testing (DNA). Buying leaves without origin on the market is dangerous because white flower Crinum plant and Crinoideae are toxic to the liver, kidneys, and other body’s functions. Without stable plantation, manufacturers easily get confused as buying raw materials without origin on the market. If the Crinum latifolium L. material is clean and cultivated under GAP process, it cannot be so cheap like this.

Reported by DONG HUONG