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Alternate Chinese names: 川姜黄 chuān jiāng huáng; 黄姜 huáng jiāng

Kingdom: Plant

Origin in PRC Pharmacopoeia: Curcuma longa L. [= Curcuma domestica Veleton]. (PRC Pharmacopoeia)

Origin in unofficial sources: Curcuma longa L.* [= C. domestica Veleton]; Curcuma aromatica Salisb.

Use: Medicinal and alimentary

Category: Blood-quickening stasis-transforming agents / Blood-quickening pain-relieving agents

Properties: Acrid, bitter; warm.

Channel entry: Liver and spleen channels.

Actions and indications:

• Quickens the blood, moves qì, and relieves pain: Qì vacuity and blood stasis, manifesting as pain in the heart, abdomen, chest, and rib-sides, as well as amenorrhea, postpartum abdominal pain, and stagnation and blood stasis due to injury from knocks and falls.
• Frees the network vessels and relieves pain: Wind-damp pain affecting They shoulders and arms.
• Additional uses: Jiāng huáng can be used with Bái zhǐ (白芷 Angelicae Dahuricae Radix, Dahurian angelica) and Xì xīn (细辛 Asari Rhizoma et Radix, asarum) to treat toothache. Combined with Dà huáng (大黄 Rhei Radix et Rhizoma, rhubarb), Bái zhǐ (白芷 Angelicae Dahuricae Radix, Dahurian angelica), and Tiān huā fěn (天花粉 Trichosanthis Radix, trichosanthes root), it can be applied topically to treat toxin swelling of welling-abscesses and clove sores. It has also been used recently to treat hyperlipidemia.

Dosage and method: Oral: 3–10g in decoctions. When taken as a powder, each dose should be 2–3g. It may also be ground and applied externally.

Warnings: Contraindicated in pregnancy.

Notes: Jiāng huáng and yù jīn (Curcumae Radix) have similar indications and are used in similar ways, but they differ in that jiāng huáng is warm and yù jīn is cold. Jiāng huáng has a more powerful blood-quickening qì-moving action. It is the rhizome of Curcuma longa, whereas yù jīn is the tuber of several species of Curcuma, including C. Longa.

Product description: There is both a long and a round type. The long type is a straight or contorted cylindrical rhizome, tapering slightly at each end. Its exterior surface is a deep yellowish-brown, with longitudinal wrinkles and transverse annular nodes that mark the places where the leaf stalks were attached. Sometimes there are tumorous branch roots, or the scars that they leave when they break off. This rhizome is hard and heavy. It is cut into thin transverse slices, 1–4 mm thick. The cut surface is a deep yellow brown, with a clearly defined skin layer and vascular bundles appearing as speckles. The round type is similar to the long type but is shorter and fatter. It is about 4 cm long and 3 cm thick.

Quality: Dry, hard, yellow rhizomes with annular nodes are the best.

Production area: Southern mainland China and Táiwān, Japan, Burma, Indonesia, and Mexico.

Etymology: The name jiāng huáng 姜黄, literally ginger yellow, reflects the similarity of this agent to ginger and its yellow color.

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