Jin Qian Cao (金钱草; Jīn Qián Cǎo; Latin: Lysimachiae Herba; English: Christina loosestrife) in the current pharmacopoeia is the dried whole herb of Lysimachia christinae, a creeping perennial of the primrose family, collected in summer and autumn. It is sweet, bland, and neutral, enters the Liver, Gallbladder, Kidney, and Bladder channels, and its core actions are to clear and drain damp-heat and reduce jaundice, and to promote urination and free strangury. It usually goes into a decoction. The usual amount is 15–60 g. It needs no special cooking order and can go in with the other herbs. A mild herbal tea of around 10 g is a light daily form.
It is not Ji Nei Jin. Chicken gizzard lining is sweet and neutral; its main job is to digest food stagnation and strengthen the spleen, and it only secondarily helps to resolve stones. Jin Qian Cao drains damp-heat instead of tonifying the middle. People with a cold, weak spleen and stomach, long-term loose stools, or a weak constitution should not use it on their own. Pregnancy and breastfeeding need a practitioner's call. Overuse may damage spleen-stomach qi and worsen diarrhea.
It is used most often for three patterns:
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Damp-heat jaundice, yellow eye whites, hypochondriac distending pain, bitter mouth — seek care
- Bladder damp-heat: scanty, dark, burning and painful urination
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Urinary or biliary stones with sandy, difficult urination — seek care
Sweet, bland, and neutral, it is not a daily “drainage tea” to keep increasing. Draining dampness when there is no damp-heat harms the spleen and stomach and loosens the stools.
When damp-heat steams the liver and gallbladder, or clogs the bladder, jaundice, bitter mouth, and painful dribbling urination are common. Jin Qian Cao is sweet, bland, and neutral. It percolates downward and sends the damp-heat out through the urine, which is why it is the chief herb in Dan Dao Pai Shi Tang (Biliary Stone-Discharging Decoction)–type formulas for the gallbladder and San Jin Pai Shi Tang (Three-Gold Stone-Discharging Decoction)–type formulas for the urinary tract. It drains more than it holds. A cold, weak spleen and stomach, with no damp-heat, get worse if more is added.
Jin Qian Cao is not a catch-all “stone tea” or detox drink. In a cold, weak spleen and stomach, with long-term loose stools, or in pregnancy, using it alone is a poor match. Decoction or light tea, and whether it belongs in a formula, should be decided by a licensed Chinese medicine practitioner after pattern diagnosis.