The difference between snow tea and Gynostemma pentaphyllum

Snow tea, alias Dicha, Taibai tea and Dixue tea, is a lichen plant of Dicha family.

Snow tea is like a hollow grass bud, 30-70 mm long and 1-3 mm thick. It is extremely light, like a chrysanthemum petal, as white as snow, hence its name.

Snow tea can be divided into green snow tea (red snow tea) and white snow tea. White snow tea is called "Xia Ruan" in Tibetan and "Geleng" in Naxi dialect, which means "tea on rocks".

The tea is produced in Yulong Snow Mountain, Yak Mountain, Yaoshan Mountain and other high mountains thousands of meters above sea level. Because it is natural and wild, it cannot be cultivated artificially. Snow tea is pure and refreshing, slightly bitter and sweet in taste, and it is a rare health drink. Take a little and drink it in boiling water, or drink it in tea. It has the functions of lowering blood fat and cholesterol, clearing heart fire, enriching blood and nourishing heart, and has obvious effects on hypertension, coronary heart disease, obesity, mental decline and weakness.

Gynostemma pentaphyllum is also called: Paradise Grass, Gospel Grass, Super Ginseng, Gongluo Pot Bottom, Rooting Everywhere, Hedysarum, Gynostemma pentaphyllum and so on. It is a herbaceous climber of Cucurbitaceae and Gynostemma. Stems slender, branched, with longitudinal edges and grooves, glabrous or sparsely pubescent. It is called Ganman tea in Japan.

Gynostemma pentaphyllum likes humid and mild climate, and it is mostly wild in shady places such as forests and streams. It is a perennial climbing herb. In China, it is mainly distributed in Pingli, Shaanxi, Kangxian, Gansu, Hunan, Hubei, Yunnan, Guangxi and other provinces, and is known as "Southern Ginseng". Gynostemma pentaphyllum, which grows in the south, has a high medicinal content and is called the magical "longevity grass" by the people. 1986, the state science and technology commission listed Gynostemma pentaphyllum as the first batch of "precious Chinese herbal medicines" to be developed in the spark plan.