Herb

Qin Pi

Ash Bark | 秦皮

Also known as:

Cen Pi (岑皮) , Chen Pi (梣皮)

Qin Pi

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Properties

Heat-clearing herbs · Cold

Traditionally supports*

Digestive Health Eye Health and Vision Women's Health Immune Support

Parts Used

Bark (皮 pí / 树皮 shù pí)

*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

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About This Herb

Traditional Chinese Medicine background and properties

Herb Description

Ash bark is a cold, bitter herb traditionally used to address intestinal conditions involving inflammation and diarrhea, particularly when accompanied by mucus or blood in the stool. It is also well-known in Chinese medicine for soothing red, swollen, or painful eyes caused by excessive heat in the Liver. Its astringent quality helps firm up loose bowels and reduce abnormal vaginal discharge.

Herb Category

Heat-clearing herbs Herbs that clear Heat and dry Dampness (清热燥湿药)

Main Actions

  • Clears Heat and dries Dampness
  • Astringes the Intestines and Stops Diarrhea
  • Astringes to Stop Vaginal Discharge
  • Clears Liver Heat and Brightens the Eyes

How These Actions Work

'Clears Heat and dries Dampness' means Qín Pí uses its cold, bitter nature to eliminate a combination of excess heat and accumulated moisture in the body, particularly in the digestive tract. In practice, this applies to conditions where the intestines are inflamed from damp-heat, such as dysentery with urgent, painful bowel movements and mucus or blood in the stool. It is especially valued as a key herb for damp-heat dysentery.

'Astringes the intestines and stops dysentery' refers to the herb's astringent taste, which gives it a firming, tightening quality that helps control diarrhea and dysentery. Unlike purely bitter-cold herbs that only drain heat, Qín Pí simultaneously clears the pathogenic heat and tightens the bowels to reduce excessive discharge. This dual action makes it uniquely suited for prolonged or stubborn cases of hot dysentery.

'Stops leukorrhea' extends the same astringent and heat-clearing mechanism to abnormal vaginal discharge caused by damp-heat flowing downward. When the discharge is yellow, foul-smelling, and accompanied by signs of heat, Qín Pí's cold and astringent properties help both clear the underlying heat and reduce the discharge itself.

'Clears Liver Heat and brightens the eyes' means Qín Pí enters the Liver channel and can drain excess heat that has accumulated there, since the Liver "opens to the eyes" in TCM theory. This makes it useful for red, swollen, painful eyes, excessive tearing, and corneal opacities (what classical texts call "screen and membrane over the eyes"). It can be taken internally or used as an external eye wash, and has been a go-to eye remedy since the earliest herbal texts.

Patterns Addressed

In TCM, symptoms cluster into recognizable patterns of disharmony that reveal what's out of balance in the body. Qin Pi is traditionally associated with these specific patterns.

The following describes this herb's classification within Traditional Chinese Medicine theory and is provided for educational purposes only.

Why Qin Pi addresses this pattern

In Large Intestine Damp-Heat, pathogenic heat and moisture accumulate in the large intestine, disrupting its function of transporting and descending waste. This produces dysentery with urgent straining (tenesmus), abdominal pain, and bloody mucoid stools. Qín Pí directly addresses this pattern through its cold nature and bitter taste, which clear heat and dry dampness in the large intestine (one of its primary channel entries). Crucially, its astringent quality simultaneously firms the bowel wall to reduce the uncontrolled discharge of pus and blood, offering something that purely draining herbs like Huáng Lián cannot. Classical sources describe this as having the advantage of being "astringent without trapping the pathogen" (涩而不敛邪).

