Baiji, also known as Baiji, Gan Gen, is the rhizome of the orchid plant Baiji. Baiji has a cool nature and a bitter-sweet taste. It enters the lung meridian and has the effects of nourishing the lungs, stopping bleeding, reducing swelling, promoting skin regeneration, and healing wounds. It is used to treat lung injury with coughing blood, bleeding, bleeding from traumatic wounds, boils and abscesses, ulcers, burns, scalds, and cracked hands and feet. There are ginger-like plant rhizomes on the market that are boiled and used as substitutes for Baiji, so careful identification is required when using.
Authentic Baiji: The dried rhizome is slightly palm-shaped and flattened, with 2-3 branches, about 1.5-4.5 centimeters long and about 0.5 centimeters thick. The surface is yellowish-white with fine wrinkles. There are raised stem marks on the top and marks connecting to another rhizome on the bottom. Around the stem mark, there are brown concentric rings with fine root scars on top. The texture is hard and not easily broken. The cross-section is translucent and horny, with scattered vascular bundle points. It has a slight odor, a light and slightly bitter taste, and becomes sticky when chewed.
Fake Baiji: It is round or irregularly thin and plate-like, with a white surface and many visible root scars. The texture is soft and flexible, with common cracks. It is easily broken and the cross-section shows fibers. It also has a slight odor, but has a mild taste and is not sticky when chewed.
Modern pharmacological studies have confirmed that Baiji has a good hemostatic effect, and its mechanism of action is related to its gelatinous components. It contains highly viscous mucilage, which works in the stomach.
