CATDOLL : CATDOLL: The medicinal value of golden cicada

1. Medicinal value of golden cicada

When the mature nymphs of the golden cicada transform into adults, the outer shell they shed is called cicada molt, also known as "cicada retreat" or "cicada skin". Its main components include chitin and protein. It tastes sweet, salty and cold. It enters the lung and liver meridians and is an important pungent and cool Chinese medicine for relieving exterior symptoms. As a traditional Chinese medicine ingredient, cicada molt has the functions of antibacterial, dispelling cold, calming nerves and diuresis. Fresh and tender golden cicada nymphs and adults, especially nymphs, are not only nutritious and delicious, but also have a particularly high medicinal value. They are top-grade medicinal food.

2. What are the medicinal values ​​of cicadas?

① Medicinal materials: Except for a few records that use dried adults and dried nymphs carrying parasitic fungus fruiting bodies as medicinal materials, most of them use the skin shed by mature nymphs - cicada molts as medicinal materials.

②Chemical composition: Cicada molt contains a large amount of chitin, 7.86% nitrogen and 14.57% ash.

③Pharmacological effects: Animal tests have shown that it has a sedative effect, can reduce excessive tension of striated muscles, reduce reflexes, and has a ganglion blocking effect. It can counteract convulsions and deaths caused by strychnine, cocaine, and nicotine. It can eliminate some muscle tremors caused by nicotine.

④Source and preservation of medicinal materials: During the adult stage, red cicadas can be caught with a net in the bushes and grass where they are chirping, but it is difficult to collect them because there are few insects in the wild. After collecting, they can be killed with boiling water, dried and stored in a dry place. In summer and autumn, pick up cicada molts from tree trunks or nearby objects in the forest, string them together with thread and store them in a dry place.

⑤Indications: Wind-heat headache, red and swollen sore throat, tetanus, convulsions in children, night crying, measles that has not yet broken out, rheumatic itching, etc.

3. Medicinal value of cicada

The cicada body itself has no medicinal value.

The cicada body is rich in nutrients, with a dry basis protein content of more than 70%, fat of about 7%, and vitamins and various beneficial trace elements that are higher than those in ordinary meat products. It can be called the king of protein in today's food.

Additional information

Growth and reproduction

Every year from June to July, it will transform from a pupa into an adult and then lay eggs in just a few days. The process from the eggs to the nymphs living underground, until the last molting to become an adult and singing loudly in the trees, this period of time usually lasts one to two years.

Among the cicadas, their larvae are also called "nymphs". Their male cicadas will make sounds to attract female cicadas to mate with them. They use their pointed ovipositors to lay eggs in trees. The larvae will not hatch until the second year, and will live in the soil for several years or even more than ten years before breaking out of the soil.

In their long life, they have to go through many moltings. After a molting, they become adults. When they become adults, they make sounds. The sounds made by male cicadas are hundreds of times per second, constantly vibrating the two tympanic membranes located in the abdomen to make sharp and loud sounds. This sound helps female cicadas determine the location of male cicadas suitable for mating.

Reference source: Sogou Encyclopedia - Cicada

4. What are the benefits of eating cicada monkeys?

Golden cicada, also known as cicada monkey and cicada turtle, is known as Tang Monk meat. The reason why it is called Tang Monk meat is that in addition to its nutritional value, it also has a deep cultural flavor. Due to the high nutritional value and unique taste of golden cicada, as well as its various nourishing and medicinal functions on the human body, people have long compared eating golden cicada to "Tang Monk meat" that can make people immortal. In "Journey to the West", one of the four great classical masterpieces in my country, the "Tang Monk" who went to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures was originally the reincarnation of "Golden Cicada" (also known as Elder Golden Cicada), the second disciple of Sakyamuni Tathagata Buddha. Tang Sanzang was reincarnated from Golden Cicada into a true and spiritual monk of the East, which means "Golden Cicada Shedding its Shell". Therefore, people regard the cicada that has shed its shell as a symbol of longevity and rebirth. Therefore, in "Journey to the West", there is also a saying that eating "Tang Monk meat" can make people immortal. Today, people put the nutritious "golden cicada" on the table and call it "Tang Monk's meat", which is obviously the highest praise for the nutritional value of golden cicada. Rich and unique nutritional value; According to the physical and chemical analysis and research of the China Institute of Food Nutrition, every 100g of golden cicada nymphs is rich in protein 72g, fat 15g, ash 1.8g; in addition, it also contains calcium, phosphorus, iron and multiple vitamins and trace elements necessary for the human body. According to scientific analysis, the cicada body is rich in amino acids, proteins and trace elements, and the essential amino acids for the human body account for 46.63% of the total amino acids.

If we compare the protein content of 100g of golden cicada with that of other animals, the figures we see will give us a real understanding of its nutritional value: the protein content of golden cicada nymphs is 3.5 times that of lean beef (20.2%), 4.3 times that of lean pork (16.7%), 3.8 times that of mutton, 3 times that of chicken (23.3%), 4 times that of carp (17.3), and 6 times that of eggs (11.8%). It can be seen that the protein content of golden cicada nymphs is much higher than that of any animal meat or poultry eggs; and because it contains a variety of nutrients necessary for the human body, it has an excellent auxiliary therapeutic effect on promoting growth and development, supplementing the body's metabolic consumption, and the rehabilitation of patients with physical weakness, etc. Therefore, it has become a rare natural, pollution-free, high-quality nutritious food.