Zi Su Ye (Perilla Leaf)

Chinese Herb Actions

Chinese Herb Dosage

• What is the typical dosage of Zi Su Ye (Perilla Leaf), and how is it prepared?

  Roughly 3–9 g in decoction. Because its exterior-releasing, aromatic action depends on volatile oils, Zi Su Ye is traditionally added near the end of the decoction (hou xia, “added later”) and should not be overcooked or boiled for long — prolonged cooking drives off the volatile oils and weakens both its diaphoretic and qi-moving effects. The part used is the leaf (sometimes with young stem attached, Su Geng Ye).

  Source: cross-referenced against multiple online sources and standard materia medica dosing/preparation notes (Bensky; Chen & Chen).

Chinese Herb Contraindications & Cautions

• Are there cautions for Zi Su Ye (Perilla Leaf)?

  Zi Su Ye is warm and mildly diaphoretic, so it is traditionally avoided in exterior-deficiency patterns (e.g. spontaneous sweating from weak wei qi) and in damp-heat or Qi/Yin-deficiency presentations, where its warming, dispersing action could aggravate sweating or heat. It is best used for short courses at the onset of a cold rather than continuously.

  Source: cross-referenced against multiple online sources and standard materia medica cautions (Bensky; Chen & Chen).

Chinese Herb Toxicity & Overdose

• Low. Perilla leaf (known as shiso in Japanese cuisine) has a long history as a food and culinary herb alongside its medicinal use, and no significant toxicity is reported at standard decoction doses. Reported adverse effects are limited to occasional allergic reactions in sensitive individuals.

  Source: materia medica consensus; phytochemical/pharmacological review literature (below). Reference note, not a safety guarantee.

Herb-Drug Interactions

• No well-established clinical herb–drug interactions are documented for Zi Su Ye. Preclinical work on perilla constituents (including rosmarinic acid) shows anti-allergic and anti-inflammatory activity; there is no confirmed clinical interaction with antihistamines or other allergy medications, but practitioner awareness is reasonable when combining with other therapies. (Flagged for practitioner confirmation, not a demonstrated clinical interaction.)

Western / Biomedical Research

Chinese Herb Clinical Studies & Research

Provided as research context — a summary of published biomedical study, not a therapeutic or medical claim.

• Is there modern research on Zi Su Ye (Perillae Folium)?

  Yes — substantial preclinical (cell and animal) research on anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-asthmatic activity, though controlled human trials specific to the leaf are limited. Perilla leaf is chemically notable for rosmarinic acid, luteolin, and related polyphenols, alongside its characteristic volatile oil (perillaldehyde).

  • Anti-allergic/anti-pseudo-allergic activity — laboratory work has identified specific perilla-leaf compounds that inhibit mast-cell-related (MRGPRX2) pseudo-allergic responses, and separate research on rosmarinic acid and Perilla frutescens extracts shows suppression of allergic inflammatory reactions in cell and animal models — a plausible modern angle on the classical use for seafood-related reactions, though this is preclinical evidence, not a treatment claim.
  • Airway/asthma-related inflammation (preclinical) — a screening study found multiple perilla-leaf components attenuate asthma-type airway inflammation in animal models via Syk-pathway targeting.
  • Skin/atopic dermatitis (preclinical) — perilla leaf extract reduced dermatitis severity in a mouse model of atopic dermatitis induced by house-dust-mite extract.
  • Broader phytochemical/pharmacological review — a 2018 review summarizes ethnomedicinal use and a wide range of reported pharmacological activities (anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antimicrobial, antidepressant-like effects) across cell and animal studies.

  Human clinical trials focused specifically on the leaf (as opposed to perilla seed oil) are limited; most current evidence is preclinical.

  Sources: PMID 32141613 (anti-pseudo-allergic components, MRGPRX2 model); PMID 21239739 (Perilla frutescens/rosmarinic acid, allergic inflammation); PMID 33223845 (airway inflammation, Syk-pathway screening); PMID 27001658 (atopic dermatitis mouse model); PMID 30597896 (ethnomedicinal/phytochemical/pharmacological review). Research context, not a therapeutic claim.

Chinese Herb Notes

• How is Zi Su Ye different from Zi Su Zi and Zi Su Geng?

  Zi Su Ye, Zi Su Zi, and Zi Su Geng all come from the same plant (Perilla frutescens) but are different parts with distinct actions — the leaf releases the exterior, the seed/fruit descends qi, and the stem regulates qi and calms the fetus without releasing the exterior.

  • Zi Su Ye (leaf) — releases the exterior and disperses wind-cold; moves qi in the middle burner; the only one of the three with a real diaphoretic (sweat-inducing) effect.
  • Zi Su Zi (seed/fruit, Perilla Fruit) — descends Lung qi and transforms phlegm, and moistens the intestines; used for cough and wheezing with copious sputum, and for constipation in the elderly or deficient — it does not release the exterior.
  • Zi Su Geng (stem) — regulates qi, and calms the fetus for qi-stagnation-type fetal restlessness or chest/epigastric distention in pregnancy; milder and less diaphoretic than the leaf, with no independent exterior-releasing action.

  Common combinations: with Xiang Fu and Chen Pi in Xiang Su San for wind-cold with qi stagnation; with Xing Ren, Ban Xia, and Qian Hu in Xing Su San for cool-dryness cough; with Huo Xiang in Huo Xiang Zheng Qi San for summer-damp with exterior wind-cold; alongside Ban Xia and Hou Po in Ban Xia Hou Po Tang for qi-stagnation/phlegm “plum-pit” throat sensation; and in Ji Ming San and Su Zi Jiang Qi Tang. (Traditional formula context, not treatment advice.)

  Source: cross-referenced against multiple online sources and Bensky, Materia Medica (3rd ed.); Sacred Lotus sources & references (formula links).