Fresh traditional Chinese medicine (Fresh herbs) has the unique advantage of being effective due to its freshness, with the core being the complete retention of active ingredients and high physiological activity. However, the clinical promotion of fresh drugs is restricted by the variability of their components during growth and after harvest, the lagging preservation technology and the lack of standards. This article systematically reviews the historical evolution of the application of fresh herbs and explains the material basis for efficacy due to freshness, summarizes the dynamic changes of the active ingredients of fresh herbs, such as spatio-temporal accumulation before harvest, physical escape, enzymatic oxidation and hydrolytic polymerization after harvest, and proposes a classification processing and precise storage strategy centered on retaining dominant active ingredients. It aims to reveal the scientific connotation of efficacy due to freshness of fresh herbs, and provide theoretical basis and ideas for the protection of active ingredients, quality improvement and modern application of fresh herbs.

traditional Chinese medicine  /  fresh herbs  /  history of application  /  active components  /  evolution rules