A practitioner would look for one or more of these signs

Dysentery

Bloody mucoid stools with tenesmus

Diarrhea

Damp-heat diarrhea with urgency

Abdominal Pain

Abdominal cramping with burning sensation

TCM Properties

Temperature

Cold

Taste

Bitter (苦 kǔ), Astringent (涩 sè)

Channels Entered
Liver Gallbladder Large Intestine
Parts Used

Bark (皮 pí / 树皮 shù pí)

This is partial information on the herb's TCM properties. More detailed information is available on the herb's dedicated page

Product Details

Manufacturing, supplier, and product specifications

Product Type

Granules

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Botanical & Sourcing

Quality Indicators

Good quality branch bark (枝皮) comes in rolled tubes or trough shapes, 10-60 cm long and 1.5-3 mm thick. The outer surface should show a grey-white to grey-brown color with visible grey-white lenticel dots and fine diagonal wrinkles. The inner surface should be yellowish-white or light brown and smooth. The texture should be hard and brittle with a fibrous, yellowish-white cross-section. Good quality trunk bark (干皮) is thicker (3-6 mm), with a grey-brown outer surface showing cracked fissures and reddish-brown lenticels. The key quality test is soaking in water: authentic Qin Pi produces a distinctive blue-green (碧蓝色) fluorescence visible in daylight, caused by its esculin content. The taste should be distinctly bitter. Avoid material that lacks the characteristic fluorescence, is excessively dark, or tastes bland.

Primary Growing Regions

The traditional daodi (道地) production area for Qin Pi is the Qinling Mountain region of Shaanxi province, which is the origin of the herb's name ("Qin" referring to the ancient Qin state in that area). Key production counties include Taibai, Fengxian, and Luonan in Shaanxi, as well as neighboring Tianshui and Longnan in Gansu province. Other major production regions include Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang (northeast China), Hebei, Henan, Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, and Sichuan. Northeast China (particularly Liaoning and Jilin) produces significant commercial quantities. The Qinling Mountain material is traditionally considered the highest quality.

Harvesting Season

Spring and autumn. The bark is stripped from branches or trunks after 5-8 years of growth (trunk diameter at least 15 cm), then sun-dried.

Supplier Information

Treasure of the East

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Miscellaneous Info

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Usage & Safety

How to use this herb and important safety information

Important Medical Disclaimer

The information provided here is for educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice or to replace consultation with a qualified healthcare professional. This herb is a dietary supplement and has not been evaluated by the FDA. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Always consult with a qualified healthcare provider, particularly if you are pregnant, nursing, have a medical condition, or are taking other medications. Discontinue use and consult your healthcare provider if you experience any adverse reactions.

Recommended Dosage

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Instructions for safe storage and consumption

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Traditional Dosage Reference

Standard

6-12g

Maximum

Up to 15-20g in severe acute damp-heat dysentery, under practitioner supervision. The standard upper limit is 12g for routine use.

Notes

Use the lower range (6-9g) for clearing Liver heat and treating eye conditions, as the Liver-clearing effect does not require high doses. Use the upper range (9-12g) for damp-heat dysentery and leukorrhea, where the astringent and heat-clearing actions need to be stronger. For external eye washes, a small amount (3-6g) can be decocted in water and used to bathe the eyes after cooling and straining. Classical formulas often use around 9g (three liang in the Bai Tou Weng Tang of the Shang Han Lun, where liang is calculated at Han dynasty weight).

Processing Methods

Processing method

The raw bark is cleaned, soaked until moistened through, then sliced into pieces or segments and dried in the sun. No additional processing agents are used.

How it changes properties

This is the standard preparation form rather than a true processing transformation. It does not significantly alter the herb's cold temperature, bitter-astringent taste, or primary actions. The cutting simply makes it suitable for decoction.

When to use this form

This is the default clinical form of Qín Pí used for all standard indications. There are no widely established honey-fried, wine-processed, or charcoal-processed forms in routine clinical use.

Toxicity Classification

Non-toxic

Qin Pi is classified as non-toxic (无毒) in classical literature and the Chinese Pharmacopoeia. No reports of serious adverse reactions at standard dosage (6-12g) have been documented. Its primary active compounds are coumarins (esculin and esculetin), which have a structural similarity to dicoumarol and possess mild anticoagulant properties, but at standard oral doses this effect is clinically insignificant. Mild gastrointestinal discomfort (nausea, cramping) may occur with excessive dosage, particularly in those with weak digestion. The coumarin compound esculin has very low oral bioavailability (approximately 0.6%), further limiting systemic toxicity risk.

Contraindications

Avoid

Spleen and Stomach deficiency-cold (脾胃虚寒). Qin Pi is bitter, astringent, and cold in nature. Using it in people with cold, weak digestion can worsen symptoms like loose stools, poor appetite, and abdominal pain from cold. The Ben Jing Feng Yuan specifically states it is prohibited for those with a weak stomach and poor appetite.

Caution

Diarrhea or dysentery caused by Spleen deficiency rather than damp-heat. Because Qin Pi's cold nature can further injure Spleen Yang, it should only be used for diarrhea with clear signs of heat (burning sensation, urgency, foul odor, yellow tongue coating), not for watery stools from cold deficiency.

Caution

Vaginal discharge (leukorrhea) from Spleen deficiency without damp-heat signs. Qin Pi is appropriate for yellow, foul-smelling discharge from damp-heat, but not for clear, thin, odorless discharge from Yang deficiency.

Avoid

Known allergy or hypersensitivity to Fraxinus bark or its coumarin constituents (esculin, esculetin).

Special Populations

Pregnancy

Classical sources list Qin Pi in formulas that are explicitly noted as contraindicated during pregnancy (e.g., a formula for styes combining Qin Pi with Da Huang carries the note "pregnant women should not take this"). While Qin Pi itself is not traditionally classified as a strong pregnancy-prohibited herb, its cold and bitter nature can potentially harm fetal development by injuring Spleen Yang, and its coumarin constituents have mild anticoagulant properties. It should be avoided during pregnancy unless specifically prescribed by an experienced practitioner.

Breastfeeding

No specific classical or modern contraindications for use during breastfeeding have been documented. However, the coumarin compounds in Qin Pi (esculin, esculetin) may transfer into breast milk, and its cold, bitter nature could theoretically affect the infant's digestion. Use during breastfeeding should only occur under practitioner supervision, at the lowest effective dose, and for short durations.

Pediatric Use

Qin Pi has a long history of pediatric use in classical literature, particularly for childhood convulsions (小儿惊痫) with fever and for bathing feverish children. The Ming Yi Bie Lu specifically mentions treating childhood epilepsy and fever. Dosage should be reduced proportionally by body weight, typically one-third to one-half of the adult dose for children over 3 years old. Because of its cold and bitter nature, it should be used with particular caution in children with weak digestion, and treatment duration should be kept short.

Drug Interactions

Anticoagulant and antiplatelet medications (warfarin, heparin, aspirin, clopidogrel): The coumarin compounds in Qin Pi (esculin and esculetin) are structurally related to dicoumarol and possess mild anticoagulant activity. Although the effect at standard oral doses is likely minimal due to low oral bioavailability, concurrent use with blood-thinning medications warrants caution and monitoring.

Vitamin B1 (thiamine): Some sources indicate that Qin Pi's tannin content may interfere with vitamin B1 absorption. Patients taking thiamine supplements should separate administration times.

CYP450 enzyme substrates: Esculetin has been shown in laboratory studies to modulate certain cytochrome P450 enzymes. While clinical significance at standard herbal doses is unclear, caution is advisable when combining with drugs that have a narrow therapeutic index and are metabolized by CYP450 pathways.

Dietary Advice

Because Qin Pi is cold and bitter, it works best when the diet avoids excessively cold or raw foods that could further burden the Spleen. Warm, easily digestible foods are preferable during treatment. When used for damp-heat dysentery, avoid greasy, fried, and spicy foods that may aggravate the condition. Avoid vinegar and sour foods in excess, as these may counteract its astringent action on the intestines.

Cautions & Warnings

Although this formula is typically safe for most individuals, it may cause side effects in some people. Pregnant women, nursing mothers, postpartum women, and those with liver disease should use the formula with caution.

As with any Chinese herbal remedy, it is advisable to seek guidance from a qualified TCM practitioner before beginning treatment.