Fo Shou
StarCitrus medica L. var. sarcodactylis Swingle
☯ TCM Properties
Courses the Liver and Resolves Constraint; Harmonizes the Stomach and stops pain; Dries Dampness and Transforms Phlegm; Regulates Qi and Harmonizes the Middle Burner
Traditional Chinese Uses
Fo Shou (finger citron, Buddha's hand) is a warm, aromatic herb used in Chinese medicine to move Liver Qi and harmonize the Spleen and Stomach. Its Liver Qi-moving action addresses emotional irritability, hypochondriac pain, and chest tightness from Liver stagnation. Its Stomach-harmonizing quality relieves bloating, nausea, and poor appetite from Qi stagnation in the middle burner. As a fragrant citrus fruit with both culinary and medicinal uses, it is among the most pleasant-tasting Qi-moving herbs in the Chinese materia medica.
Western Herbalism Properties
Botanical Description
Citrus medica var. sarcodactylis, Buddha's hand or fingered citron, is a small evergreen shrub or tree in the Rutaceae, reaching 2 to 3 meters in height with stout, often crooked branches bearing stiff spines at the leaf axils. The leaves are large, oblong-elliptic, 8 to 15 cm long, with crenulate margins and a typical citrus-aromatic oil glands when crushed. Flowers are borne in small clusters, white with a purplish flush on the outside, fragrant, and produce a remarkable fruit divided lengthwise into elongated finger-like sections, pale yellow at maturity, with a thick aromatic rind and almost no pulp or juice. Native to northeastern India and southern China, the plant is widely cultivated in subtropical regions of China, Japan and Southeast Asia for its highly aromatic peel, which is rich in limonene and other monoterpenes. In traditional Chinese medicine the dried mature fruit, Fo Shou, is used to regulate Qi and harmonize the middle.
Active Constituents
Limonene
Monoterpene (essential oil)Concentration: Most abundant volatile; dominant component of the essential oil
The principal aromatic volatile of the fruit; contributes to the carminative, qi-moving action and shows antioxidant and antimicrobial activity.
gamma-Terpinene
Monoterpene (essential oil)Concentration: Second most abundant volatile
A major co-constituent of the essential oil with antioxidant activity.
Hesperidin
Flavanone glycosideConcentration: Major flavonoid
The characteristic citrus flavonoid; anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and vasoprotective.
Diosmin / diosmetin
Flavone / flavone glycosideConcentration: Notable flavonoid
Anti-inflammatory and antioxidant flavones contributing to the fruit's reported hepatoprotective and vasoprotective effects.
5,7-Dimethoxycoumarin (limettin/citropten)
CoumarinConcentration: Characteristic coumarin
A simple coumarin of the peel contributing antispasmodic and anti-inflammatory activity.
Bergapten (5-methoxypsoralen)
FuranocoumarinConcentration: Minor furanocoumarin of the peel
A grapefruit-type furanocoumarin; a suicide inhibitor of intestinal CYP3A4 and a photosensitiser at higher exposures. Present in modest amounts in the culinary fruit.
Galactorhamnan / pectic polysaccharides
PolysaccharideConcentration: Major water-soluble fraction
Immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory polysaccharides isolated from the fruit.
⚠ Drug Interactions
CYP3A4 substrates (e.g., certain statins, calcium-channel blockers, cyclosporine, midazolam)
The peel contains furanocoumarins (bergapten and related compounds) that irreversibly inhibit intestinal CYP3A4 in the same way as grapefruit constituents, which could raise plasma levels of CYP3A4 substrates. Amounts in ordinary medicinal or culinary use are modest, so clinical relevance is likely small.
Clinical note: Consider only with concentrated peel extracts or large intakes alongside narrow-therapeutic-index CYP3A4 drugs; no specific human interaction reports for the herb.
Dosage
| Form | Amount | Frequency | Duration | Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| decoction | 3-9g | Daily | — | — | — |
Preparation Methods
Decoction (Tang)
Parts: dried fruit slices
Typical adult dose 3-10 g of dried fruit slices decocted in water to course the Liver, harmonise the Stomach and relieve chest/abdominal distension. Being aromatic, it is added toward the end of decoction to preserve the volatile oil.
Infusion / medicinal tea
Parts: dried fruit slices
Dried slices are steeped as a fragrant tea for mild qi stagnation with belching, poor appetite or nausea.
Candied fruit / wine-steep
Parts: fresh or dried fruit
The fruit is candied or steeped in wine as a gentle carminative and digestive; culinary amounts are generally well tolerated.
Clinical Studies
Detection of Volatiles by HS-SPME-GC/MS and Biological Effect Evaluation of Buddha's Hand Fruit
Characterised the volatile profile of Citrus medica var. sarcodactylis (limonene and gamma-terpinene dominant) and demonstrated antiradical (ABTS, DPPH) and antibacterial activity of the essential oil and extracts, supporting antioxidant and antimicrobial properties.
Historical Texts
Dian Nan Ben Cao (Materia Medica of Southern Yunnan), Lan Mao
Ming dynasty (1436)Ben Cao Gang Mu (Compendium of Materia Medica), Li Shizhen
Ming dynasty (1578)References
- Cardullo N, Muccilli V, Cunsolo V, et al.. Detection of Volatiles by HS-SPME-GC/MS and Biological Effect Evaluation of Buddha's Hand Fruit . Molecules (2022) [DOI]
- Ke Q, Liu Y, Wei M, et al.. Structural Characterization and Anti-inflammatory Activity of a Galactorhamnan Polysaccharide From Citrus medica L. var. sarcodactylis . Frontiers in Nutrition (2022) [DOI]
This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before using any herbal remedy, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking medications.
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