|
| |
| Latin: |
Phizoma Atractylodis |
| |
| Origin: |
Atractylodes rhizome is the rhizome of the perennial plant Atractylodes lancea (Thunb) DC. (swordlike atractylodes), or Atractylodes chinensis (DC.) Koidz. (Chinese atractylodes), of the Asteraceae/Compositae family. Native to east Asiaa, the plant is grown in China, Japapn and Korea. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs). It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade, and requires moist soil.
In China, swordlike atractylodes is mainly produced in the provinces Jiangsu, Hubei, Henan, etc., with the product from the region of Maoshan of Jiangsu being of the best quality, so it is also known as "Maoshan atractylodes". Chinese atractylodes is mainly produced in Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Liaoning, etc.
The herb is harvested in spring and autumn. Earth and remaining stems are removed from the rhizome, then is dried in the sun, moistened in water or rice water thoroughly, sliced and parched until yellowish for use. |
| |
| Properties: |
| Pungent and bitter in flavor, warm in nature, it is related to the spleen and stomach channels. |
| |
| Functions: |
Removes dampness, strengthens the spleen and dispels pathogenic wind and dampness.
Atractylodes rhizome is widely used in traditional Chinese medicine, the root is digestive and stomachic. It is used mainly as a digestive tonic, and also for the treatment of rheumatic arthritis, glaucoma and night blindness. |
| |
| Applications: |
1. To treat syndromes of stagnation of dampness in the spleen and stomach:
a) Syndromes of obstruction of the spleen and stomach by dampness:
This herb is often used in combination with official magnolia bark, dried tangerine peel, etc., e.g., Ping Wei San.
b) Damp-heat or damp-warm syndromes:
It is used together with heat-clearing herbs in order to resolve dampness and clear away heat.
c) Fluid retention syndrome or edema due to excessive dampness:
This herb can also be used for these ailments.
2. To treat arthralgia-syndromes due to pathogenic wind and dampness:
a) Arthralgia-syndromes due to excessive dampness:
This herb is often used together with angelica root (Radix Angelicae Pubescentis), largeleaf gentian root (Radix Gentianae Macrophyllae), etc.
b) Arthralgia due to damp-heat:
This herb is used together with gypsum, windweed rhizome (Rhizoma Anemarrhenae), etc., e.g., Baihu Jia Cangshu Tang, and also often used with corktree bark (Cortex Phellodendri), i.e., Er Chao San.
c) Other wind-damp syndromes:
This herb can even be used for flaccidity, lacking normal or youthful firmness in muscle, due to damp-heat, leukorrhea due to retention of turbid dampness in the lower part of the body, exudative boils, eczema, etc.
3. To treat exterior-syndromes due to affection by exogenous wind-cold with dampness:
It is mostly used together with dahurian angelica (Radix Angelicae Dahuricae), wild ginger (Herba Asari), etc., e.g., Shen Shu San in the book 'An Enlargement on the Recipes of the Bureau.'
4. To treat night blindness and blurred vision with roughness in the eyes:
It can be used alone or steamed and boiled together with goat liver and pig liver for oral administration. |
| |
| Dosage and Administration: |
5-10 g.
Decoct this herb for oral administration. |
| |
| Cautions on Use: |
|
| |
| Reference Materials: |
Shen Nong's Herbal Classic : "To treat damp arthralgia due to pathogenic wind-cold and spasms and ulcers of affected muscles by decocting this drug for oral administration for a long time can lighten the body, promote longevity and eliminate any hungry feeling."
The Compendium of Materia Medica : "Prolonged edema with accumulation of damp phlegm, downward flow of the spleen-dampness, leukorrhea with excessive turbid fluid, and lingering diarrhea." |
| |
| Toxic or Side Effects: |
|
| |
| Modern Researches: |
Atractylodes rhizome contains an essential oil (volatile oil) with mixed crystals of atractylol and hinesol as the main ingredients. It also contains small amounts of atractylone, vitamin A-like substances, vitamin B and synanthrin.
A small dose of the essential oil has a tranquilizing effect and can make the spinal reflex overactive, while a large dose has an inhibitory effect.
For self protection, the outer skin (bark) of many plants contains essential oil, which in turn has elements that serve as an immediate chemical defense against herbivores and pathogens. How? There is an element called hydroxynitrile glucoside in essential oil. This element will release toxic hydrogen cyanide by endogenous plant glucosidase upon tissue disruption (see Anne Vinther Morant, Kirsten Jorgensen, Charlotte Jorgensen, Suzanne Michelle Paquette, Raquel Sanchez-Perez, Birger Lindberg Moller, and Soren Bak, "beta-Glucosidases as Detonators of Plant Chemical Defense," Phytochemistry Vol. 69, Issue 9 (June 2008), pp. 1,795-1,813).
Glucosidase is a catalyzing enzyme that improves healthy functions of our body. It is a lipase that decomposes fat; it can also check inflammation and improve memory (see Mikako Sakurai, Masayuki Sekiguchi, Ko Zushida, Kazuyuki Yamada, Satoshi Nagamine, Tomohiro Kabuta and Keiji Wada, "Reduction in memory in passive avoidance learning, exploratory behaviour and synaptic plasticity in mice with a spontaneous deletion in the ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase L1 gene," European Journal of Neuroscience Vol. 27, Issue 3 (February 2008), pp. 691-701). |
| |
| |
|
