---
title: "Cao Dou Kou"
url: "https://books.drcassone.com/21/traditional-medicines-of-east-asia/429/cao-dou-kou"
---

 ![cao dou kou, alpiniae katsumadai semen.jpg](/u/cao-dou-kou-alpiniae-katsumadai-semen-InLWXq.jpg) 

# Cao Dou Kou

### Apiniae Katsumadai Semen

_acrid, warm, aromatic_

#### PRIMARY FUNCTION:

_**Aromatic Herb that Transforms Damp**_

CLASSICAL MANIFESTATIONS:
- Gastrointestinal complaints
 - Abdominal distention
 - Epigastric pain
 - Abdominal distention
 - Vomiting
 - Diarrhea

Cao Dou Kou is acrid, aromatic, and warm. It enters the spleen
and stomach systems to treat conditions involving dampness.
When dampness accumulation, from poor dietary choices and
weak digestive functions, it causes irritation to the digestive tract
and limits normal function.

**Channels:** spleen, stomach

COMMON APPLICATIONS AND CLINICAL
POSSIBILITIES:
 - Chest pain
 - Chronic obstruction of dampness related to
arterial occlusion and eventually circulatory
diseases
- Diarrhea
- Nausea
- Vomiting

**Formulas:**
- Hou Po Wen Zhong Tang

**Contraindications:** do not prescribe Cao Dou Kou to patients
that present with deficiency of yin or blood

**Zoo Image:** a skunk with a cold damp middle jiao is warming by a fire cooking
qi popcorn

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