Sexual dysfunction treated with TCM prepared rehmannia root

What is prepared rehmannia root(Shu Di Huang)?
It refers to the processed rehmannia glutinosa libosch root. The processing method is to steam along with auxiliary materials of wine, Amomum, and orange peel, dry them in the sun, repeat the above-mentioned steps until they become totally black, oily, soft and sticky. Medicinally it is used sliced or charred. Other common names of this herb include Chinese Foxglove Root, dihuang, Rehmannia glutinosa steamed root, Rehmanniae radix, Digitalis glutinosa, Rhizoma rehmanniae, Rehmannia chinensis, cooked or cured rehmannia, and so on.

The rehmannia plant is a perennial herb, 10 to 40cm in height. The whole plant is covered with off-white villus and glandular hairs. Thick root is succulent, in shapes of bulk, cylinder, or spindle. Erect stems are single or with a few branches at the base. Basal leaves are in clumps. Blade is obovate-lanceolate, 3 to 10cm long, 1.5 to 4cm wide, and with obtuse apex, narrow base, wrinkled surface, and irregular jagged edges. Stem leaves are much smaller. The floral axis is erect, hairy, and in racemes in upper stem; bracts are leafy, developed or degraded; calyx is in bell-shaped, 5-lobed apex, and with triangular lobes, multicellular villous and white long-hair, and 10 veins; tubular corolla is wide, slightly curved, 3 to 4cm long, dark purple outside and mixed with yellow inside, and with clear purple stripes, and 5-lobed apex. Stamens are 4, didynamous, and anther with fork base; superior ovary is ovoid, 2-roomed but 1-roomed after flowering, 1 style, and enlarged stigma. Capsule is ovate or ovate and with acute apex, persistent style, and wrapped with the persistent calyx outside. Seeds are many. Flowering time is from April to May and fruiting time is from May to June.

Rehmannia root benefits
It was first appeared in Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing (Shen Nong’s Herbal Classic). Today there are there kinds of rehmannia available – prepared, fresh, and raw rehmannia root. All of them are capable of treating all diseases caused by deficiency of yin and body fluid since they can nourish Yin and produce saliva.

However, clinically they are not the same thing and with different healing properties. The fresh one is sweet-bitter in taste and extremely cold in nature. It is with weak yin-nourishing ability but a better performance on removing heat to cool blood, purging the pathogenic fire, and relieving restlessness. So, it is often used in patterns of blood heat due to exuberant pathogens and deficiency of yin and fluid; the dried one is of sweet taste and cold-moist nature. It is with less blood-cooling properties but a better ability on nourishing the yin of heart and kidney.

Hence, it is the perfect option in the treatment of impaired yin caused by blood heat and fever due to yin deficiency; the cooked one is an important liver-kidney tonic that not only nourishes blood and yin, but also reinforces essence and marrow. Tradition Chinese medicine believes that essence and blood are the most fundamental material basis of the body. That’s to say, adequate blood and essence is precondition of normal function of liver and kidney and healthy body. On the contrary, deficiency of blood and essence will result in light-headedness, sore aching low back and knees, deafness, tinnitus, premature graying, premature aging, sexual dysfunction, and so on.