Richard Mandelbaum RH(AHG)

2016

Inula helenium
Asteraceae

Elecampane
Xuan fu hua (I.japonica or I.brittanica
var.japonica)

Part used: root (for flower of I.japonica see below)

Native range: native to Eurasia; naturalized in U.S.

Sustainability: easily cultivated

Flavor: bitter, sweet, pungent/acrid

Energetics: warming, mildly drying

Actions: anti-tussive, expectorant, bitter tonic, cholagogue/hepatic, alterative,

anthelmintic/vermifuge, antimicrobial, astringent, carminative, qi tonic, diuretic,
diaphoretic

The root of elecampane is a solid lung tonic useful for both acute conditions and infections, as
well as for recovery from a long illness or chronic respiratory debility. It also promotes
appetite and digestive function. Elecampane’s complex flavor reflects its balanced impacts
especially on the respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts: a bitter quality that aids qi in
descending, an aromatic dispersing quality that breaks up stagnation, an acrid flavor that
opens the bronchi, and a sweet nourishing tonic nature. This versatility often gives
elecampane usefulness in both acute and chronic conditions. The flower of a closely related
species is used in Asia for very similar purposes.

Indications:
• Elecampane opens the lungs as well as helps lung qi to descend. It is used for
inflammation, infection, irritation, and/or spasms of upper respiratory tract, especially
with a damp phlegm state.
Richard Mandelbaum RH(AHG)
2016

o Wheezing, dyspnea
o Asthmatic as well as viral / bacterial bronchitis
o Pneumonia, pertussis, tuberculosis
o Weiss describes elecampane as a “remedy for chronic coughs where the general
condition and appetite are reduced”.
• GI uses:
o Intestinal parasites – prophylactic and treatment
o Loss of appetite and debility with dyspepsia, bloating, gas, nausea, loose stools
or diarrhea
o Thomas Avery Garran considers elecampane to be a fair substitute for
Atractylodes in reviving the Spleen while also transforming or dispersing
Dampness.
• Ellingwood discusses elecampane as a nutritive tonic, indicated in “general debility
from protracted disease, or from overwork, or from age”; “imparts tone to the digestive
and respiratory organs and to the urinary tract”; used in “inactivity of the GI tract
[with] disorder of the skin and discoloration and eruptions.”
• Johannes Sauer describes elecampane as having the “capacity to open, to dissolve, to
ease difficult breathing, to stop coughing, to withstand poison, and to strengthen the
stomach”.
• Also used for inflammation of genito-urinary tract

Xuan fu hua (flower of Inula japonica):

• Bitter, acrid, salty, and slightly warming
• Dissolves excess phlegm in the Lungs: indicated for chronic cold, damp lung conditions
as well as damp heat. Aids Lung Qi in descending in cases of wheezing, dyspnea,
asthma.
• For cold phlegm can be combined with Zingiber, Foeniculum, Thymus
• In cases of damp heat in lung, combine with Lactuca, Platycodon, Morus (bark), and
Scutellaria baicalensis
• Indicated for Rebellious Qi in the esophageal tract; stops vomiting, nausea, hiccups,
belching with underlying Damp accumulation in the Stomach/Spleen.
• According to Garran I.helenium is also used in Chinese medicine.

Safety, Interactions, Contraindications and/or Toxicity (for both Inula spp.):

• AHPA Safety Class 1, Interaction Class A
• Occasional G.I. irritation and nausea at high doses
• Occasional allergic reaction (in particular in people allergic to Asteraceae)
• Although some sources state that elecampane is not to be used during pregnancy and
lactation this appears to be unsubstantiated.
• May be inappropriate if the lungs are in too severe a dry state.
Richard Mandelbaum RH(AHG)
2016

Preparation:
Decoction
Infusion
Tincture

Dosage:
3-9 g dried root in decoction / day
1 tsp dried ground herb to 8 oz water three times per day as infusion or
decoction
½-2 ml three times per day as tincture

Major plant constituents: polysaccharides (inulin), volatile oils, lactones (helenin), resin,
triterpenes

Additional notes:
• High in inulin, useful in normalizing blood sugar metabolism and in promoting a
healthy gut flora (not to be confused with insulin!)

Sources:
AHPA Botanical Safety Handbook, 1st and 2nd Editions
Bensky and Gamble, Chinese Herbal Medicine Materia Medica
Bone and Mills, Principles and Practice of Phytotherapy
Brinker, Herb Contraindications and Drug Interactions
Chen and Chen, Chinese Medical Herbology and Pharmacology
Ellingwood, American Materia Medica
Felter-Lloyd, King’s American Dispensatory
Gaby, A to Z Guide to Drug-Herb-Vitamin Interactions
Hoffmann, Medical Herbalism
PDR for Herbal Medicines, Third Edition
Skenderi, Herbal Vade Mecum
Weaver, Sauer’s Herbal
Weiss, Herbal Medicine