The efficacy and function of Douguanhuang

Douguanhuang sharing is a medicinal material, which is quite common in life. We can eat Douguanhuang sharing appropriately. Since many people don’t know much about Douguanhuang sharing, let’s take a look at it below.

【English Name】 Galericulate Skullcap

【Other name】 Scutellaria baicalensis

[Source] Medicinal material source: the whole herb of Scutellaria baicalensis, a plant of the Lamiaceae family.

[Original morphology] Scutellaria baicalensis, perennial herb. The rhizome is creeping; the stem is erect, 35-40cm high, with many branches above the middle part, and the lower part is often leafless. Leaves are opposite; petiole is 2-7mm long, concave on the abdomen and convex on the back, with dense short soft hairs on the back; leaf blade is oblong-lanceolate, 1.5-6cm long, 0.8-3cm wide, gradually getting smaller from the bottom of the stem to the top, with sharp tip, shallow cordate base, crenate-serrated edges, green above, sparsely covered with short soft hairs, light green below, densely covered with short soft hairs, with about 4 pairs of lateral veins. Flowers solitary in leaf axils above the middle of the stem, lateral; pedicels about 2mm long, densely covered with short, curved hairs, with a pair of linear bracteoles near the base; calyx about 3.5mm long during flowering, with scutellum attached slightly below the middle of the calyx tube, 5mm in fruit, with scutellum straight; corolla purple, purple-blue to yellow, about 1.8cm long, covered with glandular short hairs, the base of the corolla tube is microcystic, gradually increasing upward, the corolla brim is two-lipped, the upper lip is semicircular, helmet-shaped, concave, slightly emarginate at the apex, and the middle lobe of the lower lip is triangular-ovate; 4 stamens, all included, the front pair is longer, with fertile half-herb, the rear pair is shorter, with full herb; style slender, with acute apex, slightly fissured; ovary 4-lobed, with lobes of equal size. The nutlets are yellow, triangular-ovate, about 1 mm in diameter, with small tubercles and a navel in the center of the ventral surface. The flowering period is June-July, and the fruiting period is July-August.

[Habitat distribution] Ecological environment: Grown on alluvial land beside ditches.

【Nature and flavor】 Bitter; cold

【Functions and indications】 Clears away heat and detoxifies; promotes diuresis and relieves stranguria; promotes blood circulation and dissipates blood stasis. It is mainly used for stranguria caused by heat, stranguria caused by blood, intestinal carbuncle, hepatitis, cancer, sores, swelling and infection, traumatic injury, and poisonous snake bite.

[Usage and Dosage] For oral use: decoction, 15-30g. For external use: take appropriate amount and mash it for application.

[Discussions by various scholars] "Xinhua Compendium of Materia Medica": Whole plant: bitter in taste, cold in nature. It has the effects of clearing away heat and detoxifying, promoting blood circulation and relieving pain, and promoting diuresis and reducing swelling. Used for urethritis and hepatitis. Traumatic injuries, sores, swellings and pus.

【Excerpt】 Chinese Materia Medica

Nowadays, people's life pressure is constantly increasing, which makes our bodies often in a state of fatigue. As a Chinese medicinal material, Douguanhuang Sharing has a certain regulating effect on the body. I hope it will be helpful to everyone.