Sentry Page Protection

Heracleum candicans, Spru dkar སྤྲུ་དཀར་

Spru dkar (Tibet)
Ruan Mao Du Huo (H. lanatum, TCM)
Heracleum lanatum
Illustrated Flors of the US, Canada, and the British Possessions, Britton & Brown, 1913

Heracleum lanatum
(Photo by Dr. Alexey Yakovlev) (Wikimedia)

Botanical name:
Heracleum candicans, H. nepalense, H. lanatum (Masterwort)
H. lanatum and H. hemsleyanum are used as alternate sources of Angelica Du Huo.
In Tibet, there are 3 types of Spru:
  1. Spru dkar: Heracleum candicans
  2. Spru nag: Angelica paeoniifolia
  3. Spru ser: Notopterygium spp.

Parts used:
Root, Seed

Temperature & Taste:
Warm. Bitter, Pungent. Slightly toxic.

Classification:

Constituents:
Rich in furocoumarins

Uses:
1. Clears Wind-Damp:
-Wind-Damp joint Pain; Arthritis, Rheumatism
-Leucoderma, Leprosy
-Tumors, Cancer

2. Settles Wind, Stops Spasm::
-Wind and Nervous diseases
-Headache, Toothache
-Hypertension

3. Clears Wind-Heat, Resists Poison::
-Fever, Cough and Cold; especially effective for Epidemic diseases
-Pain associated with Fever
-Diphtheria
-Earache, Acute Infection
-Stomachache, Diarrhea, Dysentery
-also Bleeding associated with Heat

4. Kills Worms:
-Seed is used for Worms
-abdominal pain from Worms

5. Externally:
-Boils, Abscesses, Skin diseases (paste)
-Blisters
-applied to Joint pain (root paste)


DOSE:
Powder: 1–3 grams
Decoction: 3–9 grams
Often added to wine for Wind-Damp joint pain

COMMENT:
Some Tibetan sources state that the root will clear Heat in adults but not in the old, young or weak.

SUBSTITUTE:
1. The European Cow Parsnip (H. sphondylium) is probably a suitable substitute.
2. Heracleum lanatum is an alternate source of Angelica Du Huo in TCM. Therefore, the latter may be used as a substitute.

Main Combinations:
1. Leukorrhea, Vaginal itching, Heracleum candicans, Sophora Ku Shen, Phellodendron Huang Bai (15 grams each), Cnidium She Chuang Zi (60 grams), burnt Alum (6 grams, added to the strained decoction). Use as a topical wash twice daily. (Barefoot Doctors Manual)

Major Formulas:


Cautions:
Avoid overdose

Main Preparations used: