Application Of Cistanche Tubulosa Extract in Health Food——Analysis Of The Current Situation And Development Trends At Home And Abroad
Jul 17, 2026
Cistanche tubulosa is a perennial herbaceous plant that parasitizes the roots of the desert plant Salix, mainly distributed in arid desert areas such as Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, Gansu, and Xinjiang in China. As a traditional and precious Chinese medicinal herb, Cistanche tubulosa ranks among the top grade in the Shennong Bencao Jing, with classic effects of tonifying kidney yang, nourishing essence and blood, and moistening the intestines and promoting bowel movements. With the deepening of modern separation technology and pharmacological research, active ingredients such as phenylethanoid glycosides, polysaccharides, and cyclohexene ether compounds in Cistanche tubulosa have been elucidated one by one, and their exact effects in antioxidant, immune regulation, anti-fatigue, neuroprotection, and improvement of sexual function have been supported by a large amount of experimental evidence.
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In 2023, the National Health Commission officially included Cistanche tubulosa in the list of "substances that are both food and traditional Chinese medicinal materials according to tradition" (medicinal and edible homology). This policy breakthrough marks the expansion of Cistanche tubulosa from a traditional Chinese medicinal material to a dual identity of ordinary food and health food, opening up policy space for its widespread application in the big health industry. In this context, systematically reviewing the application status of Cistanche tubulosa extract in the field of health food at home and abroad has important theoretical and practical significance for promoting high-quality development of the industry.
Core active ingredients and pharmacological basis of Cistanche tubulosa extract
(1) Phenylethanoid glycosides (PhGs)
Phenylethanoid glycosides are the most extensively studied and abundant group of active ingredients in Cistanche tubulosa, mainly including echinacoside and verbascoside. In desert Cistanche tubulosa, the total content of phenylethanoid glycosides can reach 3% to 8%, among which echinacoside and verbascoside are often used as core indicator components for quality control. Modern pharmacological studies have shown that phenylethanoid glycosides have significant antioxidant and free radical scavenging abilities, with a DPPH free radical scavenging rate of over 85%; At the same time, it can protect nerve cells and improve cognitive function by activating the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway, showing promising prospects in anti Alzheimer's disease research. In addition, this type of ingredient can promote the proliferation of hematopoietic stem cells, regulate the function of the hypothalamic pituitary gonadal axis, and lay a solid pharmacological foundation for its application in health foods such as enhancing immunity, anti-fatigue, and improving sexual function.
Phenylethanol glycoside is the main active component of Cistanche tubulosa
(2) Polysaccharide Composition (CDPS)
Cistanche polysaccharides are miscellaneous polysaccharides composed of monosaccharides such as arabinose, glucose, and galactose, with a content of about 10% to 30%. Polysaccharides mainly exert immunomodulatory effects by activating macrophages, promoting the secretion of cytokines (IL-2, TNF - α), and enhancing NK cell activity. Meanwhile, polysaccharides from Cistanche tubulosa can enhance pituitary gonadal hormone secretion through the cAMP/PKA signaling pathway and protect germ cells by inhibiting mitochondrial pathway apoptosis (downregulating Bax and upregulating Bcl-2). Its dual effects of immune enhancement and endocrine regulation make it a highly favored functional factor in the field of health food.
(3) Cycloene ether derivatives and other components
Cistanche tubulosa contains a small amount of cyclohexene ether compounds (such as Cistanche tubulosa A and Cistanche tubulosa B), which can directly act on the interstitial cells of sleeping pills, upregulate StAR protein expression, and promote ketone synthesis. In addition, Cistanche tubulosa also contains abundant sweet fescue, flavonoids, lignin, and various trace elements. These components work together to give Cistanche tubulosa a unique nourishing characteristic of being "warm but not dry, and nourishing but not greasy".
Main Chemical Constituents of Cistanche tubulosa
Extraction process and quality control of Cistanche tubulosa extract
(1) Evolution of Extraction Process Technology
The quality of Cistanche tubulosa health food largely depends on the progressiveness and rationality of the extraction process. The traditional processing methods mainly involve slicing raw medicinal materials and soaking them in wine, stewing, or grinding them into powder, resulting in limited dissolution rates of active ingredients. Modern industrial production has widely adopted the following technological routes:
1. Water extraction method: Utilizing the water-soluble characteristics of phenylethanolic glycosides, a combination of hot water extraction and alcohol precipitation process is adopted, which is easy to operate, low-cost, and suitable for large-scale production. However, the selectivity is poor, and the impurity content is high.
Cistanche tubulosa experiment
2. Alcohol extraction method: Using 50%~70% ethanol reflux extraction, the extraction efficiency of phenylethanolic glycosides and cyclohexene ether derivatives is significantly higher than that of the water extraction method, which is currently the most commonly used process in industry.
3. Supercritical CO ₂ depletion: By utilizing CO ₂ in a supercritical state for depletion, high-purity active ingredients can be obtained at low temperatures, especially suitable for the extraction of thermosensitive substances, but with high equipment investment and operating costs.
4. Ultrasonic/microwave-assisted extraction: By enhancing the mass transfer process through physical fields, the extraction time can be significantly shortened, and the yield can be improved. It is often used in combination with alcohol extraction.
5. Membrane separation and macroporous adsorption resin purification: Used for refining and purifying the extraction solution, it can effectively enrich phenylethanolic glycosides and increase the content of pineal glycosides from 3% to 5% of the crude extract to over 30%.
Cistanche tubulosa extract
(2) Quality standard system
At present, the quality control of Cistanche tubulosa extract is mainly based on the standards of the 2020 and 2025 editions of the Chinese Pharmacopoeia, with the total content of echinacoside and verbascoside as the core evaluation index (not less than 1.5%). In the field of health food, leading enterprises have established stricter internal control standards, including HPLC fingerprint similarity evaluation (requirement ≥ 0.90), heavy metal and pesticide residue limits, microbial limits, etc. It is worth noting that there is a phenomenon in the market where Cistanche tubulosa is confused with the authentic desert Cistanche tubulosa. Although both belong to the same genus, there is a significant difference in the content of phenylethanolic sugar, and it is necessary to use DNA barcode technology and HPLC characteristic peak comparison for authenticity identification.
The current application status of Cistanche tubulosa health food in China
(1) Product form and functional positioning
The development of domestic Cistanche tubulosa health food started around 2000, and with the improvement of consumer health awareness and regulatory policies, it has shown a rapid growth trend in recent years. According to the registration information of health food by the State Administration for Market Regulation, as of the end of 2025, the number of registered/filed health foods containing Cistanche tubulosa raw materials has exceeded 200, and the product forms include capsules, tablets, oral liquids, granules, tea preparations, and alcohol preparations.
From the perspective of functional positioning, domestic Cistanche tubulosa health food mainly focuses on the following directions:
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1. Enhance immunity: Utilizing the immunomodulatory effect of polysaccharides from Cistanche tubulosa, it is often combined with Ganoderma lucidum, Astragalus membranaceus, and Citrus reticulata, targeting susceptible individuals with physical weakness.
2. Relieve physical fatigue: Based on its anti-fatigue and energy metabolism improvement effects, it is mainly targeted at sub-health office workers and sports enthusiasts.
3. Improving sexual function/Tonifying kidney and strengthening yang: Leveraging the traditional effects of Cistanche tubulosa on "tonifying kidney yang and nourishing essence and blood".
4. Moisturizing intestines and promoting bowel movements: Utilizing the moisturizing and high-fat properties of Cistanche tubulosa, it is targeted at middle-aged and elderly constipated individuals and is often combined with moisturizing herbs such as Huomahen and Yuliren.
5. Antioxidant/anti-aging: Based on the strong antioxidant ability of phenylethanolic glycosides, develop anti-aging products for middle-aged and elderly people.
(2) Typical Product Case Analysis
Representative health foods of Cistanche tubulosa in the domestic market include single formulations mainly made from Cistanche tubulosa extract (such as Cistanche tubulosa soft capsules, Cistanche tubulosa granules), as well as compound formulations made by combining Cistanche tubulosa with various tonifying medicinal herbs (such as Cistanche tubulosa Lingzhi capsules, Cistanche cocos oral liquid, etc.). Some leading enterprises have established a fully traceable quality management system through fingerprint technology, implementing full-chain quality control from raw material planting (GAP base) to finished product delivery. The products not only cover the domestic market but also export to Southeast Asia, Japan, South Korea, and other regions.
Cistanche Oral Liquid
(3) Policy dividends and industrial opportunities
After the inclusion of Cistanche tubulosa in the list of medicinal and edible products in 2023, its application scenarios have been greatly expanded. On the one hand, Cistanche tubulosa can be used as a regular food ingredient in the fields of beverages, compressed candies, substitute tea, baked goods, and other fast-moving consumer goods, and is no longer strictly restricted by the registration and filing of health food. On the other hand, the usage of raw materials as health food continues to increase. Alxa League in Inner Mongolia, Hotan in Xinjiang, and other places have listed the Cistanche tubulosa industry as a key cultivation of local characteristic advantageous industries, forming a complete industrial chain from artificial cultivation, extract processing, to terminal product development. According to industry reports, the market size of products related to Cistanche tubulosa in China is expected to exceed 5 billion yuan by 2024, with an average annual growth rate of over 15%.
Development Practice of Functional Food of Cistanche tubulosa Abroad
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(1) Japan: Integration of functional labeled foods and Chinese herbal medicine
Japan is one of the countries with the most in-depth research and application of Cistanche tubulosa. Since the 1980s, Japanese scholars have conducted systematic research on the chemical composition and pharmacological effects of Cistanche tubulosa. The separation and purification technology of echinacoside and verbascoside was first achieved by Japanese research institutions. In Japan, Cistanche tubulosa extract is mainly used as a functional ingredient in "nutritional functional foods", with product forms including tablets, capsules, functional drinks, and nutrition bars.
The "Functional Labeling Food" system implemented by the Japan Consumer Agency provides a convenient entry channel for Cistanche tubulosa extract into the market. Enterprises only need to submit scientific evidence to prove the function of the functional ingredients contained in the product, and then make functional claims on the label. This has led to the emergence of a large number of composite functional foods in the Japanese market, formulated with "Cistanche tubulosa extract+vitamins+minerals", focusing on the efficacy demands of "relieving fatigue", "maintaining energy", "promoting metabolism", etc. The target audience is mainly middle-aged and elderly men and high-intensity mental workers.
(2) Europe and America: Penetration of the Dietary Supplement Market
In the United States and the European Union, Cistanche tubulosa extract mainly enters the market as a "dietary supplement". The US FDA classifies Cistanche tubulosa as a plant ingredient that is generally considered safe (GRAS) and allows its use in dietary supplements. The products of Cistanche tubulosa in the European and American markets are often positioned as the core ingredients of "men's health formulas" and are often compounded with plant extracts such as Maca, Tribulus terrestris, and pumpkin seed oil to form the "Plant-based Testosterone Support Complex", which is sold on e-commerce platforms such as Amazon and iHerb.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has a strict review of health claims for plant extracts, and Cistanche tubulosa has not yet been approved for health claims by EFSA, but can be sold as a "traditional herbal food supplement" in member countries. Some health product companies in countries such as Germany and France have started adding Cistanche tubulosa extract to their "Brain Health" product line, using its research evidence in neuroprotection to focus on the functional positioning of "improving memory" and "enhancing cognition".
(3) South Korea and Southeast Asia: Resonance of Traditional Medicine and Food Culture
Cistanche facial mask
South Korea has been deeply influenced by traditional Chinese medicine culture, and Cistanche tubulosa also holds an important position in traditional Korean medicine. The South Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) has listed Cistanche tubulosa as a usable raw material for "healthy functional foods", and a large number of functional foods with Cistanche tubulosa extract as the core have appeared on the market, including innovative products such as Cistanche tubulosa fermented drinks and Cistanche tubulosa collagen peptides. Korean companies pay special attention to the application of fermentation technology, using lactic acid bacteria fermentation to reduce the unpleasant flavor of Cistanche tubulosa and enhance the bioavailability of active ingredients.
Due to the large Chinese population in Southeast Asia (such as Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, etc.), there is a high awareness of the "kidney tonifying" culture of Cistanche tubulosa. Cistanche tubulosa extract is often added to traditional nourishing cream formulas, ready-to-eat swallows, health tea drinks, and other products, with good market acceptance.
