Shan Dou Gen - 山豆根 - Radix Sophorae Tonkinensis

Pharmaceutical Latin:	Radix Sophorae Tonkinensis
Common English:	Bushy Sophora Pigeon-Pea Root Rx. Sophorae Subprostrata

Category

Herbs that Clean Heat and Purge Fire: Herbs that Clear Heat and Resolve Toxicity; Target Warm and Heat Disease

Properties

Taste	Temperature	Entering Meridians	Dosage
Bitter (Slightly Toxic)	Cold	Lung Large Intestine (Heart)	3-10g Tincture: 2-4ml

Actions And Indications

Actions	Indications/Syndromes
Clears Heat, relieves Fire toxicity and improves the throat	Swollen, painful throat (alone internally or as a gargle)
Clears Heat, resolves Fire toxicity and disperses swellings	Abscesses, carbuncles and other toxic sores Cancers, especially of the throat and Lungs Externally for Heat swellings, ulcers of the head, scabies and injuries from snake, dog and spider bites
Relieves jaundice	Damp-Heat jaundice

Contraindications, Incompatibilities And Herb/Drug Interactions

Major Combinations

Rx. Isatidis Ban Lan Gen	Fr. Arctii Niu Bang Zi Rx. Platycodi Jie Geng	Rz. Belamcandae She Gan
Severe pain and swelling of the throat, teeth and gums. Mouth and tongue ulcers.	Pain and swelling of the throat.	Phlegm-Heat in the throat with a swollen, sore throat and Phlegm that is difficult to expectorate.
Flos Lonicerae Jin Yin Hua Fr. Forsythiae Lian Qiao Rz. Coptidis Huang Lian	Rx. Scrophulariae Xuan Shen Rz. Belamcandae She Gan Rx. Isatidis Ban Lan Gen	Rx. Scutellariae Barbatae Ban Zhi Lian Hb. Hedyotis Diffusae Bai Hua She She Cao
Abscesses and toxic sores.	Severe sore throat.	Throat or Lung cancer.

Notes

1. Being less drying than Sophorae Flavescentis Ku Shen, it is used more for skin ailments of the upper body.
2. Extremely bitter and Cold, it clears toxic swelling of the gums and throat.
3. Keeping it in the mouth and swallowing the juice heals the throat remarkably well.
4. For a mild sore throat, it can be used by itself as a decoction or gargle.
5. Ancient formulas for Damp-Heat jaundice included this herb.
6. According to one source, it clears Heat in the Heart to protect Lung Qi.
7. Studies have shown that it inhibits cancer cell growth.
8. It reportedly has a curative effect on breast, nasopharyngeal and bladder cancers.
9. It is described as a broad-spectrum anti-cancer herb that resists many kinds of tumors.
10. It is said to remove toxic materials from other herbs, stop pain, reduce inflammation and stop cough.
11. Ground and taken by mouth, it eliminates abdominal distention.
12. Taken with wine, it relieves abdominal distention in women caused by Blood Stagnation.
13. Applied topically, the juice treats baldness and snake, spider and dog bites.
14. For esophageal and pharyngeal cancers, grind it with vinegar and suck on it.
15. It counteracts leukopenia caused by radiation therapy.
16. Growth of sarcoma 180 is inhibited by it.
17. In ascitic sarcoma and carcinoma, it prolongs life.
18. Histamine-induced asthma is relieved by it.
19. Its action is rapid.
20. Shan Dou Gen and Rx. Isatidis Bei Ban Lan Gen both cool Heat, resolve toxicity and soothe the throat, and they are frequently combined. Shan Dou Gen enters the Lungs and Large Intestine, cooling Heat both above and below. It is excellent at dispersing clumps, drying Dampness and killing parasites. Bei Ban Lan Gen enters the Heart, Lungs and Stomach and is excellent at resolving toxicity, cooling the Blood and expelling Wind-Heat to clear rashes associated with warm pathogen diseases.
21. Rz. Menispermi Bei Dou Gen is occasionally substituted for Shan Dou Gen. It is bitter and Cold, clears Heat and toxins, and is used for soreness and pain of the throat. The dosage is 3 to 10g.