☯ TCM Properties
Dispels Wind, expels Dampness, eliminates Blood Stasis and relieves pain
Traditional Chinese Uses
Nao Yang Hua is the dried flower of Rhododendron molle (Flos Rhododendri Mollis), classified among the wind-damp-dispelling substances. Pungent, bitter and warm, it enters the Lung and Liver channels to dispel Wind, expel Dampness, break up Blood Stasis and, above all, stop pain. It is a specialist remedy for stubborn wind-damp painful obstruction (bi) syndromes, rheumatic and rheumatoid joint pain, traumatic injury with swelling and bruising, intractable headache and toothache. It is usually applied externally as a wash, tincture or plaster, or taken internally only in minute doses within a formula.
Safety is paramount: the flower is highly toxic, its grayanane diterpenoids (rhodojaponins, grayanotoxins) causing potentially lethal cardiac and central-nervous-system poisoning. It is contraindicated in pregnancy, the weak and debilitated, and must never be self-administered.
Western Herbalism Properties
Botanical Description
Rhododendron molle (Blume) G.Don (Ericaceae), the Chinese yellow azalea, is a deciduous shrub 0.5-2 m tall, native to central and southern China and historically described from Japan. Young branchlets bear soft grey hairs. Leaves are alternate, oblong-elliptic to oblanceolate, 5-11 cm long, with bristle-fringed margins and pubescence on both surfaces. The conspicuous flowers appear in terminal clusters of 5-13 with or before the new leaves; the corolla is broadly funnel-shaped, 5-6 cm across, bright golden-yellow often with an orange or greenish blotch on the upper lobe, with five subequal lobes and ten exserted stamens. The fruit is an oblong capsule covered with stiff hairs. The dried flowers (Flos Rhododendri Mollis), called Nao Yang Hua or Yang Zhi Zhu, are highly toxic owing to grayanotoxins and were used in TCM to dispel wind, kill parasites, alleviate pain, and as a topical anaesthetic; the entire plant is poisonous to livestock, hence the name "sheep-stupefying flower."
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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