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TCM Treasures Mai dong 麦冬
By Wing Tan |
September 2, 2012, Sunday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
MONKEY grass, or mai dong cao, is a popular Chinese medicinal plant with a slightly bitter taste. It is often used to dispel inner heat, nourish yin, slake thirst, stimulate saliva and relive anxiety.
The plant has long narrow leaves when at its peak in spring and summer. It has small purple flowers with a delicate fragrance and its fruit are small deep green or dark blue berries.
However it is the herb's root that is used to make medicine. Shaped like a thick spindle with several hairs, the root, after being dried, is the medicinal ingredient mai dong. The thicker the root, the higher the medical value is.
It was listed in the China's first TCM bible "Herbs Collection" attributed to Shen Nong, a legendary figure known as the father of traditional Chinese medicine who is said to have experimented with 365 herbs, animal organs and minerals around 5,000 years ago.
Mai dong is used to cure insomnia, moisten a dry throat, alleviate coughs caused by dry lungs, treat constipation and improve the heart muscle functions.
As the herb prefers a warm and humid climate, Sichuan, Hubei and Zhejiang provinces are China's biggest producers.
For whooping cough:
? Boil 20g mai dong, 20g tian dong (asparagus cochinchinensis), 10g fresh bamboo leaves and 15g lily with water.
? Drink the concoction.
For diabetes:
? Boil 9g mai dong, 9g dang shen (root of pilose asiabell), 9g zhi mu (anemarrhena asphodeloides), 15g fresh bamboo leaves, 15g tian hua fen (snakegourd root), 12g sheng di (rehmannia glutinosa libosch), 6g ge gen (kudzuvine root), 6g fu shen (tuckahoe's middle part), 3g wu wei zi (Chinese magnoliavine fruit) and 3g gan cao (liquorice root).
? Drink the concoction.
For constipation:
? Boil 30g mai dong with water to make tea. Drink daily. Also good for moisturizing skin.
The plant has long narrow leaves when at its peak in spring and summer. It has small purple flowers with a delicate fragrance and its fruit are small deep green or dark blue berries.
However it is the herb's root that is used to make medicine. Shaped like a thick spindle with several hairs, the root, after being dried, is the medicinal ingredient mai dong. The thicker the root, the higher the medical value is.
It was listed in the China's first TCM bible "Herbs Collection" attributed to Shen Nong, a legendary figure known as the father of traditional Chinese medicine who is said to have experimented with 365 herbs, animal organs and minerals around 5,000 years ago.
Mai dong is used to cure insomnia, moisten a dry throat, alleviate coughs caused by dry lungs, treat constipation and improve the heart muscle functions.
As the herb prefers a warm and humid climate, Sichuan, Hubei and Zhejiang provinces are China's biggest producers.
For whooping cough:
? Boil 20g mai dong, 20g tian dong (asparagus cochinchinensis), 10g fresh bamboo leaves and 15g lily with water.
? Drink the concoction.
For diabetes:
? Boil 9g mai dong, 9g dang shen (root of pilose asiabell), 9g zhi mu (anemarrhena asphodeloides), 15g fresh bamboo leaves, 15g tian hua fen (snakegourd root), 12g sheng di (rehmannia glutinosa libosch), 6g ge gen (kudzuvine root), 6g fu shen (tuckahoe's middle part), 3g wu wei zi (Chinese magnoliavine fruit) and 3g gan cao (liquorice root).
? Drink the concoction.
For constipation:
? Boil 30g mai dong with water to make tea. Drink daily. Also good for moisturizing skin.
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