Kudzu Root (Pueraria lobata)

Kudzu is a vine. Under the right growing conditions, it spreads easily, covering virtually everything that doesn’t move out of its path. Kudzu was introduced in North America in 1876 in the southeastern U.S. to prevent soil erosion. But kudzu spread quickly and overtook farms and buildings, leading some to call to kudzu “the vine that ate the South.” Kudzu’s root, flower, and leaf are used to make medicine. It has been used in Chinese medicine since at least 200 BC. As early as 600 AD, it was used to treat alcoholism.
Kudzu contains a variety of phytochemicals, which are potent antioxidant compounds found naturally in plants, that help to prevent and treat disease in humans. Kudzu contains the phytochemicals quercetin, which has antihistamine and anti-inflammatory properties, and genistein which works as a free radical scavenger. The most important phytochemicals are, however, the isoflavone compounds — daidzein, daidzin, tectorigenin and puerarin.