Chan Tui - Cicada Moultings - Periostracum Cicadae

Chan Tui

English Name: cicada moulting

Pharmaceutical Name: Periostracum Cicadae

Medica Category: Wind-Heat Releasing Herbs

Properties: Chan Tui enters the Liver and Lung channels; it is sweet in nature and cold in temperature

What is Chan Tui?:

The Chinese Herb Chan Tui is the sloughed-off moultings of the cicada

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Therapeutic Actions of Chan Tui:

Chan Tui dispels wind heat (often combined with Niu Bang Zi and Bo He) and is used to treat symptoms that present in the head (headache), eyes (redness and itching) and throat (sore throat, hoarseness/loss of voice). This combination is also used to vent rashes and promote the eruption of dermatological disorders.

Chan Tui extinguishes Liver wind and treats muscle spasms; it treats tetanus (either singly or in combination with other herbs depending on the severity of the case), infantile convulsion (with Gou Teng and Quan Xie), and constant crying in infants due to fright (with Gou Teng and Bo He).