| Pharmaceutical name: | Cordyceps Sinensis |
| Biological name: | Cordyceps sinensis (Berk.) Sacc. and the usually the larval are the remains of Hepialus varians |
| Pron. in Japanese: | tochukaso |
| Pron. in Korean: | tong ch'ug ha ch'o |
| Pron. in Cantonese: | tung chung ha cho |
| Other Name: | chong cao, dong chong cao |
| Common Name: | cordyceps |
| Distribution: | Sichuan, Qinghai, Guizhou, Yunnan, Tibet |
| Properties (characteristics) | sweet, arm |
| Channels (meridians) entered: | lung, kidney |
| Actions & Indications: | tonifies kidney and improves yang: for impotence, chronic lower back pain, afraid of cold, over abundance of mucus and tears, from kidney yang deficiency (shenyangxu). tonifies lung yin and kidney yang: lowering phlegm production, and stop bleeding. (chronic cough and wheezing from deficiency, blood in phlegm from consumption. |
| Medical Function: | antibiotic effect, inhibits contraction of smooth muscles. |
| Chemical ingredients: | Vitamin B12, ergosterol, cordycepic acid Amino Acid group: crude protein 27.52%. amino acid: lysine, aspartic acid , (tian men dong suan), threonine (su an suan), taurine (niu huang suan). |
| Dosage: | 4.5 to 12 g per day. |
| Samples of formulae: | For weak old people with chronic bronchia inflammation: dong chong xia cao 10 g, kuan dong hua 6 g, sang bai pi 8 g, gan cao 3 g, xiao huai xiang 2 g, water 600 c.c. Boil down to 200 c.c. Make into 3 servings per day. |
| Modern Research: | to be loaded |
| Cautions: | large doses might be toxic |
