Patient's question:
My constitution is not good, and every time I have my period, I suffer from severe menstrual cramps and unbearable abdominal bloating. My mother took me to see an old Chinese medicine practitioner, who prescribed some traditional Chinese medicine to regulate my body. Among them is Moutan bark (root of Paeonia suffruticosa). I would like to learn about the functions and effects of Moutan bark.What kind of help do I need: What are the functions and effects of Moutan bark?
Doctor's answer:
Moutan bark, a traditional Chinese medicine name. It is the dried root bark of the plant Paeonia suffruticosa from the Ranunculaceae family. It is produced in Anhui, Sichuan, Henan, Shandong, and other regions. It is bitter and acrid, slightly cold, and belongs to the heart, liver, and kidney meridians. It has the functions of clearing heat, cooling blood, invigorating blood circulation, resolving blood stasis, and reducing excessive internal heat. The toxicity of Moutan bark and Moutan phenol is low. Mainly used for: heat entering the nutritive blood, eruptive skin rashes due to warm toxins, hemoptysis and epistaxis, night fever with early morning coolness, night sweat without sweat, amenorrhea and dysmenorrhea, contusions and pain, carbuncles and sores. Moutan bark treats hidden fire in the blood of the four meridians of the small intestine, bladder, liver, and pericardium. Hidden fire is essentially Yin fire, and Yin fire is essentially ministerial fire. In ancient times, this was the only herb used to treat ministerial fire, hence the use of it in Zhang Zhongjing's Kidney Qi Pill. Later generations then focused solely on Phellodendron amurense to treat ministerial fire, unaware that the efficacy of Moutan bark is superior. Red flowers are for promoting, while white flowers are for tonifying, yet people rarely realize this and should make the distinction.