Bamboo as Medicine
I just finished reading the most interesting article called “Bamboo as Medicine” By Subhuti Dharmananda, Ph.D., Director, Institute for Traditional Medicine, Portland, OR. It’s a must read for Acupuncturists and Herbalists.
Asia has over 300 specie of bamboo (Zhu Ru) and many different parts of the plants are used in Chinese Medicine. The leaves are used for fevers, the inside whitish-greenish middle is used for convulsions and vomiting. Dried sap from the joints of bamboo are used for fevers and coughs with phlegm and even epilepsy. The stem of small bamboo are used in Japan for urinary retention and blood in the urine. Bamboo leaves can also be made into a beer. Not sure if that’s medicinal though.
This article has excellent comparisons and characteristics on functions of the different species, something I never learned…
