Catechu is a commonly used Chinese herbal medicine in cardiovascular and traumatology, with a long history of application. Catechu is a medicine imported from overseas in the Yuan Dynasty, which is extracted from the branches and dry decoction of the catechu tree into brown-black lumps. "Child" may be a transliteration of the Sanskrit name of the substance, khaira, and "tea" is named because of the green color of the juice, which resembles tea juice. In the Yuan Dynasty, it was also known as "Wu Daddy Mud", which is a transliteration of the Tamil name of this object. There are many records of the efficacy of catechu in the herbal literature of the past dynasties, such as "Drinking and Eating Food": "Remove phlegm and heat, quench thirst, facilitate urination, eliminate food and lower qi, clear the mind and sleep less." "Introduction to Medicine": "Eliminate blood and cure all sores and poisons." "Compendium of Materia Medica": "Clear the diaphragm and heat, dissolve phlegm and generate Jin, apply gold sores and all sores, build muscle and relieve pain, stop bleeding, and collect dampness." ”
This article only makes some brief analysis from the perspectives of the origin, characteristics, quality, origin, efficacy, and product application of catechu.
One herb per issue
One
Primordial
This product is a leguminous plant catechu acacia catechu (l.).f.）willd.of peeled branches, dry dry decoction. In winter, the branches and stems are harvested, the outer skin is removed, cut into large pieces, decocted with water, concentrated, and dried.
II
traits
This product is square or irregular in block, and varies in size. The surface is tan or black-brown, smooth and slightly shiny. Hard, fragile, untidy cross-section, shiny, finely porous, and sticky when wet. The breath is slight, the taste is astringent, bitter, and slightly sweet.
Characteristics of catechu medicinal materials
Source**: Hong Kong Baptist University Chinese Materia Medica Image Database.
Three
Quality
It is better to be black with a slight brown, not mushy or broken, and astringent to taste.
IV
Origin
It is mainly produced in Yunnan, Myanmar, India and other places in China.
Woo
Efficacy
According to the 2020 edition of the Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China, catechu has a bitter and astringent taste, and is slightly cold. Return to the lungs and heart meridians. It has the effect of invigorating blood and relieving pain, stopping bleeding and building muscles, collecting dampness and sores, clearing the lungs and dissolving phlegm. It is used for bruises, traumatic bleeding, ** hemorrhage, sores and ulcers, eczema, eczema, pulmonary fever and cough.
Modern studies have shown that catechu has chemical components such as catechic tannic acid, catechin, epicatechol, mucilage, fatty oil, gum and wax, and has pharmacological effects such as antidiarrheal, antibacterial, antioxidant, and protective of heart and brain organs.
Land
Product Applications
At present, catechu is mainly used in the production of Chinese patent medicines, and the representative varieties such as 25-flavor catechu pills, catechu supernatant pills, compound catechu capsules, etc. Twenty-five flavor catechu pill is a kind of Tibetan medicine, composed of 25 flavors of Chinese (Tibetan) medicinal materials such as catechu, chebula, hairy hezi, emblica, ** Lingzi celery, yellow essence, etc., which has the effect of dispelling wind and paralysis, reducing inflammation and relieving pain, dry yellow water, and is used for "white vein" disease, gout, rheumatoid arthritis, joint swelling and pain deformation, limb stiffness, yellow water disease, "Gamba" disease, etc. Catechu supernatant pills are composed of more than 10 Chinese herbal medicines such as catechu, musk, peppermint, and bellflower, which are mainly used to treat dizziness, headache, migraine, tinnitus, deafness, etc., and are approved in January 2024Class 1 innovative drug, catechu supernatant pill originated from the 400-year-old "Jingmen Shangqing Pill", and its production technology was officially included in the list of intangible cultural heritage of Hubei Province in 2013. Compound catechu capsules are composed of catechu, vitamin B2 and niacin, which can stop bleeding and sores, promote ulcer healing, and are used for gastric and duodenal ulcers.
Although catechu is a foreign Chinese herbal medicine introduced from the Yuan Dynasty, after nearly a thousand years of traditional Chinese medicine application practice, it has long been integrated into the traditional Chinese medicine system, and is widely used in clinical practice, which is worthy of vigorously developing new Chinese patent medicines to serve the health needs of the Chinese people.