Digestant Herbs
Radish Seed: Chinese Herb Guide
Name
Lai Fu Zi (Semen Raphani), from Ri Hua Zi Ben Cao (Rihuazi Materia Medica)
Source and quality
The mature seeds of Raphanus sativus L. of the family Cruciferae. It is produced in all parts of China and collected in summer once the fruits are ripe.
It has no odor and is sweet and slightly pungent. The best grade is large, free of impurities and red.
The seeds are dried in the sun, cleaned of impurities and used raw or stir-baked; crush them before use.
Nature and action
Pungent, sweet and bland. It enters the lung, spleen and stomach meridians.
It promotes digestion and relieves distension, directs qi downward and resolves phlegm.
Indications
Food stagnation syndrome
Because it is pungent, it promotes digestion and dissipates food stagnation, moves qi and relieves distension. For gastric and abdominal distension or pain caused by food retention and qi stagnation, it is usually combined with qi-moving and digestion-promoting herbs, such as Shan Zha, Shen Qu and Chen Pi in Bao He Wan from Dan Xi Xin Fa.
Where food stagnation is complicated by spleen deficiency, it is combined with spleen-invigorating and qi-tonifying herbs, attacking and tonifying at the same time, such as Bai Zhu in Da An Wan from Dan Xi Xin Fa.
Cough and dyspnea with profuse sputum, chest oppression and poor appetite
It not only promotes digestion and dissipates food stagnation but also directs qi downward and resolves phlegm. For cough and dyspnea with profuse sputum, and chest oppression with food stagnation, it is usually combined with antitussive and antiasthmatic herbs, such as Bai Jie Zi and Su Zi in San Zi Yang Qin Tang from Han Shi Yi Tong (Han's Experience Collection).
Dosage and administration
Decoct 6~10 g. The stir-baked form leans more toward promoting digestion, directing qi downward and resolving phlegm.
Cautions
Contraindicated with Ren Shen. Use with caution in patients with qi deficiency but without food stagnation or phlegm accumulation.
Sources and further reading
We cite classical materia medica and modern reference works. This article is health education, not medical advice.
- Shennong Bencao Jing (The Divine Farmer's Materia Medica), Han dynasty.
- Bencao Gangmu (Compendium of Materia Medica), Li Shizhen, 1578.
- Chinese Pharmacopoeia, current edition — identity, quality and safety monographs.
- NCCIH and WHO reference material on traditional medicine safety.
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