Gui Zhi - 桂枝 - Ramulus Cinnamomi - Cinnamon Twig
| Pharmaceutical Latin: | Ramulus Cinnamomi |
| Common English: | Cassia Twig Cinnamon Twig |
Category
Herbs that Release the Exterior: Warm, Acrid Herbs that Release the Exterior (Wind-Cold Diaphoretics)Properties
| Taste | Temperature | Entering Meridians | Dosage |
| Acrid Sweet | Warm | Heart Lung Urinary Bladder (Liver) (Kidney) | External conditions: 3-10g Painful obstruction: 9-15g Tincture: 1-3ml |
Actions And Indications
| Actions | Indications/Syndromes |
Releases the Exterior, assists Yang, adjusts the Ying and Wei and releases the muscle layer | Wind-Cold Tai Yang Zhong Feng Stage (a weak person who catches cold easily) |
Warms the channels and collaterals to relieve pain | Wind-Cold-Damp Bi |
Unblocks Yang and transforms Qi and thin mucus | Edema due to Cold-Phlegm or Yang Qi Deficiency with urinary dysfunction, dizziness and palpitations |
Assists Heart Yang and warms and facilitates the flow of Yang Qi in the chest | Palpitations due to Yang Obstruction in the chest due to Stagnation or Deficiency Listless chest Yang with upward movement of Phlegm and thin mucus and disorderly descent of Lung Qi with shortness of breath, chest and back pain and palpitations Heart and Spleen Yang Deficiency |
Warms and facilitates the flow of Qi through the channels and collaterals and Blood through the vessels | Wind-Cold-Damp Bi Blood Stasis due to Cold, causing amenorrhea or dysmenorrhea with or without abdominal masses |
Warms the Middle and directs Turbid Yin downward | Middle Jiao Yang Deficiency Heart and Spleen Yang Deficiency (patient usually craves sweets) |
Contraindications, Incompatibilities And Herb/Drug Interactions
| CONTRAINDICATIONS |
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| INCOMPATIBILITIES |
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| HERB/DRUG INTERACTIONS |
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Major Combinations
| Hb. Ephedrae | Rx. Paeoniae Alba | Rx. Aconiti Lateralis Preparata |
Wind-Cold Excess conditions with fever and chills but no sweat. Wind-Cold-Damp Bi. | External Wind-Cold with disharmony between the Ying and Wei (Tai Yang Zhong Feng), with spontaneous sweating, fever and chills. Warms and tonifies the Middle Jiao. | Chills and painful extremities due to Yang Deficiency with Wind-Cold-Damp Bi. Backache due to Wind-Cold Damp Bi. Occipital headache |
| Rz. Chuanxiong | Rx. Stephaniae Tetrandrae | Concha Ostreae |
Expels Wind-Dampness, Facilitates joint movement, Relieves the discomfort of painful obstruction, Warms the channels and collaterals. | Wind-Cold Damp Bi. | Irritability and insomnia due to floating Yang in the Upper Jiao and injured Yin in the Lower Jiao due to Heart Yang Deficiency. |
| Concha Ostreae | Rx. Glycyrrhizae Preparata | Poria |
Spermatorrhea due to exhaustion. | Palpitations and shortness of breath due to injured Yang of the chest. | Unblocks Yang and facilitates the removal of congested fluids associated with Yang Deficiency edema. Palpitations and dyspnea due to Heart Yang Deficiency. |
Rx. Salviae Miltiorrhizae | Poria | Sm. Persicae |
Palpitations and chest pain due to Heart Yang Deficiency and subsequent painful obstruction due to Blood Stasis blocking the channels. | Heart and Spleen Yang Deficiency with palpitations, edema and shortness of breath. | Trauma induced pain. Gynecological discomfort due to Blood Stasis. Lower abdominal masses. |
Bul. Allii | Fr. Evodiae | Sm. Persicae |
