Lophatherum, Dan Zhu Ye 淡竹叶

Dan Zhu Ye (TCM)

Lophatherum gracile
Duperrey, L.I., Voyage autour du monde sur la corvette de
S.M. La Coquille, pendant les années 1822-1825, Atlas (1826)

Botanical name:

Lophatherum gracile

Parts used:

Leaf and stem

Temperature & Taste:

Cool, dry. Sweet, Bitter

Classifications:

B. Clear Strong Heat or Fire

Uses:

1. Clears Heat, Relieves Irritability:
-Heat diseases with Fever, Thirst, Irritability, Insomnia
-Influenza (Barefoot Doctors Manual)
-useful for Summer Heat, Heatstroke
-chronic Fever, Lingering Fever, residual Fever or sequelae of febrile disease
-Mouth and Gum sores, ulcers, pain and swelling
-also to help promote expression of rashes in Measles

2. Clears Heat and Damp, Promotes Urine:
-painful, scanty or dribbling urine
-also Hematuria

Dose:

Decoction: 3–9 grams

Comment:

The root was used to promote Labor. (Li Shi Zhen)

Substitute:

Leaves of common bamboo, Phyllostachys nigra, were apparently the original Dan Zhu Ye (Bensky).

Main Combinations:

1. Heat disease with heat and irritability, Lophatherum with Gypsum (Shi Gao)
2. Thirst and Irritability from Fever, Lophatherum with Ophiopogon Mai Men Dong, Phragmitis Lu Gen, Trichosanthis root Tian Hua Fen
3. Promote the expression of Rashes in heat toxin, Lophatherum with Burdock seed (Niu Bang Zi), Tamarix Xi He Liu
4. Dark, scanty Urine, Mouth and Tongue Sores from Heart Fire, Lophatherum with Akebia Mu Tong, Rehmannia Sheng Di Huang
5. Painful, dribbling Urine:
i. Lophatherum with Akebia Mu Tong, Forsythia Lian Qiao
ii. Lophatherum with Plantain seed (Che Qian Zi), Juncus Deng Xin Cao