Western and Chinese herbalism
Fennel
Foeniculum vulgare
Also known as Fennel seed, Fennel (Sweet), Fennel Seeds, Sweet Fennel, AND SYNONYM: Common fennel, Fennel fruits, Roman fennel; Semen foeniculi, huí xiāng.
A splendid carminative and stimulant for flatulent colic in babies. It should not be sweetened with sugar, as it is sufficiently sweet in itself, while added sugar defeats the purpose for which it is being administered. Hot fennel tea is not an unpleasant remedy for amenorrhoea, and for suppressed lactation. Fennel is often used as a corrigent of unpleasant medicines. It is an ingredient of Compound Licorice Powder.
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Indications what the tradition reached for it in
- Spastic constipation
- Lactation
- Gas/bloating
- Oligomenorrhea
- Amenorrhea (secondary)
- Colic
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Spastic cough
- Bronchitis
- Conjunctivitis
- Blepharitis
- Estrogen dominant conditions
- Abdominal distension
- Amenorrhea
- Bloating
- Cough
- Cramps
- Digestive discomfort
- Flatulence
- Gas
- Infection
- Insufficient lactation
- Muscle spasms
- Respiratory congestion
- Digestive complaints
- Respiratory complaints
- Low milk supply
- Mucus congestion
- Thick mucus
- digestive cramping and bloating (topical, diluted)
Safety
Pregnancy: Use with care in pregnancy
The record lists 2 contraindications; open the plate in the library to read them in full.
Dosing as the sources wrote it
| Preparation | As written | Metric |
|---|---|---|
| Tincture (1:3) | 3-5 ml TID | 3-5 mL |
| Infusion | 1 tsp/c TID, infants can take 1-2 gtts of tea TID | 0.05-0.1 mL |
| Colic | 1 gtts to infant directly or mother can drink tea | 0.05 mL |
| Topical (diluted in carrier) | Topical: typical 1-2% in carrier; face/sensitive 0.5; dermal maximum 2.5%. Trans-anethole rich; keep dilution modest. | |
| Internal (oral) | Not recommended internally ... insufficient current safety data for the essential oil; use the culinary herb or tea instead. Estragole/anethole concerns for the concentrated oil; use fennel seed or tea internally. | |
| Dose, 10 to 30 grains. | 648-1944 mg |
Doses are reproduced from the sources for practitioners and are not a recommendation for any person.
From the sources
Action and Therapy. A splendid carminative and stimulant for flatulent colic in babies. It should not be sweetened with sugar, as it is sufficiently sweet in itself, while added sugar defeats the purpose for which it is being administered. Hot fennel tea is not an unpleasant remedy for amenorrhoea, and for suppressed lactation. Fennel is often used as a corrigent of unpleasant medicines. It is an ingredient of Compound Licorice Powder.
Properties and Uses. The fruit (seeds) are quite fragrant, and are among the most relaxing and least pungent of all the aromatics. They are eminently carminative, and quite diffusive; and are usually better received by the stomach than are cummin or dill seeds, being also more relaxing than these, but more stimulating than anise seed.
primary-actions. Fennel acts primarily as: Carminative, Antispasmodic, Expectorant (relaxing), Galactagogue, Hormone modulator. Secondary actions include Mucolytic, Antimicrobial, Galactagogue.
Description. Natural Order, Umbelliferae. “ Calyx a tumid, obsolete rim; petals roundish, entire, involute, with a squarish blunt lobe. Fruit nearly taper. Half-fruits with five prominent bluntly-keeled ridges. Root biennial or perennial, tapering.
Drawn from Cook's Physio-Medical Dispensatory; King's American Dispensatory, 18th edition (Felter and Lloyd); Felter's Eclectic Materia Medica, Pharmacology and Therapeutics, and the Bountiful Herbs editorial.
In formulas
Fennel stands in 40 documented formulas in the library, among them IBS Calming Formula, Yu gòng sắn, ǎn zhông sắn, huán shào dàn, dàn liáo sì shén wán, bèn tún wán.
Often paired with
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False GromwellOnosmodium
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Fang FengSaposhnikovia divaricata
FenugreekTrigonella foenum-graecum
Fever-rootTriosteum
FeverfewTanacetum parthenium
FicariaRanunculus ficariaThe whole plate is in the library. The compass, Compare, the Sky of eleven hundred plants and the formulary open with an email address and a password, free, with the formula builder and its safety engine. Herbert without limit, his formulating, clients, the handouts and the labels are the paid room.
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