Learn About Chinese Herbs and Identify Every Plant

Chinese medicinal materials are natural medicines used under the guidance of traditional medical theory to prevent, treat, and diagnose illnesses, and to support recovery and health maintenance. They come from a wide range of sources, including plants, animals, and minerals.

Plant-based medicinal materials are the most common. One example is huangqi, the dried root of the leguminous plants Mongolian milkvetch or membranous milkvetch. Sweet in flavor and slightly warm in nature, it can replenish qi, raise yang, strengthen the body's defenses, and stop sweating. It is often used for spleen and stomach qi deficiency, as well as lung deficiency with wheezing and coughing.

Among animal-based medicinal materials, musk is the dried secretion from the scent glands of mature males of the forest musk deer, alpine musk deer, or Siberian musk deer. Warm in nature and pungent in flavor, it can open the orifices, restore consciousness, invigorate the blood, and promote the flow of the meridians.

Cinnabar is an example of a mineral-based medicinal material. Its main component is mercury sulfide. Cold in nature, it can clear the heart, calm fright, soothe the spirit, and detoxify.

Chinese medicinal materials have distinctive therapeutic effects and a rich cultural heritage, and play an important role in healthcare.