What are the main effects and actions of Selaginella?
Selaginella is also known by the names Yibazhua, Laohuzhao, Changshengcao, and others. It is the dried whole plant of Selaginella tamariscina or Selaginella pulvinata, plants of the genus Selaginella in the family Selaginellaceae. Used as medicine, it has the effects of invigorating blood and unblocking menstruation, and transforming stasis and stopping bleeding. It is used for conditions such as amenorrhea and dysmenorrhea, abdominal masses and accumulations, traumatic injuries, hematemesis and metrorrhagia, and bloody stool and rectal prolapse. Let us take a look below at the effects and actions of Selaginella!
The medicinal value of Selaginella
[Nature and flavor] Pungent in flavor, neutral in nature.
[Meridian entry] Liver and Heart meridians.
[Effects] Invigorates blood and unblocks menstruation, transforms stasis and stops bleeding. It mainly treats amenorrhea and dysmenorrhea, abdominal masses and accumulations, and traumatic injuries. Charred Selaginella is used for hematemesis, metrorrhagia, bloody stool, and rectal prolapse.
The medicinal effects of Selaginella
1. Breaking blood and dispersing stasis: Selaginella is pungent in flavor, neutral in nature and slightly warm, pungent to disperse and warm to unblock, moves qi and breaks blood, disperses stasis and relieves pain. It is used to treat abdominal pain, amenorrhea, and abdominal masses and other such patterns.
2. Invigorating blood and stopping bleeding: Selaginella is pungent and warm, pungent to disperse and warm to unblock, disperses stasis and relieves pain. It is used to treat hematemesis, bloody stool, bloody urine, traumatic injuries, metrorrhagia, and various other blood patterns.
3. Stopping cough and transforming phlegm: Selaginella is pungent in flavor and slightly warm. It enters the Lung meridian, warms the lung and disperses cold, stops cough and transforms phlegm. When wind-cold pathogens bind the exterior and invade the lung, the lung qi fails to diffuse and fluids fail to distribute, giving rise to cough with phlegm, thin white phlegm, nasal congestion with clear discharge, itchy throat and heavy voice, headache and fever, aversion to cold and wind, aching joints, thin white tongue coating, and a floating tight or floating moderate pulse. Treatment should be to disperse wind and scatter cold, diffuse the lung and nourish the metal, and stop cough and transform phlegm. This product has these effects, so it may be selected.
4. Unblocking menstruation and activating the collaterals: Selaginella is pungent to disperse and warm to unblock, moves qi and invigorates blood, unblocks menstruation and soothes the collaterals, and is good at treating wei and cu. Wei refers to flaccidity and weakness of the limbs with loss of use, and cu refers to weakness and lack of strength of the lower limbs. Although treating flaccidity by focusing solely on the Yangming is an ancient teaching, prolonged illness inevitably leads to stasis, the collaterals lose nourishment, there is numbness and loss of sensation, spasmodic tugging of the sinews and vessels, and in severe cases withered flaccidity with loss of use. Administering agents that move qi and invigorate blood has the wonder of pushing out the old and bringing in the new.
The pharmacological actions of Selaginella
1. Anticancer action: Selaginella is effective against tumors sensitive to chemical anticancer agents or radiotherapy, and is commonly used for choriocarcinoma, malignant hydatidiform mole, nasal cancer, lung cancer, and liver cancer.
2. Hemostatic action: Stir-fried Selaginella has a hemostatic effect.
3. Antibacterial action: A 100% Selaginella decoction, using the plate hole-punching method, has an inhibitory effect on Staphylococcus aureus.
4. Antispasmodic action: The apigenin contained in Selaginella has a moderate antispasmodic effect on smooth muscle, and experiments with guinea pigs and rats have shown that it also has a relatively weak anti-gastric ulcer effect.
