rhubarb abstract

December 11, 2002

This is the citation from Potter's Cyclopedia of Botanical Drugs for

rhubarb having both astringent and cathartic effects. it is from a well

respected peer reviewed journal, however there is no abstract available.

I am sure the article can be ordered for closer scrutiny. Every western

herbal I have looked at now (about a dozen well respected herbals) all

list rhubarb as having an astringent effect in low dose. Unless one is

willing to just dismiss western herbalism, I doubt every herbalist in

western history was wrong about this. I would offer a more likely

explanation. da huang is never used alone in TCM. however it is almost

always used alone in western herbalism. western combinations with rhubarb

typically might add one carminative (many qi regulators have carminative

effects) to prevent griping. What is not typically done is to combine

other purgatives with rhubarb. Is it possible that one never sees a

constipating effect from short term use of chinese rhubarb formulas

because they typically contain additional herbs to promote bowel movement

(such as hou po, mang xiao, huo ma ren)? all that is being said about da

huang is that in and of itself, the laxative effect is less than the

astringent effect at small doses, thus it can treat diarrhea. However,

this does not extend to formulas that contain other purgatives. In

formulas, the sum total of all the purgatives in the combination may

overwhelm the astringency of one herb like da huang, no matter how small

the dose. so to dismiss this claim about da huang because one has never

seen this in TCM practice is not a valid test. A valid test would be to

take a 1/4 teaspoon of da huang all by itself.

BTW, for those who would just dismiss eclectic herbalism as being less

effective or less worthy of value than TCM, have you ever worked with

someone who practices this style with high training? I had the pleasure

in Oregon for working for many years with a naturopath who used Eclectic

indications and european dosing methods (eclectic specific medicines are

no longer available). He was as successful as any chinese doc I have ever

worked with. His teachers had a direct lineage going back to Scudder and

King. this very empiric, nondogmatic style of practice used pulse and

tongue to select their meds, not western pathology.

Pharmacology 1976;14 Suppl 1:48-61 Related Articles, Links

The anthraquinone laxatives. Biological assay and its relation to chemical

structure.

Fairbairn JW.

Chinese Herbs

" Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocre

minds " -- Albert Einstein

December 12, 2002

Excuse me for jumping into the middle of this discussion and possibly adding a point that was already mentioned...But, my understanding was that Chinese rhubarb , being a different species than its Western equivalent, has altogether different properties.

However, I I have seen it used in small doses in Spleen Qi formulas (in which there certainly could be loose stools). Here, it was explained, that the rhubarb amongst SP ascenders and tonifiers, helps descend the Turbid. This is like pulling one side of a wheel down to force the other side up.

Any thoughts?

Daniel Wasserman

cha

Wednesday, December 11, 2002 2:16 PM

rhubarb abstract

This is the citation from Potter's Cyclopedia of Botanical Drugs for rhubarb having both astringent and cathartic effects. it is from a well respected peer reviewed journal, however there is no abstract available. I am sure the article can be ordered for closer scrutiny. Every western herbal I have looked at now (about a dozen well respected herbals) all list rhubarb as having an astringent effect in low dose. Unless one is willing to just dismiss western herbalism, I doubt every herbalist in western history was wrong about this. I would offer a more likely explanation. da huang is never used alone in TCM. however it is almost always used alone in western herbalism. western combinations with rhubarb typically might add one carminative (many qi regulators have carminative effects) to prevent griping. What is not typically done is to combine other purgatives with rhubarb. Is it possible that one never sees a constipating effect from short term use of chinese rhubarb formulas because they typically contain additional herbs to promote bowel movement (such as hou po, mang xiao, huo ma ren)? all that is being said about da huang is that in and of itself, the laxative effect is less than the astringent effect at small doses, thus it can treat diarrhea. However, this does not extend to formulas that contain other purgatives. In formulas, the sum total of all the purgatives in the combination may overwhelm the astringency of one herb like da huang, no matter how small the dose. so to dismiss this claim about da huang because one has never seen this in TCM practice is not a valid test. A valid test would be to take a 1/4 teaspoon of da huang all by itself.BTW, for those who would just dismiss eclectic herbalism as being less effective or less worthy of value than TCM, have you ever worked with someone who practices this style with high training? I had the pleasure in Oregon for working for many years with a naturopath who used Eclectic indications and european dosing methods (eclectic specific medicines are no longer available). He was as successful as any chinese doc I have ever worked with. His teachers had a direct lineage going back to Scudder and King. this very empiric, nondogmatic style of practice used pulse and tongue to select their meds, not western pathology.Pharmacology 1976;14 Suppl 1:48-61 Related Articles, Links The anthraquinone laxatives. Biological assay and its relation to chemical structure.Fairbairn JW.Chinese Herbshttp://www..orgvoice: fax: "Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocre minds" -- Albert Einstein

December 12, 2002

Hi,

Is this in or out of accord with previose said with regard to rubarb?

An Illustrated Dictionary of Chinese medicinal herbs Wee yeow Chin & hsuan Keng, page 156:

RHEUM

Family: Polygonaceae

Rheum tanguiticum (five chinese charcacters)

Rhubarb

the generic name comes from rha, the old greek word for rhubarb. These plants are nativ to Asia and well known for their purgative action, due to the preseence of anthraquinones. In low doasages the plant have purgative action, while in high dosage it checks diarrhoea becuase of the predominant action of the tannin contents.

Part used:

roots: treats intestinal or stomach fever, constipation, acute infectious hepatitis, jundice, diarrhoea, absence of menstruation due to blood cloth, internal bleeding.

One theacher from China siad that using rubarb in small to fairly small quantaties is like moveing the loggs from a evil (xie) fire, specialy in heart and liver counduits-pathways.

Marco