Cnidium monnieri is the fruit of the plant Cnidium monnieri from the Apiaceae family. Legend has it that a herbalist discovered snakes always crawling on it, hence the name. It is mainly produced in Guangdong, Guangxi, Jiangsu, Anhui, and other regions. The fruits are harvested when ripe in summer and autumn, dried, and then the seeds are collected by threshing, with impurities removed. It is often used raw or stir-fried.
I. The Efficacy of Cnidium Fruit:
Cnidium monnieri tastes pungent and bitter, warm. It belongs to the kidney meridian. Its efficacy canWarming the kidney to dispel cold, drying dampness to relieve itching。
Commonly used inYin itching and leukorrhea, eczema and itching, dampness arthralgia and low back pain, kidney deficiency and impotencetreatment of conditions such as
Summary of Famous Works by Renowned Authors:
"The Classic of Materia Medica": "It primarily treats male impotence and damp itching, swelling and pain in the female genitalia, eliminates impediment qi, benefits the joints, epilepsy, and malignant sores."
Bie Lu: "Warms the middle and directs qi downward, makes the women's uterus warm, and strengthens the men's yang."
Rihuazi Materia Medica: "It dispels yin sweating, damp tinea, toothache, red and white vaginal discharge. Boil in water for bathing to relieve severe wind-induced body itching."
"Ben Cao Jing Shu": "Cnidium fruit is bitter and can remove dampness, warm and can dispel cold, pungent and can moisten the kidneys, sweet and can benefit the spleen. Therefore, it can treat all diseases caused by deficiency, cold, and dampness in both women and men. Once cold and dampness are eliminated, the illness is cured and the body becomes light. Its nature can enhance yang, so it can cure diseases and also provide nourishment."
Ben Cao Bei Yao: Strengthens yang and benefits yin, tonifies the kidney and dispels cold, expels wind and dries dampness. Treats impotence and scrotal dampness, female genital pain and itching, deficiency-cold of the uterus, non-closure of the birth canal, diseases of the kidney and life-gate, as well as lower back soreness and bodily numbness, leukorrhea and rectal prolapse, throat impediment and toothache, damp sores and malignant ulcers, and various wind-damp diseases. Boiled in water for bathing, it stops wind-induced itching.
II. Compatibility and Application of Cnidium Fruit:
1. For kidney yang deficiency, impotence, uterine coldness, etc. Cnidium monnieri has the effect of warming the kidney and strengthening yang. To treat kidney yang deficiency and decreased physiological function, it is often combined with Schisandra chinensis and Cuscuta chinensis, namelyThree Seeds Pill。
Ancient Kidney Tonic Secret RecipeBald Chicken PowderIt can treat men's five strains and seven injuries, impotence and inability to rise, and is made by combining Cnidium monnieri with Cistanche deserticola, Cuscuta chinensis, Polygala tenuifolia, and Schisandra chinensis, which is worth learning.
Li Shizhen said, "This medicine acts on the kidney, life gate, and the qi aspect of the triple burner. It not only supplements men but also benefits women. People nowadays abandon this and seek tonics from distant lands. Is this not valuing hearsay over what is seen with one's own eyes?"
2. For cold-damp leukorrhea, damp arthralgia and lumbago. Cnidium fruit has the effects of dispersing cold, dispelling wind, and drying dampness. For treating cold-damp leukorrhea, it is often combined with dogwood fruit, schisandra fruit, plantain seed, cyperus tuber, and other herbs.
If treating dampness impediment and low back pain, it is often combined with mulberry mistletoe, eucommia bark, large-leaved gentian root, and other medicines that tonify the kidney, dispel wind, and unblock the collaterals.
3. For skin diseases such as genital itching, eczema, wet sores, scabies, etc. Cnidium monnieri is effective for external use in drying dampness, killing parasites, and relieving itching. It can be used alone by decocting and fumigating or washing, and is often combined with Kochia scoparia. For treating scrotal eczema, decocting and washing externally with Kochia scoparia can achieve good results.
For treating vaginal itching in women, it can be used together with alum, decocted in water for fumigation and washing. Modern processed products of Cnidium monnieri are used to treat trichomonal vaginitis with significant efficacy.
For treating leukoplakia vulvae, Cnidium monnieri is the preferred medicine, which can be taken orally or used in combination for decoction and external washing. Zhu Liangchun often combines it with Polygonum multiflorum, Cuscuta chinensis, Rehmannia glutinosa, Angelica sinensis, Paeonia lactiflora, Bombyx mori, and Kochia scoparia for treating this condition. The method involves taking the first two decoctions orally and using the third decoction for fumigation, washing, and sitz bath for 20 minutes, which is worth learning.
In addition, Cnidium monnieri can also treat chronic prostatitis, as it can warm the kidneys and strengthen yang, support the body's vital energy and consolidate the foundation, while also having the ability to dry dampness and detoxify.
III. Usage and Dosage of Cnidium Monnieri:
Cnidium monnieri is often used in decoctions, can also be made into pills or powders, and is suitable for external use. The common dosage in decoctions ranges from a few grams to over ten grams; for external use, apply an appropriate amount.
Wang Ang said: "It resembles small fennel but is finer. Slightly stir-frying it to kill the poison makes it not spicy."
IV. Application Notes for Cnidium Monnieri:
Cnidium monnieri is warm and drying in nature, thereforePeople with yin deficiency and fire excess or damp-heat in the lower jiao should not take it。
Some works state that some people may experience nausea and dizziness after taking it, which will disappear after discontinuation, and no other adverse reactions have been found.
The New Compilation of Materia Medica: "Cnidium monnieri has quite remarkable functions and can be applied both internally and externally, with external application being particularly effective. However, it is suitable for individuals with yin cold and no fire; if one has yin deficiency and fire agitation, it is not appropriate to take it."
