Hovenia dulcis is a plant long known across East Asia. Its fruit is referred to in Chinese as 枳椇子 (Jǐ jǔ zǐ). With a history documented in traditional Korean and Chinese texts, it has been used in a wide variety of ways — both as a food ingredient and in other forms — over many centuries.
In the Donguibogam, Korea's most celebrated traditional medical text, the fruit is described as "sweet in taste and neutral in nature," with records indicating it was used to relieve alcohol-related discomfort and thirst, and to promote normal excretion.
The Bencao Gangmu, a major Chinese pharmacopoeia, also records Hovenia dulcis fruit as an ingredient historically used for discomfort and thirst associated with alcohol. Across various traditional commentaries, it has long been recognized in connection with post-drinking daily care.
Hovenia dulcis fruit is thus an ingredient backed by traditional textual records and a long history of use. It continues to be processed and utilized in various forms today. Seoganwon contains Hovenia Dulcis Fruit Extract as one of its key components.
Milk Thistle (Silybum marianum) is a plant in the Asteraceae (daisy) family, native primarily to the Mediterranean region. It is recognized by its purple flowers and leaves bearing distinctive white markings. Having been used in a wide variety of ways over a long period of history, it is today processed from its seeds (fruit) into extract form.
The extract derived from Milk Thistle seeds is known as a functional raw material that may help support liver health, and is now widely utilized across many functional health food products.
Pinus densiflora (Japanese red pine / Korean red pine) is a representative coniferous tree native to Korea and other parts of East Asia, characterized by its reddish bark and upright form. It has been used in everyday life in a variety of ways throughout history, and its needles (pine needles) in particular are well known as both a food ingredient and a functional raw material.
Pine needles are known by the Chinese name 松針 (sōng zhēn), and their use is documented in traditional texts.
The Bencao Gangmu records pine needles as an ingredient that "quenches thirst and lightens the body." This record has traditionally been understood in connection with bodily balance and thirst-related conditions, and in a modern context, is sometimes interpreted in relation to concepts associated with blood sugar regulation.
Pine needles have thus been utilized as a botanical ingredient in many forms over a long period of history, and are processed through drying and extraction into pine needle oil (松針油) for use in health food products.
Vitamin E is a fat-soluble vitamin found naturally in a variety of plant-based sources. It is widely present in nuts, vegetable oils, and other whole foods, and is a nutrient commonly utilized for everyday nutritional balance.
Vitamin E is recognized as a functional raw material that may help with antioxidant activity — specifically, it may help protect cells from free radicals generated by environmental stressors.
The ginkgo tree (Ginkgo biloba) is a plant long known throughout East Asia, easily recognized by its distinctive fan-shaped leaves.
Its leaves are known by the Chinese name 銀杏葉 (yínxìng yè), and have been used as a botanical ingredient since ancient times. The ginkgo tree is also notable for having been the subject of extensive research and application across Europe and many other parts of the world over a long period.
The extract derived from ginkgo leaves is a well-established functional raw material recognized for its potential to help improve blood circulation and memory, and is now widely used across a broad range of functional health food products.