This product is the bark of the evergreen tree Cassia Bark (Cinnamomum cassia Presl) from the Lauraceae family. It is mainly produced in Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, Yunnan, and other regions. It is typically harvested in autumn, with the outer bark scraped off and then dried in the shade. Depending on the part of the tree from which it is harvested and its quality, it is processed into various specifications, commonly including Qi Bian Gui, Ban Gui, You Ban Gui, and Gui Tong. It is used in its raw form.

bubble_chart Morphological Characteristics

Cassia Bark plant (Shen Yaozi攝)

Evergreen tree, 12-17m tall. Bark gray-brown, old bark up to 13mm thick, annual branches cylindrical, black-brown, current year's branches somewhat quadrangular, densely covered with yellow-brown short tomentum; terminal bud small, densely covered with gray-yellow tomentum. Leaves alternate or nearly opposite, oblong to nearly lanceolate, 8-16(~34)cm long, 4-5(~9.5)cm wide, apex slightly acute, base acute, leathery, margin cartilaginous, involute, upper surface green, glossy, glabrous, lower surface pale green, sparsely covered with yellow short tomentum, triplinerved, lateral veins nearly opposite, transverse veins nearly parallel; petiole stout, covered with yellow short tomentum. Panicles axillary or nearly terminal, 8-16cm long, tertiary branched, branch ends with 3-flowered cymes; perianth densely covered with yellow-brown short tomentum on both sides, perianth tube obconical, lobes ovate-oblong; fertile stamens 9, filaments pubescent, first and second whorl stamens with 4-celled anthers, all introrse, upper 2 cells smaller, third whorl stamens with a pair of rounded kidney-shaped glands at the upper 1/3 of the filament, anthers 4-celled, upper 2 cells small, extrorse, lower 2 cells extrorse, inner whorl with 3 staminodes, apex arrowhead-shaped equilateral triangle; ovary ovoid, glabrous, style slender, stigma small. Berry drupe ellipsoid, black-purple when mature; fruit cup shallow cup-shaped, margin truncate or slightly toothed. Flowering period June-August, fruiting period October-December.

Acrid and sweet, hot. Act on spleen, kidney, heart and liver meridians.

bubble_chart Efficacy

Tonifying fire and assisting yang, dissipating cold to relieve pain, warming the meridians and unblocking the vessels.

bubble_chart Indications

1. Used for impotence due to kidney yang deficiency, uterine cold, deficiency-type dyspnea, palpitation, etc. This product is sweet and hot, aiding yang and supplementing fire, making it an essential medicine for treating life gate fire decline. Commonly used for kidney yang deficiency, life gate fire decline, impotence, uterine cold, cold pain in the waist and knees, frequent nocturia, spermatorrhea, enuresis, etc., often combined with Aconite Lateral Root, Prepared Rehmannia Root, Cornus officinalis, etc., such as Kidney Qi Pill, Right-Restoring Decoction. For treating deficiency of the lower origin, floating yang causing flushed face, deficiency-type dyspnea, sweating, palpitation, insomnia, weak pulse, this product can be used to return fire to its origin, often combined with Asiatic Cornelian Cherry Fruit, Schisandra Fruit, Ginseng, oyster shell, etc.
2. Used for cold abdominal masses, cold abdominal colic pain, etc. This product is sweet and hot, aiding yang to tonify deficiency, pungent and hot to disperse cold and relieve pain. For cold pain in the abdomen due to internal cold invasion or deficiency-cold of spleen and stomach, it can be used alone, ground into powder, decocted with wine, or combined with Dried Ginger, Lesser Galangal Rhizome, long pepper, etc. For abdominal masses, vomiting, cold limbs, and loose stools due to spleen-kidney yang deficiency, it is often combined with Aconite Lateral Root, Ginseng, Dried Ginger, etc., such as Cinnamon and Aconite Middle-Regulating Pill. For cold abdominal colic pain, it is often combined with Evodia Fruit, Fennel, etc.
3. Used for agonizing arthralgia lumbago, chest impediment, yin abscess. This product is pungent and dispersing, warming and unblocking, able to move qi and blood, dissipate cold to relieve pain. For wind-cold-dampness impediment, especially agonizing arthralgia lumbago, this product is commonly used, often combined with Pubescent Angelica, Chinese Taxillus Herb, Eucommia Bark, etc., such as Pubescent Angelica and Taxillus Decoction. For chest impediment due to chest yang deficiency and internal cold invasion, it can be combined with Aconite Lateral Root, Dried Ginger, Pricklyash Peel, etc. For yin abscess due to yang deficiency and cold congealing, this product is used for its sweet and hot properties to tonify deficiency, pungent and hot to disperse cold and unblock meridians, often combined with Cervi Deer-Horn Glue, Blast-Fried Ginger, Ephedra, etc., such as Yang-Harmonizing Decoction.
4. Used for amenorrhea, dysmenorrhea. This product is pungent and warming, strong in unblocking meridians, thus used for amenorrhea and dysmenorrhea due to deficiency-cold of the chong and ren meridians and cold congealing blood stasis, often combined with Chinese Angelica, Sichuan Lovage Rhizome, Fennel, etc., such as Lesser Abdomen Stasis-Expelling Decoction.
5. Additionally, for chronic illness with deficiency and insufficient qi and blood, adding Cassia Bark to tonifying qi and benefiting blood formulas can encourage the growth of qi and blood.

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bubble_chart Documentation

1. Bielu: "The Lord warms the middle, benefits liver and lung qi, cold in the heart and abdomen, cold diseases, cholera spasms, headache, lumbago, sweating, stops irritability, stops saliva, cough, nasal congestion, can cause early abortion, strengthens joints, unblocks blood vessels, regulates deficiencies, and guides all medicines."
2. Bencao Qiuzhen: "Greatly supplements the life gate ministerial fire, benefits yang to treat yin. For deep-seated cold and stubborn cold, nutrient-defense wind-cold, yang deficiency spontaneous sweating, cold pain in the abdomen, cough and reverse qi, spleen deficiency and aversion to food, dampness and diarrhea, blocked blood vessels, retained placenta, red and swollen eyes due to cold and stagnation, using this treatment is always effective."

bubble_chart Usage and Dosage

Decoct 2-5g and take orally, preferably to be decocted later or taken locally; grind into powder and take infused, 1-2g each time.

bubble_chart Cautions and Contraindications

Fear red halloysite.

bubble_chart Modern Pharmacology

This product contains volatile oil, referred to as cassia bark oil or Cassia Bark oil. The main components in the oil are cassia bark aldehyde, cassia bark acetate, phenylethyl acetate, etc. In addition, it also contains mucilage, tannins, and other substances.

• This product has the effects of dilating blood vessels, promoting blood circulation, increasing coronary and cerebral blood flow, and reducing vascular resistance. In vitro, its methanol extract and cassia bark aldehyde have anti-platelet aggregation and anti-thrombin effects.
• Cassia bark oil, cassia bark aldehyde, and sodium Cassia Barkate have sedative, analgesic, antipyretic, and anticonvulsant effects.
• Cassia bark oil has a mild stimulating effect on the gastric mucosa and reflexively promotes gastric function by stimulating the sense of smell. It can promote intestinal movement, increase digestive tract secretion, enhance digestive function, eliminate digestive tract gas, and relieve gastrointestinal spasmodic pain.
• Cassia bark oil can cause uterine congestion.
• Cassia bark oil has inhibitory effects on both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The ether, alcohol, and water extracts of cassia bark have certain inhibitory effects on various pathogenic fungi.