☯ TCM Properties
Clears Heat and removes toxicity; Relaxes the bowels and induces diuresis
Traditional Chinese Uses
Xian Cai is edible amaranth, Amaranthus tricolor (Chinese spinach). Sweet and cool, entering the Large and Small Intestine channels, it clears Heat and relieves toxicity, and it moistens and relaxes the bowels while promoting urination. As a food-grade medicinal it is used for damp-heat patterns of the intestines — bacillary and amebic dysentery, enteritis and diarrhea — and for constipation, painful or bloody urination, childhood nutritional impairment, and Heat-toxin sores and swellings.
It is typically eaten as a cooked vegetable or decocted in larger amounts (about 30-60 g), and for dysentery the red-leaved form is often simmered and taken as a sweetened compote. Being cool and moistening, it is used cautiously in those with Spleen-Stomach cold or chronic loose stools.
Western Herbalism Properties
Botanical Description
Amaranthus tricolor L. (Amaranthaceae), edible amaranth or Chinese spinach, called Xian Cai, is a fast-growing annual herb 30-130 cm tall, cultivated throughout China and tropical Asia as a leaf vegetable. Stems are erect, stout, often grooved and tinged red or purple, glabrous to sparsely pubescent. Leaves are alternate, broadly ovate, rhombic, or lanceolate, 4-12 cm long, with entire or slightly undulate margins, an acute or obtuse tip, and long petioles; cultivars exhibit striking colour patterns of green, yellow, red, and purple, often variegated. The minute green to reddish flowers are unisexual or bisexual, densely clustered in axillary glomerules along the upper stems and in short terminal spikes, each subtended by small membranous bracts; the fruit is a small circumscissile utricle containing a single shiny black or brown lenticular seed. Used in TCM as a mild cooling food-herb to clear heat, resolve toxicity, support the intestines, and treat dysenteric disorders and red-and-white discharge; nutritionally rich in iron, calcium, and vitamins.
Dosage
| Form | Amount | Frequency | Duration | Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| decoction | 6-15g | 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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