The compatibility and applications of Selaginella
1. With Qingpi: Qingpi is a qi-aspect medicine, pungent to disperse, bitter to drain, and warm to unblock. It enters the Liver meridian and has the effects of soothing the liver, breaking qi, dispersing nodules, and relieving pain. Selaginella is a blood-aspect medicine, pungent to disperse and warm to unblock. It enters the Liver meridian and has the effects of breaking blood, transforming stasis, unblocking menstruation, and relieving pain. Used together, the two medicines soothe the liver and relieve depression, break qi and break blood, disperse nodules and dissipate stasis, unblock menstruation and relieve pain. They are used to treat blood stasis abdominal pain and abdominal masses and accumulations due to liver qi stagnation.
2. With Xiangfu: Used to treat patterns such as liver depression and qi stagnation, irregular menstruation, or even amenorrhea. Xiangfu is pungent in flavor and slightly bitter, pungent to disperse and bitter to descend. It enters the Liver meridian and soothes the liver and relieves depression. Selaginella is pungent in flavor and warm in nature, pungent to move and warm to unblock. It enters the Liver meridian and invigorates blood and unblocks menstruation. The two medicines are used in mutual reinforcement, so liver qi is harmonized and blood movement is smooth; thus menstruation becomes regular and orderly.
3. With Cheqianzi: Selaginella invigorates blood and stops bleeding, removes stasis and generates the new. Cheqianzi drains dampness and clears heat, promotes diuresis and treats strangury. Used together, the two medicines invigorate blood and stop bleeding, and promote water metabolism and treat strangury.
4. With Muxiang: Muxiang is pungent to disperse, enters the qi aspect, and moves qi and guides out stagnation. Selaginella is also pungent to disperse, but enters the blood aspect, and invigorates blood and stops bleeding. The two medicines used together move qi and invigorate blood, disperse stasis and stop bleeding, and are most effective for those who bleed due to stasis.
5. With Sanqi: Both medicines can invigorate blood and transform stasis, reduce swelling and relieve pain. Selaginella is pungent to disperse and tends toward invigorating blood. Sanqi is sweet and moderating and tends toward relieving pain. Used in mutual reinforcement, each displays its strengths, and the effect of invigorating blood and relieving pain is even greater. It is suitable for patterns such as traumatic injuries and pain due to stasis.
6. With Xueyutan: Both can stop bleeding, and neither leaves stasis behind. Used in mutual reinforcement, they invigorate blood and stop bleeding, and have the wonder of removing stasis and generating the new. They are used to treat metrorrhagia due to blood stasis.
7. With Xingren: Both medicines are warm in nature, dispel wind and scatter cold, and are used for cold asthma and cold cough. Selaginella is pungent in flavor, enters the Lung meridian, and diffuses and opens lung qi. Xingren is bitter in flavor, enters the Lung meridian, and descends and downbears lung qi. The two medicines used together, one diffusing and one descending, harmonize the movement of qi, stop cough and calm panting.
8. With Niuxi: Selaginella moves qi and invigorates blood, unblocks menstruation and soothes the collaterals. Niuxi tonifies the liver and benefits the kidneys, strengthens the sinews and bones. Used in mutual reinforcement, they tonify the liver and kidneys, move qi and blood, strengthen the sinews and bones, and benefit the joints. They treat soreness and pain of the waist and knees, weakness and flaccidity of the lower limbs, and other such patterns, with good results.
Medicinal selected formulas of Selaginella
1. To treat women with blood blockage forming abdominal masses, alternating cold and heat, and infertility: Selaginella 4 liang, Danggui 2 liang (both soaked in wine and stir-fried), Baizhu and Mudanpi 2 liang each, Baishaoyao 1 liang, Chuanxiong 5 qian. Divide into 7 doses and decoct in water. Or refine with honey into pills; take 4 qian each morning, swallowed with plain warm water.
2. To treat intestinal toxin with bloody stool: Selaginella and tender Huangqi in equal parts. Grind into powder and mix with rice water. Take 3 qian each time.