This product is commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine. "Shennong's Materia Medica" is listed as the lowest grade. There are two types of commercially available goods: Yuan Hua and Huang Yuan Hua.

Nicknames: Stuffy head flower, headache flower, poisonous fish grass.

Source: Dried buds and flowers of the deciduous small shrub Daphne genkwa Siebold et Zucc. and Wikstroemia chamaedaphne Meissn. All wild.

Origin

· Yuan Hua: mainly produced in Anhui, Jiangsu, Hubei and southern provinces.

· Huang Yuan Hua: mainly produced in Shanxi, Shaanxi, Hebei, Jilin, Liaoning, Heilongjiang and other provinces.

Trait identification

1. Yuan Hua: An unopened bud or flower. Usually 3~7 flowers are born in clusters on a short stalk, or there are single flowers and leaves that fall off from time to time. The corolla is cylindrical or rod-shaped, 1~1.5cm long, gray-purple or gray-green, densely pubescent, the apex is lobed into four, the lobes are ovate, and the quality is flexible. The smell is slight and the taste is slightly pungent. For a long time, there is a spicy smell and a pungent burning sensation, which makes people feel stuffy and headache. It flowers with relatively complete flowers, gray-purple or lilac color without impurities are considered to be of better quality.

2. Huang Yuan Hua: The shape is slightly similar to that of Yuan Hua and small, 3~8mm long and about 1~1.5mm in diameter. The upper end is slightly thicker and the lower end is thinner. Gray-green or grayish-yellow, densely pubescent. Multi-single flowers. Often with young stems. The smell is slightly fragrant and the taste is slightly pungent. Astragalus flowers are preferably small flowers, light yellow or gray-yellow without impurities.

Main ingredients: Yuan Hua contains and apiranin. It also contains sitosterol and irritating oils.

pharmachologic effect

(1) Laxative: Yuan Hua can stimulate the intestinal mucosa, causing severe diarrhea and abdominal pain.

(2) Diuretic: experiments have proved that Yuan Hua decoction can indeed be used as a diuretic, but large doses of can decrease urination, and the safety range is small; In addition to flower buds, the root bark is also diuretic.

Preparation: vinegar.

Taste: bitter, cold. Poisonous.

Meridian: into the lungs, spleen, and kidney meridians.

Function: cause diarrhea, remove phlegm.

Indications: phlegm, wheezing, coughing, swollen and full.

Clinical application: the same as Gan Sui, but the water-chasing effect is smaller than that of Gan Sui (and the toxicity is also smaller).

(1) For the treatment of pleural effusion (exudative pleurisy), with asthma and reversal, dyspnea, constipation, oliguria, chest and flank pain, and slippery pulse, it is advisable to use Yuan Hua, with Gan Sui, Da Ji, such as in the formula Shi Zao Tang. It is suitable for young and middle-aged patients with good physical fitness.

(2) For the treatment of cirrhosis ascites, and the patient’s physique is still good, Shi Zao Tang can be used, but the course of treatment should be short, not suitable for a long time.

Dosage: 0.6~0.9g each time into the powder.

Prescription examples

· Shi Zao Tang (Shang Han Lun "Typhoid Theory"): Yuan Hua, Gan Sui, Da Ji are divided into equal parts, mixed at the end of the study, packed into capsules, 1.5g on the first day, increase by 0.3g per day after that, gradually increased to 3g, decoction with 5~10 jujubes, taken on an empty stomach in the morning, the course of treatment does not exceed 5~6 days (treatment of pleural effusion).

Disclaimer: All above articles are for reference only. If patients are interested, please consult a professional practitioner Traditional Chinese Medicine for a consultation.