Properties: Sweet, bitter, cool
Meridans Entered:
Primary: Liver and Kidney
Extraordinary Vessels: Yin Wei
Traditional Actions/Indications:
- Nourishes and tonifies Liver and Kidney Yin
Kidney and Liver Yin Deficiencies with dizziness, spots before the eyes, lower back soreness, premature graying of the hair and tinnitus
- Clears Deficiency Heat
Yin Deficiency with Empty Fire Rising
- Improves vision
Diminished visual acuity in those with Liver and Kidney Deficiencies
- Aids fasting
Mentioned in the Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing as part of the superior class of herbs which can, with protracted taking, make one fat and strong, the body light and prevent forgetfulness. 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).
Suggested Daily Dosage: 10-15g in decoction. Alcohol extracts may be preferable to extract the oleanolic and ursolic acid content.
Notable Constituents:
- Oleanolic acid
Ubiquitous triterpenoid in the plant kingdom that exhibits both pro- and anti-inflammatory properties depending on chemical structure and dose and may be useful in modulating the immune response. Its polarity means it extracts better in ethanol than water.
- Ursolicacid
Also a ubiquitous triterpenoid in plant the kingdom which has antitumor activities and antioxidant activity. It is also more affiliated with ethanol extraction than water.
Appears in 8 formulae listed on this site: (click to display)
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, has 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.
