Witnessed by: TCM · Western · Unani
White mulberry (Morus alba), of the Moraceae family. Deciduous tree with broad, toothed, often lobed leaves; native range: Northern and central China; carried west along the Silk Road as the tree of the silkworm. Globally recognized as sang (桑) in Chinese, tut (توت) in Arabic, and white mulberry, silkworm mulberry in English. The part used is leaf, twig, root bark and fruit — each a distinct drug. Bland green leaves; sweet, dark, juicy fruit that stains the fingers purple; pale, fibrous, sweetish root bark.
In this cross-tradition database, we analyze how this substance operates across world medicine systems — tracking its traditional tastes, temperatures, tissue affinities, post-digestive effects, and planetary correspondences across Ayurveda, Unani, and Western herbalism.
WHITE MULBERRY
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- White mulberry
- Scientific name
- Morus alba L.
- Family
- Moraceae
Form
- Part used
- leaf, twig, root bark and fruit — each a distinct drug
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- TCM
- sweet · bitter · sour · astringent
- Western
- sweet · sour · astringent
- Unani
- sweet · sour
Temperature
- TCM
- leaf (sang ye): cool · root bark (sang bai pi): cold · fruit (sang shen): cool · twig (sang zhi): neutral
- Western
- cool
- Unani
- cold (& moist in the ripe fruit)
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- TCM
- Lung · Liver · Kidney · Heart
- Western
- lungs · blood · digestion
- Unani
- lungs · stomach
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- TCM
- leaf disperses wind-heat and clears the Lung and Liver; root bark drains Lung heat and calms cough and wheeze; twig unblocks the channels and eases the joints; fruit nourishes blood and yin and moistens dryness
- Western
- fruit nutritive, refrigerant and mildly laxative; leaf astringent and (modern) blood-sugar lowering
- Unani
- murattib (moistening) and refrigerant; the fruit-syrup (sharbat-e-tut) soothes sore throat and inflamed mouth
Cautions
Contraindications: root bark avoided in cough from cold; the fruit loosens loose stools
Toxicity: large amounts of fruit may relax the bowels; otherwise very safe
Interactions
- Western
- antidiabetic agents: leaf additive blood-sugar lowering by alpha-glucosidase inhibition
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