Plantain Seed (Cheqianzi)
| Pharmaceutical Name: | Semen Plantaginis |
| Botanical Name: | Plantago asiatice L. Plantago depressa wild. |
| Common Name: | Plantain seed Plantain herb |
| Source of Earliest Record: | Shennong Bencao Jing |
| Part Used & Method for Pharmaceutical Preparations: | The seeds, gathered in the summer or autumn when they are ripe, are dry-fried or fried with salt water. |
| Properties and Taste: | Sweet and cold |
| Meridian: | Kidney, liver and lung |
| Functions: | To promote water metabolism and relieve abnormal urination To stop diarrhea; To clear heat in the liver and brighten eyes To clear the lung and resolve phlegm |
| Indications and Combinations: | 1. Damp-heat flowing into the urinary bladder manifested as dysuria, painful urination, frequent urination and distending and full sensation in the lower abdominal region. *Use with Clematis stem (Mutong), Capejasmine (Zhizi) and Talc (Huashi) in the formula Bazheng San. 2. Damp-heat diarrhea. *Use with Poria (Fuling), White atractylodes (Baizhu) and Alismatis rhizome (Zexie). 3. Heat in the liver manifested as red, painful and swollen eyes. *Use with Chrysanthemum flower (Juhua), Chinese gentian (Longdancao) and Scutellaria root (Huangqin). 4. Deficiency of yin in the liver and kidney manifested as blurred vision and cataracts. *Use with Fresh rehmannia root (Shengdihuang), Ophiopogon root (Maidong) and Wolfberry fruit (Gouqizi). 5. Cough with profuse sputum due to heat in the lungs. *Use with Trichosanthes fruit (Gualou), Scutellaria root (Huangqin) and Tendrilled fritillary bulb (Chuanbeimu). |
| Dosage: | 5-10 g |
| Cautions: | This herb should be wrapped in cloth for decoctions if a strainer is not used. |