Qiang Huo – Notopterygium – Rhizoma et Radix Notopterygii

Qiang Huo

English Name: notopterygium (rhizome and root)

Pharmaceutical name: Rhizoma et Radix Notopterygii

Medica Category: Wind-Cold Releasing Herbs

Properties: Qiang Huo enters the Urinary Bladder and Kidney channels; it is acrid and bitter in nature and warm in temperature.

What is Qiang Huo?:

The Chinese Herb Qiang Huo is the rhizome and root of a perennial plant (Notopterygium incisum) that grows naturally in Gansu, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Sichuan provinces (as well as being native to Tibet). Its roots are harvested in the winter and early spring; they are cleaned, dried, and then sliced for use as medicine.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Therapeutic Actions of Qiang Huo:

Qiang Huo releases the exterior and dispels cold at the superficial level. It is used commonly used to treat headaches– it is especially effective for occipital headache pain w/associated feelings of heaviness and lethargy due to wind-cold-damp.

Qiang Huo serves to guide other pain-relieving herbs to the governing vessel and the greater yang channels.