Properties: Pungent, hot, toxic
Meridans Entered:
Primary: Lung, Large Intestine
Traditional Actions/Indications:
- Clears Heat and transforms Dampness
Dysentery
Malaria (Nue)
Diabetes (Xiao Ke)
- Kills Parasites
Infant malnutrition
Gu poison, Malign and evil knotted Qi (邪惡結氣 Xie E Jie Qi)
Ghosts and Spiritual things (見鬼精物 Jian Gui Jing Wu)
- Aids fasting
Mentioned in the Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing as part of the superior class of herbs which can, with protracted taking, make the body light and enable one to communicate withe Spirit Light (Shen Ming 神明). This may suggest it was part of supplementing the diet when engaging in an "avoiding grain" (Bigu 辟穀) fasting regime to cultivate life (Yangsheng 養生). This one is unusual for being a superior class herb that appears to be hallucinogenic and toxic. It may have referred to microdosing since routine ingestion would not have been viable.
Suggested Daily Dosage: Seeds 3-9g in decoction; root 15-30g in decoction.
Cautions: The whole plant is toxic. Taking too much can cause one to run around manically. The stems and seeds are particularly toxic.
Does not appear in any formulae listed on this site
Research Links & References: (click to display)
Research Links:
Reference Notes:
Individual herb information has sourced mainly from TCM Wiki and American Dragon for basic data and then updated manually with my own notes. Zhou, Xie and Yan (2011): Encyclopedia of Traditional Chinese Medicines, Vol. 5, and A+ Medical Encyclopaedia have been used for entries not available from those sources with additional material searched for and filled in where available. Western herbs not appearing in the Chinese literature have used Ross (2010): Combining Western Herbs and Chinese Medicine: A Clinical Materia Medica, White Rabbit Institute of Healing and therapeutika.ch. Choices of which source to use or combine have been my own.
These pages are intended to assist clinicians and are not intended for self-diagnosis or treatment for which a qualified professional should be consulted. Actions and indications are taken from traditional uses and do not necessarily reflect the evidence base which should be researched independently. Dosages are for guidance only and will vary dependening on the potency of the batch and the tolerance of the individual so should be evaluated by a professional based on individual needs.
