Class 9: Herbs and Formulas
That Expel Parasites
Xianhui Li
Herbs that Expel Parasites
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Fructus Quisqualis (Shi jun zi)
Cortex Meliae radicis (Ku lian gen pi)
Semen Arecae (Bing lang)
Rhizoma Dryopteris (Guan zhong)
Semen Cucurbitae (Nan gua zi)
Bulbus Alii sativi (Da suan)
Fructus Quisqualis (Shi jun zi)
• Taste and Property: Sweet and warm
• Meridian Tropism: Spleen, stomach
• Actions: kills parasites, strengthens the spleen and
dissolves accumulations, treat childhood nutritional
impairment
• Applications
– Especially for killing roundworms and pinworms. Can be used by
itself for mild cases. Used with ku lian pi, bing lang together.
– For childhood nutritional impairment and for abdominal
distention, pool appetite, or weak constitution. Its sweetness
makes it useful for childrenm used with hu huang lian, rou dou
kou, i.e. fei er wan
• Dosage: 9-12g
Cortex Meliae radicis (Ku lian gen
pi)
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Taste and Property: bitter, cold, toxic
Meridian Tropism: Liver, spleen, stomach
Actions: kills parasites, clears damp-heat
Applications
– Primarily for infestation of roundworms, hookworms, and
pinworms, but also for vaginal trichomonas infections, used with
bing lang, he shi, i.e. hua shi wan
– Also used topically for tinea infections, can be used either as a
wash or ground into a powder and made into a thick paste with
vinegar
• Dosage: 4.5-9g
• Attentions: should not taken long term
Semen Arecae (Bing lang)
• Taste and Property: acrid, bitter, warm
• Meridian Tropism: LI, stomach
• Actions: kills parasites, removes food stagnation,
promotes the movement of qi, promotes urination
• Applications
– For a wide variety of intestinal parasites, best for tapeworms,
used with he shi, ku lian pi, i.e. hua chong wan
– For food accumulation and stagnant qi with abdominal
distention, constipation, or tenesmus, used with mu xiang, qing
pi, i.e. mu xiang bing lang wan, used with bai shao, mu xiang,
huang, i.e. shao yao tang
– For damp leg qi and edema due to excess, used with mu tong,
ze xie
– Also used for malarial disorders, used with chang shan, cao guo,
i.e. jie nue qi bao yin
• Dosage: 6-15g
Rhizoma Dryopteris (Guan zhong)
• Taste and Property: bitter, astringent, cold
• Meridian Tropism: LI, LU, LV
• Actions: clears heat and resolves toxicity, cools the
blood and dispels stasis, expels parasites
• Applications
– For a wide variety of toxic problems including influenza, maculae
due to heat, breast abscess, and dysenteric disorders, used with
ye ju hua, da qing ye
– For vomiting blood, blood in the stools, dysfunctional uterine
bleeding and hemorrhoidal bleeding
– For intestinal parasites
• Dosage: 6-15g
• Attentions: should not be taken during pregnancy, and
overdosage should be avoided
Semen Cucurbitae (Nan gua zi)
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Taste and Property: sweet, neutral
Meridian Tropism: LI, ST
Actions: kills parasites and alleviates pain
Applications
– For tapeworms and roundworms. Used as a
stand-alone herb for this purpose. Also used
for schistosomiasis
• Dosage: 60-120g
Bulbus Alii sativi (Da suan)
• Taste and Property: acrid, warm
• Meridian Tropism: LI, LU, SP, ST
• Actions: kills parasites; disperse abscesses and
reduces swelling; resolves toxin; reduce food stagnation
• Applications
– For hookworms and pinworms, and in combination with other
herbs, for other types of intestinal parasites. Also used for tinea
of the scalp, used with bing lang, ku lian pi, he shi
– For early stage sores and abscesses, used both internally and
topically
– For diarrhea and dysenteric disorders due to epidemic toxins or
food stagnation
• Dosage: 60-120g
Formulas that Expel Parasites
• Mume Pill (wu mei wan)
• Fat Baby Pill (fei er wan)
Mume Pill (wu mei wan)
Ingredients: wu mei, chuan jiao, xi xin,
huang lian, huang bai, gan jiang, fu zi,
gui zhi, ren shen, dang gui
Actions and indications of the
formula
• Actions
– Warm the organs (intestines) and calm
roundworms.
• Indications
– Intermittent attacks of abdominal pain, a
stifling sensation, irritability, and warmth in the
chest and epigastrium accompanied by
vomiting after eating, and cold hands and feet.
There may also be vomiting of roundworms.
Analysis of Formula
• Chief : wu mei
– A very sour substance which is quite effective in eliminating
roundworms
• Deputies:
– Chuan jiao, xi xin: are warm in nature and expel parasites and warm the
organs
– Huang lian and huang bai: are cold and bitter in nature and attack the
worms.
• Assistants:
– Gan jiang, fu zi, gui zhi: warm the interior and are very useful in
dispersing internal cold
– Ren shen, dang gui: tonify qi and nourish the blood in order to prevent
further injury to the normal qi
• Envoy: vinegar (in which the chief herb is soaked)
– It is sour in nature and conducts the actions of other herbs into the liver
channel to treat the collapse
Modern application and attention
• Modern application:
– Ascariasis, roundworms in the bile duct, chronic
gastrienteritis, post-gastrectomy syndrome, colitis, or
chronic dysentery
• Modification:
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For constipation, add bing lang, zhi shi
For severe vomiting, add wu zhu yu, ban xia
For roundworms in the bile duct, add shi jun zi, ku lian gen pi
For chronic dysentery, add mu xiang and bai shao
• Attention:
– Contraindicated for explosive diarrhea or damp-heat dysenteric
disorders
Fat Baby Pill (fei er wan)
Ingredients: shen qu, huang lian,
rou dou kou, shi jun zi, chao mai
ya, bing lang, mu xiang
Actions and indications of the
formula
• Actions
– Kills parasites, reduces accumulation,
strengthens the spleen, and clears heat.
• Indications
– Parasitic infestation with intermittent attacks of
abdominal pain, indigestion, emaciation, loose
stools, feverishness, foul-smelling breath, a
sallow complexion, and a large, distended
abdomen.
Analysis of Formula
• Chief : shi jun zi, bing lang
– Have a strong antiparasitic effective
• Deputies: hang lian, rou dou kou
– Huang lian: clears heat.
– Rou dou kou: strengthens the spleen,
• Assistants:
– Helps reduce the stagnation in the middle burner
– Mu xiqng, promotes the qi in the middle burner
– Mai ya, shen qu: reduce food stagnation serves as
• Envoy: pig gall
– When combined with huang lian, it drains heat and accumulation
from the stomach, and conducts the actions of the other
ingredients into stomach
Modern application and
modification
• Modern application:
– Any childhood nutritional impairment with
accumulation, even without parasitic infection.
Ascariasis, malnutrition, and chronic
indigestion in child
• Modification:
– For severe qi deficiency, add dang shen bai zhu
– For cases with little or no internal heat, omit huang
lian
– For constipation, add da huang, zhi shi
– For firm masses in the abdomen add san leng, e zhu