Botanical Name: Cervi Cornu pantotrichum
Lu Rong
English: Deer Velvet
Category: Tonify the Yang
Taste: Sweet, Salty
Temperature: Warm
Channels Entered: Kidney, Liver
Dosage: 1-2g taken in pill or powder form
Key Characteristics: Fortifies the primal yang, generates essence, and augments the marrow.
Cautions and Contraindications:
- Contraindicated in those with heat from yin deficiency, heat in the blood level, phlegm-heat in the Lungs, blazing Stomach fire, or a warm-heat pathogen.
Actions and Indications:
- Tonifies the Kidneys and fortifies the yang: for patterns of Kidney yang deficiency with such symptoms as fatigue, impotence, cold extremities, lightheadedness, tinnitus, soreness and lack of strength in the lower back and knees, and frequent, copious, clear urination.
- Warms the yang, regulates the Penetrating and Conception vessels, and stabilizes the Girdle vessel: for vaginal discharge or uterine bleeding due to cold from deficiency. Also for infertility with a cold womb. Can be used as a stand-alone herb for this purpose.
- Tonifies the Governing vessel, augments the essence and blood, and strengthens the sinews and bones: used especially in cases of deficient essence and blood in children with such physical and/or mental developmental disorders as failure to thrive, mental retardation, learning disabilities, insufficient growth, or skeletal deformities.
- Used for non-healing fractures with Kidney deficiency and exhaustion of the essence. This use has been expanded to include the treatment of non-healing ulcers. Can be used alone for these purposes.
