American Ginseng (Xi Yang Shen)

西洋參
American ginseng (Xiyangshen)

Pharmaceutical Name: 1. Radix Panacis quinquefolii; 2. Radix ginseng americane

Botanical Name: Panax quinquefolium L.

Common Name: American ginseng

Source of Earliest Record: Shennong Bencao Jing

Part Used: The three to six year old root is dug in autumn, dried in the sun and cut into slices.

Natural Properties & Taste: Bitter, slightly sweet and cold

Meridians: Heart, lung and kidney

Therapeutic Effects:
1. To replenish qi and promote body fluids
2. To nourish yin and clear heat

Indications:
1. Deficient yin in the lungs and excessive fire manifested as asthma and cough with bloody sputum. American ginseng (Xiyangshen) is used with Ophiopogon root (Maidong), Donkey hide gelatin (Ejiao), Anemarrhena rhizome (Zhimu) and Tendrilled fritillary bulb (Chuanbeimu).

2. Exhaustion of qi and yin from febrile disease manifested as thirst, irritability, shortness of breath and deficient pulse. American ginseng (Xiyangshen) is used with Fresh rehmannia root (Shengdihuang), fresh Dendrobium (Shihu) and Ophiopogon root (Maidong).

Dosage: 3-6 g

Cautions & Contraindications: This herb should be cooked separately, then added into the decoction of other herbs. It is contraindicated for a person with cold and dampness in the stomach. It counteracts the herb Black false bellebore (Lilu). When frying or decocting, pots made from iron should not be used.