Common Name: Bai Dou Kou; Amomum kravanh,  amomum;  Amomum compactum; white cardamon fruit. (not the western cardamom, Elettaria cardamomum)

 

Family: Zingiberaceae

 

Part used:  Fruit; collected in the autumn when the fruit turns from green to yellow

 

Active constituents:  Essential oils-cineol, terpineol, pinene, humalene, limonene; saponin, starch

 

Actions:  Anti-emetic; TCM Actions: 1. Regulate Qi, Dissolves Dampness, transforms Damp, strengthens stomach; 2. warms the stomach and relieves nausea; 3. Promotes gastrointestinal functions in chronic renal failure patients

 

Indications:  Epigastric and abdominal fullness,  poor appetite; nausea, vomiting, cold in the stomach, (safe for pregnant women and for infants)

 

Cautions:  Not for use in patient with yin or Blood deficiency

 

Contraindication: None known

 

Herb Drug interactions:  None known

 

Dose (Human and Veterinary):  Human Dose: 3-6 grams; prolonged cooking destroys its effectiveness; should be served immediately, while warm for maximum effect; Horses and Cattle: 15-30 g; Llamas, Alpacas, goats, sheep and pigs: 3-10 g. Cats:  0.5-1 g;  Birds and Rabbits: 0.5-1 g

 

Properties:  acrid, warm, aromatic

 

Channels: Lung, Spleen, stomach

 

Chen and Chen: Acrid, aromatic and warm, Bai Dou Kou, moves the qi and dissolves dampness from the interior and exterior.  Accumulation of Dampness in the interior, or the middle jiao, prevents the Spleen and Stomach from performing their normal transportation and transformation of functions, leading to epigastric and abdominal fullness, distention and poor appetite.  Some exterior syndromes, damp-heat febrile disorders, can be complicated by an accumulation of dampness leading to chest congestion, lack of appetite, and a feeling of heaviness.