Wiseman’s Chinese Medical Database

mù zéi / 木贼 / 木賊 / equisetum;

Latin pharmacognostic name: Equiseti Hiemalis Herba

Alternate English names: scouring rush

Alternate Chinese names: 锉草 cuò cǎo; 节节草 jié jié cǎo; 节骨草 jié gǔ cǎo; 擦草 cā cǎo; 无心草 wú xīn cǎo; 木贼草 mù zéi cǎo

Origin: Plant

Use: medicinal

Category: Exterior-resolving agents / Cool acrid exterior-resolving agents

Properties: Acrid, bitter; slightly cold.

Channel entry: lung and liver channels.

Indications:

• Disperses wind-heat; brightens the eyes and abates screens: Red eyes, profuse tearing, and eye screens, due to wind-heat or liver heat.
• Stanches bleeding: Bloody stool; bleeding hemorrhoids.

Dosage & Method:

Oral: 6–10g in decoctions.

Quality:

Plants with thick green stems unbroken at the nodes are best.

Product Area:

Shǎnxī (Shaanxi) and Jílín.