Angina pectoris due to Yang Deficiency in the chest. Chest Bi due to Yang Deficiency. | Abdominal pain, dysmenorrhea, and menstrual irregularity due to Cold from Deficiency in the Chong and Ren channels. | Amenorrhea and abdominal pain due to Cold Invasion and Blood Stasis. |
Rx. Astragali | Rx. Bupleuri | Rx. et Rz. Rhei |
Sick sinus syndrome with brady-cardia and palpitations. | Tai Yang Stage moving to Shao Yang Stage. | Blood Stasis. (removes Stasis and unblocks the flow of Qi) Combined Interior/Exterior conditions with chills, headache, fever, sweating and abdominal fullness and pain. Abdominal fullness and pain as a result of purging an Exterior condition too soon. |
Rz. Curcumae Longae | Fr. Aurantii | Rx. Aconiti Preparata |
Congealed painful obstruction in either the upper or lower limbs. Shoulder disorders. | Stabbing pain in the chest and flanks. | Bi syndrome. |
Rz. Curcumae Longae | Rz. et Rx. Notopterygii | Poria |
Bi syndrome in the upper body, especially the shoulders. | Rheumatoid arthritis. | Edema and dysuria due to Yang Deficiency. |
Poria | Rx. Angelicae Sinensis | Rx. Glycyrrhizae Preparata |
Phlegm accumulation with dizziness, fullness in the chest and hypochondrium, vertigo and palpitations. | Irregular menstruation due to Yang Deficiency with Cold Stagnation. | Palpitations and intermittent pulse due to Heart Yin and Yang Deficiency. |
Notes
- It is used for most Wind-Cold conditions.
- It frequently provides a warming balance within cooling formulas.
- It often appears in formulas for chronic pain.
- Overall, it has six therapeutic routes: harmonizing the Ying, unblocking the Yang, promoting urination, directing Qi downward, promoting movement and tonifying the Middle.
- It is reported to increase leukocytes.
- It offers protection against the damaging effects of radiation.
- Gui Zhi and Ram. Mori Sang Zhi both unblock the collaterals. Gui Zhi is acrid and warm, so it is better suited to Cold Bi, and its scope of action is wider than that of Sang Zhi, which expels Wind and eliminates Dampness. Sang Zhi is slightly cooling and so is superior for Wind-Heat and Dampness or when itching is prominent.
- Cinnamon Twig Tips Gui Zhi Shao/Jian are better able to unblock blood vessels and disperse Wind-Cold.
- Cinnamon Twig Wood Gui Zhi Mu is less effective at mobilizing the exterior, releasing the muscle layer and inducing sweat, but it is stronger at warming the channels and unblocking the collaterals.
- Dry-fried Cinnamon Twigs Chao Gui Zhi are milder in their acrid, dispersing action but more warming and unblocking, which makes them useful for older or weaker patients.
- Prepared/Honey prepared Cinnamon Twigs Zhi Gui Zi / Mi Zhi Gui Zhi tonify Yang more strongly and disperse less acridly; they are used to tonify the Middle Jiao.
From Class
- Gui Zhi (cinnamon twig): Used instead of Ma Huang when that can't be used, to raise neutrophils. (Yuen)
- Ma Huang (ephedra): Lung/bladder affinity herb to raise neutrophils (immediate reaction). (Yuen)
- Rou Gui & Gui Zhi (Kidney → Heart), Ren Shen & Dang Gui: Agitation can harass the child's heart in pregnancy; strengthen the Kidneys supporting the Heart with small amounts of Rou Gui/Gui Zhi; Ren Shen/Dang Gui tonify qi and blood. (Lewis)
- Fu Ling, Ze Xie, Gui Zhi (+Bai Zhu) — water metabolism (Wu Ling San core): Fu Ling, Ze Xie, Gui Zhi (+Bai Zhu) signal water metabolism: Gui Zhi stokes Kidney fire, Fu Ling reabsorbs, Ze Xie drains, Bai Zhu engages the Spleen. (Rabinowitz)