Wu Wei Zi
Pinyin Name: Wu Wei Zi
English Name: Schisandra Chinensis
Other Names: Five Flavor Berry, Five Flavor Fruit, Schizandra Berry, Schisandra Fruit
Tastes: Sweet, Bitter, Sour, Acrid, Salty
Origin: Jilin, Liaoning, Heilongjiang, Hebei provinces in China
Benefits of Wu Wei Zi:
Wu Wei Zi, literally five flavor berry in Chinese. It is named becasue of its five different tastes. Wu Wei Zi covers meridians of lung, heart and kidney. Main functions are astringing lung qi, stopping diarrhea, enhancing qi while nourishing fluid, tonifying kidney, calming the heart. Common uses and indications include chronic cough, deficiency-type asthma, frequent urination, chronic diarrhea, spontaneous sweating, night sweats, thirst due to fluid loss, shortness of breath accompanied with feeble pulse, diabetes caused by internal heat, heart palpitations, insomnia. Recommended dosage is from 1.5 to 6.
Wu Wei Zi is widely used in Chinese herbal formulas. 1) Wu Wei Xi Xin Tang is used to improve symptom management for coughing incessantly. Its ingredient herbs include Wu Wei Zi, Bai Fu Ling, Gan Cao and Xi Xin. 2) Wu Wei Zi San is used to improve symptom management for diarrhea. Its ingredient herbs include Wu Wei Zi and Wu Zhu Yu. 3) Sheng Mai San is used to improve symptom management for fatigue, shortness of breath, dry mouth. Its ingredient herbs include Wu Wei Zi, Ren Shen and Mai Men Dong.
Common herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine
Quick knowledge of traditional Chinese medicine perspectives
