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Wan LixinOpinion deputy editor of Shanghai Daily
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Plantain
October 21, 2011, Friday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
EDITOR'S Note:
In this biweekly column, we introduce a medicinal ingredient used in traditional Chinese medicine, along with prescription and usage instructions. By providing basic knowledge of TCM, we aim to acquaint
readers with China's profound heritage of traditional and natural healing.
Just like many other scientific discoveries in the world, many herbs in TCM are discovered accidentally. Theoretically, you wouldn't know the function of a particular herb until a large number of experiments, but sometimes you can find out just by observation. This is the case with plantain (che qian cao), it literally means the grass in front of a vehicle.
The story started with a team of soldiers fighting at the border region in the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220). Lacking water and food, many soldiers and horses had blood in their urine, yet couldn't get any medicine due to a herb shortage.
A horse-keeper noticed three horses that had recovered, and discovered a herb with leaves shaped like a bull's ears in front of the wagons. A decoction was made and the soldiers were saved. It was named after where it was found, the grass in front of the vehicles.
Plantain is a mildly "cold" herb that helps dispel pathogenic heat, promote urination, relieve diarrhea, improve eyesight and dissolve phlegm. It is usually prescribed for urination difficulty, diarrhea due to pathogenic dampness, sore throat, coughing, high blood pressure, as well as ulcer, liver and kidney inflammations.
In this biweekly column, we introduce a medicinal ingredient used in traditional Chinese medicine, along with prescription and usage instructions. By providing basic knowledge of TCM, we aim to acquaint
readers with China's profound heritage of traditional and natural healing.
Just like many other scientific discoveries in the world, many herbs in TCM are discovered accidentally. Theoretically, you wouldn't know the function of a particular herb until a large number of experiments, but sometimes you can find out just by observation. This is the case with plantain (che qian cao), it literally means the grass in front of a vehicle.
The story started with a team of soldiers fighting at the border region in the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220). Lacking water and food, many soldiers and horses had blood in their urine, yet couldn't get any medicine due to a herb shortage.
A horse-keeper noticed three horses that had recovered, and discovered a herb with leaves shaped like a bull's ears in front of the wagons. A decoction was made and the soldiers were saved. It was named after where it was found, the grass in front of the vehicles.
Plantain is a mildly "cold" herb that helps dispel pathogenic heat, promote urination, relieve diarrhea, improve eyesight and dissolve phlegm. It is usually prescribed for urination difficulty, diarrhea due to pathogenic dampness, sore throat, coughing, high blood pressure, as well as ulcer, liver and kidney inflammations.
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