Heracleum candicans, Spru dkar སྤྲུ་དཀར་

Spru dkar (Tibet)
Ruan Mao Du Huo (H. lanatum, TCM)
Picture Heracleum lanatum
Illustrated Flors of the US, Canada, and the British Possessions, Britton & Brown, 1913

Picture Heracleum lanatum
(Photo by Dr. Alexey Yakovlev) (Wikimedia)

Botanical name:


Heracleum candicans, H. nepalense, H. lanatum (Masterwort)
H. lanatum and H. hemsleyanum are used as alternate sources of Angelica Du Huo. in TCM.
In Tibet, there are 3 types of Spru:
  1. Spru dkar: Heracleum candicans
  2. Spru nag: Angelica paeoniifolia
  3. Spru ser: Notopterygium spp.

Parts used:


Root, Seed

Temperature & Taste:


Warm. Bitter, Pungent. Slightly toxic.

Classification:



Constituents:


Rich in furocoumarins

Uses:


1. Clears Wind-Damp:
-Wind-Damp joint Pain; Arthritis, Rheumatism
-Leucoderma, Leprosy
-Tumors, Cancer

2. Settles Wind, Stops Spasm::
-Wind and Nervous diseases
-Headache, Toothache
-Hypertension

3. Clears Wind-Heat, Resists Poison::
-Fever, Cough and Cold; especially effective for Epidemic diseases
-Pain associated with Fever
-Diphtheria
-Earache, Acute Infection
-Stomachache, Diarrhea, Dysentery
-also Bleeding associated with Heat

4. Kills Worms:
-Seed is used for Worms
-abdominal pain from Worms

5. Externally:
-Boils, Abscesses, Skin diseases (paste)
-Blisters
-applied to Joint pain (root paste)


Dose:


Powder: 1–3 grams
Decoction: 3–9 grams
Often added to wine for Wind-Damp joint pain

Comment:


Some Tibetan sources state that the root will clear Heat in adults but not in the old, young or weak.

Substitute:


1. The European Cow Parsnip (H. sphondylium) is probably a suitable substitute.
2. Heracleum lanatum is an alternate source of Angelica Du Huo in TCM. Therefore, the latter may be used as a substitute.

Main Combinations:


1. Leukorrhea, Vaginal itching, Heracleum candicans, Sophora Ku Shen, Phellodendron Huang Bai (15 grams each), Cnidium She Chuang Zi (60 grams), burnt Alum (6 grams, added to the strained decoction). Use as a topical wash twice daily. (Barefoot Doctors Manual)

Major Formulas:



Cautions:


Avoid overdose

Main Preparations used:



Research

1. GENERAL / REVIEW:
–Chemical studies on the root of Heracleum candicans Wall.

2. ANTI-INFLAMMATORY:
–principally due to Heraclenin

3. ANTI-BACTERIAL:
-Essential Oil

4. HEPATOPROTECTIVE:
–Hepatoprotective Effects of Heracleum candicans Against Carbon Tetrachloride-Induced Acute Liver Injury in Rats.

5. MELANOGENESIS STIMULATION:
–Melanogenesis stimulation in murine b16 melanoma cells by umberiferae plant extracts and their coumarin constituents.