Glorybower Leaf, Clerodendron Leaf … Classic Formulas

Chou Wu Tong · Folium Clerodendri Trichotomi

Primary Actions

  • Dispels wind-damp and unblocks the channels - Chou Wu Tong is classically used for rheumatic pain, heavy numb limbs, contracture, and difficulty moving when dampness lodges in the collaterals.
  • Pacifies the Liver and helps lower rising pressure - traditional and modern Chinese use both include dizziness, headache, and hypertension-type patterns associated with Liver Yang agitation.
  • Reduces swelling and relieves itching - the leaf is also used in external practice for itchy skin, toxic swelling, or hot painful lesions.

Classic Formulas

  • Chou Wu Tong with Xi Xian Cao and Sang Zhi - a classic pairing style for chronic wind-damp painful obstruction and numb limbs.
  • Chou Wu Tong with Niu Xi and Xia Ku Cao - used in Liver-Yang or pressure-rising patterns with dizziness, headache, and irritability.
  • Chou Wu Tong with Ku Shen or Bai Xian Pi - an external wash style for itching, damp-heat skin irritation, or swollen lesions.

Classical Text References

  • TCM herb references commonly place Chou Wu Tong in the Liver channel, emphasizing wind-damp painful obstruction, hypertension, dizziness, and collaterals that need opening.
  • Chinese local processing standards for the leaf alone describe a sweet-bitter, more neutral profile, which likely reflects medicinal-part differences rather than a direct contradiction of the broader folk record.
  • The herb's long use before flowering for both arthralgia and high blood pressure helps explain why it sits at the overlap of dispelling wind-damp and calming Liver ascent.