What it is:
This herb is theripe seed of Sinapis alba L., or Brassica juncea (L.) Czern et Coss. (family Cruci-ferae), producedprincipally in Henan and Anhui provinces, dried in sunlight after collection, andused unprepared orstir-baked.

Property:
Pungent in flavour, warm in property, acting on the lungchannel.

Effects:
Eliminating sputum,promoting the flowof qi, dissolving lumps and subduingswelling.

Used for:
1. For accumu-lation of cold-phlegm in the lung manifested as cough, asthma, profuse watery and thin sputum, it is often used with perilla seed and radish seed, as inDecoction of ThreeKinds of Seeds forthe Aged (SanziYangqin Tang). For phlegm retention andupward adverse flow of qi manifested as cough, asthma, chest pain and pleural effusion, it is used with kansui root and knoxia root, known as Controlling Phlegm- fluid Pill (Kongxian Dan).

2. For multiple or metastatic abscesses due to phlegm-dampness, deep-rooted carbuncle of yinnature, and otherpyogenic infections, it is often used with antler glue and cinnamon bark, as in Yang-Activating Decoc-tion ( Yanghe Tang). In addition, this drug together with cochinchina momordica seed and myrrh can beprepared into powder for the treatment of aching and numb shoulders and limbs due to stagnation ofphlegm in the channels and collaterals.

Dosage andadministration: 3-10g, decocted in water for an oral dose.