Rou Dou Kou - 肉豆蔻 - Semen Myristicae - Nutmeg Seeds

Pharmaceutical Latin:	Semen Myristicae
Common English:	Myristica Nutmeg Seeds

Properties

Taste	Temperature	Entering Meridians	Dosage
Acrid	Warm	Large Intestine Spleen Stomach	1.5-10g Powder: 1.5-3g Tincture: 1-3ml 3-9g (Secondary source)

Actions And Indications

Actions

Indications/Syndromes

Astringes the Intestines and stops diarrhea

Chronic intractable diarrhea or daybreak diarrhea due to Spleen and Kidney Yang Deficiency

Warms the Middle Jiao, regulates Qi and alleviates pain

Pain, distention of the epigastrium and abdomen, reduced appetite and vomiting due to Deficiency Cold of the Spleen and Stomach

Qi Stagnation

Contraindications, Incompatibilities And Herb/Drug Interactions

CONTRAINDICATIONS

Contraindicated for those with hot diarrhea or hot dysenteric disorders or Heat in the Stomach.
Contraindicated for those with sudden, explosive diarrhea due to Summerheat.
Contraindicated for those with Intestinal Wind with bleeding.
Contraindicated for those with Damp-Heat accumulating into Stagnation.
Contraindicated for those with early stages of vaginal discharge.
Use caution during pregnancy.
7.5 gm of the powdered herb can lead to dizziness, stupor or convulsion.
Large doses can cause death.

INCOMPATIBILITIES

HERB/DRUG INTERACTIONS

Major Combinations

Fr. Chebulae He Zi	Fr. Chebulae He Zi Rx. Codonopsis Dang Shen Poria Fu Ling	Fr. Psoraliae Bu Gu Zhi Fr. Schisandrae Wu Wei Zi
Chronic diarrhea and dysenteric disorders.	Diarrhea due to Spleen and Stomach Deficiency Cold with anorexia and abdominal distention which improves with Heat and pressure.	Daybreak diarrhea due to Spleen and Kidney Deficiency Cold.
Rx. Ginseng Ren Shen Rz. Atractylodis Macrocephalae Bai Zhu Cx. Cinnamomi Rou Gui	Rx. Ginseng Ren Shen Cx. Cinnamomi Rou Gui Per. Papaveris Ying Su Ke	Fr. Schisandrae Wu Wei Zi Fr. Chebulae He Zi Rx. Aucklandiae Mu Xiang
Chronic diarrhea due to Spleen and Stomach Deficiency Cold.	Severe diarrhea with slippage of Qi.	Chronic colitis.
Fr. Schisandrae Wu Wei Zi Fr. Chebulae He Zi Rx. Aucklandiae Mu Xiang Fr. Psoraliae Bu Gu Zhi Rz. Zingiberis Preparatum Pao Jiang	Fr. Schisandrae Wu Wei Zi Fr. Chebulae He Zi Rx. Aucklandiae Mu Xiang Rx. Saposhnikoviae Fang Feng Rx. Paeoniae Alba Bai Shao	Fr. Schisandrae Wu Wei Zi Fr. Chebulae He Zi Rx. Aucklandiae Mu Xiang End. Corneum Gigeriae Galli Ji Nei Jin Charred Fr. Crataegi Shan Zha Tan
Severe Yang Deficiency.	Borborygmus and abdominal pain.	Food Stagnation.
Rx. Aucklandiae Mu Xiang	Rx. Aucklandiae Mu Xiang Rz. Pinelliae Preparatum Zhi Ban Xia	Rz. Pinelliae Preparatum Zhi Ban Xia Rz. Zingiberis Gan Jiang
Poor appetite, diarrhea and Cold abdominal pain due to Spleen and Stomach Deficiency Cold leading to constrained Middle Jiao Cold.	Poor appetite, diarrhea and Cold abdominal pain due to Spleen and Stomach Deficiency Cold leading to constrained Middle Jiao Cold with concurrent vomiting.	Vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal distention and reduced appetite due to Spleen and Stomach Deficiency Cold.
Rx. Aucklandiae Mu Xiang Rz. Cyperi Xiang Fu	Fr. Amomi Sha Ren Fr. Crataegi Shan Zha	Fr. Psoraliae Bu Gu Zhi
Chronic diarrhea with bloating and fullness.	Loss of appetite and poor digestion.	Daybreak diarrhea.
Rz. Atractylodis Macrocephalae Bai Zhu Rx. Codonopsis Dang Shen Poria Fu Ling Rx. Aucklandiae Mu Xiang Sm. Euryales Qian Shi Fr. Amomi Sha Ren	Fr. Psoraliae Bu Gu Zhi Fr. Schisandrae Wu Wei Zi Rx. Codonopsis Dang Shen Rz. Atractylodis Macrocephalae Bai Zhu Poria Fu Ling Fr. Chebulae He Zi Rz. Dioscoreae Shan Yao Fr. Corni Shan Zhu Yu Cx. Cinnamomi Rou Gui Rx. Aconiti Lateralis Preparata Zhi Fu Zi Rz. Zingiberis Gan Jiang Rx. Linderae Wu Yao	Rz. Pinelliae Preparatum Zhi Ban Xia Rz. Zingiberis Gan Jiang Massa Medicata Fermentata Shen Qu Fr. Amomi Sha Ren
Spleen Yang Deficiency.	Chronic enteritis or dysentery with diarrhea.	Vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal distention and reduced appetite due to Spleen and Stomach Deficiency Cold with a stronger effect.
Rx. Aconiti Lateralis Preparata Zhi Fu Zi Rz. Alpiniae Officinarum Gao Liang Jiang	Per. Papaveris Ying Su Ke Rx. Paeoniae Alba Bai Shao	Rx. Codonopsis Dang Shen Rx. Astragali Huang Qi Rz. Atractylodis Macrocephalae Bai Zhu Poria Fu Ling
Chronic diarrhea with feelings of abdominal Cold.	Chronic diarrhea with abdominal pain.	Chronic diarrhea with poor appetite and weakness.

Notes

Myristicin has hallucinogenic effects.
Only the prepared herb has the property of astringing diarrhea; fresh Rou Dou Kou may in fact cause diarrhea.
Formulas for children and the elderly commonly include this herb.
For dysenteric disorders, take it with rice congee; for vomiting and diarrhea, take it with fresh ginger tea.
Rou Dou Kou and Fr. Tsaoko Cao Guo both expel Cold, Dry Dampness and promote the movement of Qi to regulate the Spleen and Stomach. While both are acrid, Rou Dou Kou's astringent flavor is stronger, allowing it to stabilize leakage and loss from the Large Intestine. It warms the Spleen and Kidneys and so treats the Middle and Lower Jiaos, whereas Cao Guo governs the Middle Jiao. specifically.
Roasted Nutmeg Seeds Wei Rou Dou Kou are less likely to irritate the Intestines and contain less hallucinogenic myristicin, while their astringent property for stopping diarrhea is enhanced.

From Class

Warming the interior: Rou Dou Kou (nutmeg), Rou Gui, Xiao Hui Xiang: Warm middle heater (separation), lower (transition), upper (deliverance) so yang can hold yin. (Yuen)