Nature: sweet, neutral

Enters: Lung, Stomach

Actions: Nourishes Yin; moistens dryness; produces body fluids for the stomach; extinguishes wind; softens and moistens the sinews.

Indications:
• Lung and stomach Yin deficiency: dry cough, dry mouth, thirst, irritability, steaming bone disorder, wasting and thirsting with intense hunger and constipation.
• Wind-heat attack with a Yin deficient constitution: fever, sore throat, cough, thirst.
• Insufficient fluids leading to wind: pain and spasm of the sinews.
• Yin deficiency plus internal wind: dizziness.
• Not cloying, will not trap EPIs in the body.
• Use raw to clear heat.
• Steam until it turns black (more like Huang jing) to nourish Yin and tonify the middle Qi.
• Useful in treatment of second- or third-degree heart failure.
• Weaker than Shi hu at nourishing stomach Yin. Yu zhu is a better choice when there is stomach Yin xu with an EPI.
• Weaker than Tian men dong at clearing heat, but does not have the disadvantage of Tian men dong’s severely cloying nature which can easily produce stagnation.
Hsu: Laxative, diuretic, lowers blood sugar, may have adrenocortical hormone-like effects.
Yoga: Meda, Mahmeda: VPK=; K or ama+ (in excess)
• Nutritive tonic, rejuvenative, aphrodisiac, demulcent, expectorant, hemostatic.
• Tonic to Vata and Pitta and to semen and reproductive tissue.
• For debility, infertility, impotence, chronic bleeding, diabetes, consumption, dry cough, dehydration, malnutrition, burning sensation, broken bones, inflamed mucus membranes.
MW: Muscular and skeletal problems: loosens or tightens ligaments as necessary, keeps adjustments in place, corrects tension, feeds and lubricates ligaments, tendons, muscles, and attachments, joins and seals broken bones, decalcifies unhealthy deposits and spurs, strengthens and harmonizes.
• Also for bruises, burns, sores.
• Wolf medicine: wolves eat this for indigestion.
• Helps build up intestinal bacteria; soothes and coats mucosa.
• Gentle regulator of heart muscle, mild cardiac tonic.
• Its berries are poisonous.
PCBDP: Astringent, demulcent, tonic.

Dose: 9-15g