Ban Xia
Name: Pinellia (Prepared) (半夏)
Pinyin: Ban Xia (Zhi)
Pharm. Name: Rhizoma Pinelliae
Properties:
|
Taste |
Characteristics |
Organs |
Dosage |
|
Acrid |
Retain Stomach Fluid and Eliminate Cough. |
Lung, Spleen, Stomach, Heart |
3-19g |
Description:
A dry tuber of an herbaceous plant from different provinces in China. This herb takes the action of drying according to its pungent and warm properties. It is good at drying dampness to resolve Phlegm and turbidity. It can also relieve cough. Overall, it serves as the key herb of drying dampness, resolving phlegm, warming, and resolving cold-phlegm. Especially, it excels at treating damp-phlegm of the Zang and Fu-organ. It can both dry dampness to resolve phlegm and check the adverse rise of qi to harmonize the stomach. So, it has excellent action of relieving vomiting as a key herb. It is used in combination according to the syndrome of vomiting caused by all kinds of reasons. It has also been indicated for vomiting resulted from phlegm, retained fluid, and stomach cold because it is warm and dry in property, and good at resolving phlegm.