Coix Seed (Yiyiren)
| Pharmaceutical Name: | Semen Coicis |
| Botanical Name: | Coix lachryma-jobi L. var. ma-yuen (Roman.) Stapf |
| Common Name: | Coix seed Job’s Tears seed |
| Source of Earliest Record: | Shennong Bencao Jing |
| art Used & Method for Pharmaceutical Preparations: | The seeds are obtained by removing the hard husk of the fruit, which is gathered in autumn. |
| Properties and Taste: | Sweet or no taste and slightly cold |
| Meridian: | Spleen, stomach and lung |
| Functions: | To transform dampness and promote water metabolism To strengthen the spleen To clear heat and |
| Indications and Combinations: | 1. Deficiency of spleen manifested as edema, dysuria and diarrhea. *Use with Alismatis rhizome (Zexie) and White atractylodes (Baizhu). 2. Beginning stage of damp-heat febrile diseases when the pathogenic factor is at the qi level. *Use with Talc (Huashi), Bamboo leaf (Zhuye) and Rice paper pith (Tongcao) in the formula Sanren Tang. 3. Accumulation of damp-heat or stagnation of qi and blood manifested as lung abscess and intestinal abscess. *For lung abscess with cough, sputum and pus, use with Reed stem (Weijing), Benincasa seed (Dongguaren) and Peach seed (Taoren) in the formula Qianjin Weijing Tang. *For intestinal abscess, use with Patrinia herb (Baijiangcao) in the formula Yiyi Fuzi Baijiang San. |
| Dosage: | 10-30 g |
| Cautions: | To tonify and strengthen the spleen this herb is dry-fried. |