Guang Jin Qian Cao
StarDesmodium styracifolium (Osbeck) Merr.
☯ TCM Properties
Clears Heat, promotes urination, unblocks painful urinary dysfunction and expels stones
Traditional Chinese Uses
Guang Jin Qian Cao (Herba Desmodii Styracifolii) is the aerial portion of Desmodium styracifolium, sweet and bland in flavour and cool in nature, entering the Liver, Kidney, Bladder and Gallbladder channels. Classed among the herbs that drain Dampness and disinhibit water, it clears Heat, promotes urination, unblocks painful urinary dysfunction (lin syndrome) and, above all, expels stones. It is the leading Chinese herb for Damp-Heat stone conditions of the urinary tract, and is also used for gallstones and Damp-Heat jaundice.
For urinary and ureteric stones it is combined with Hai Jin Sha, Shi Wei, Ji Nei Jin and Hua Shi; for kidney stones with Da Huang, Hua Shi and Dong Kui Guo; and where the passage of stones causes bleeding it is paired with Sheng Di Huang, Pu Huang and Xiao Ji. It is typically decocted in generous doses (commonly 15-60 g). Note that it is distinct from Lysimachia-source Jin Qian Cao.
Western Herbalism Properties
Botanical Description
Desmodium styracifolium is a perennial subshrubby herb of the Fabaceae, native to the warm hills, grassy slopes, and forest margins of southern China (notably Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan, Hainan) and adjacent Southeast Asia. It grows 30–100 cm tall, the slender, ascending stems clothed in soft rusty-yellow hairs. The alternate leaves are usually unifoliolate (occasionally trifoliolate on vigorous shoots), the rounded to broadly elliptic leaflet 2–4 cm across, with a silvery-silky underside that gives a coin-like flash — the source of the name 'gold-coin herb'. Small purple papilionate flowers are borne in compact terminal and axillary racemes through summer, followed by short, several-jointed flat loments hooked with fine hairs. The entire above-ground plant is gathered in summer or autumn, washed, and dried. The species is distinct from Lysimachia christinae (the 'standard' Jin Qian Cao).
Dosage
| Form | Amount | Frequency | Duration | Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| decoction | 9-15g | Daily | — | — | — |
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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