The efficacy and function of Sichuan cinnamon bark

Traditional Chinese medicine is a Chinese tradition. For many Chinese people, seeing a Chinese doctor and taking Chinese medicine when they are sick is their tradition and habit. Therefore, Chinese medicine is liked by many people. Sichuan cinnamon bark is a common Chinese medicinal material. Let’s learn about it together below.

[Source] Medicinal material source: the bark of the lauraceae plant cinnamomum villosum.

[Original form] Silver-leaf laurel is an evergreen tree, up to 16m tall. Young branches ± ridged. Leaves are alternate or nearly opposite; petiole 1-1.5cm long, glabrous; leaf blade lanceolate, 6-11cm long, 2.5-4cm wide, apex acuminate, base cuneate or nearly rounded, green, shiny, glabrous above, pale beneath, covered with silky or short pubescent hairs, three-veined or three-veined off-base, midrib with 1-2 branches, lateral veins with a few inconspicuous branches on the outside, transverse veins numerous, all curved, inconspicuous, leathery. The panicle is 4-9 cm long, pubescent, and has 5-12 flowers. Flowers bisexual, about 5mm long, white, pedicel 4-8mm long, covered with short soft hairs, perianth tube obconical, about 1.5mm long, perianth lobes obovate, about 3.5mm long, outer whorl about 2mm wide, inner whorl slightly narrow, apex acute, perianth densely covered with silky short soft hairs on both inside and outside; 9 fertile stamens, filaments slightly covered with soft hairs or nearly glabrous, 1st and 2nd whorl stamens about 2.5mm long, anthers broadly ovate nearly as long as filaments, apex obtuse, 4-chambered, inward-lobed, filaments without glands, 3rd whorl stamens about 2.6mm long, anthers oblong-cylindrical-ovate, nearly as long as filaments, 4-chambered, outward-lobed, with a pair of kidney-shaped glands in the middle of the filaments; 3 reduced stamens, cordate, about 1.5mm long, petiole short covered with soft hairs, located in the innermost whorl; ovary ovoid, about 1mm long, style about 2.3mm long, stigma capitate. The fruit is ovoid, about 13mm long, 7-8mm wide, and glabrous; the receptacle is hemispherical, 4-5mm in diameter, entire at the tip, and the fruit stalk is slender. The flowering period is April-May, and the fruiting period is August-October.

[Habitat distribution] Ecological environment: Growing in broad-leaved forests at an altitude of 1300-1800m.

【Cultivation】 1. Biological characteristics: It prefers a warm and humid climate. It can be planted on both mountains and plains. It grows better in fertile, deep and moist clay loam and can be cultivated on roadsides, ditch sides, house sides and barren slopes.

【Properties】 1. Identification of properties: The bark is in the form of flakes, grooves or rolls, with a thickness of 2-6 mm. The outer surface is gray-brown or tan, with oblique lenticels, and some have gray-white lichen spots; the inner surface is tan, relatively smooth, with fine longitudinal lines. It is hard and brittle, easy to break, with an uneven cross section and slightly granular. It has a faint fragrance, tastes spicy and cool, and makes you salivate when chewed.

【Nature and flavor】 Spicy; sweet; warm

【Functions and indications】Warms the meridians and dispels cold; promotes qi and blood circulation; relieves pain. It is used to treat colds, cold pain in the stomach, dysmenorrhea, rheumatic joint pain, traumatic injury, and fracture.

[Usage and Dosage] For oral use: decoction, 5-10g. For external use: take appropriate amount, grind into powder, apply to the affected area.

【Excerpt】 Chinese Materia Medica

Through the introduction in the above article, I believe everyone has a certain understanding of Sichuan cinnamon bark. This is a medicinal material we are very familiar with, but it has many medicinal properties and functions. Therefore, I hope everyone will consume it based on their own situation.