Huang Qin (Baical Skullcap Root, Scutellaria)

Chinese Name: 
Huang Qin
English Name: 
Baical Skullcap Root, Scutellaria
Functions and Usage: 
  • Clears heat, drains fire, especially from the upper warmer - heat patterns with fever, irritability, thirst, cough, thick, yellow sputum, hot sores and swellings.
  • Clears heat, dries dampness - damp-heat in the stomach or intestines, diarrhea, dysentery; damp warm-febrile disease with fever, stifling sensation in the chest, thirst with no desire to drink; damp-heat in the lower jiao - lin syndrome; damp-heat jaundice.
  • Clears heat, stops bleeding - vomiting and/or coughing of blood, nosebleed, blood in the stool.
  • Clears heat, calms the fetus - restless fetus due to heat.
  • Sedates liver yang rising - headache, irritability, red eyes, bitter taste, flushed face.
Functional Groupings (Click for Summary/Study Notes): 
Dosage and Preparation Notes: 
  • Dosage: 6-15g
Temperature and Taste Properties: 
Contraindications: 
There are currently no contraindications listed.
Notes: 

There are no additional notes for this herb.

TCM Herbal Sources and More Information

The information on our site is drawn from our own lecture notes and clinical experience. The following lecture notes were used within this section:

  • Jin, Yan Ping: New England School of Acupuncture, CHM Pharmacopoeia I and II, Formulas I and II Lecture Notes

For a complete list of valuable resources, see our Herbal Medicine Resources section. The most recommended texts are below: