Chinaberry Bark
苦楝皮 · Kǔ Liàn Pí
Targets intestinal parasites and itchy skin
What it does
Chinaberry bark kills intestinal worms and treats itchy skin like scab and lichen. In TCM, it's a focused anti-parasitic for roundworms, pinworms, and topical skin issues. Toxic in raw form, with documented liver injury at high doses. Modern medicine has mostly replaced it with safer pharmaceutical anti-parasitics. Practitioner-controlled.
How to take it
Decoct 6–9g of dried chinaberry bark in water for 30 minutes. Take in single dose for parasites, fasted, under practitioner direction. Or apply topically as a wash.
See a TCM practitioner. Modern anti-parasitics are safer first-line
Safety
- Toxic. Documented liver injury at standard doses
- Strictly avoid during pregnancy
- Modern pharmaceutical anti-parasitics are first-line for most cases
- Stop if you develop dark urine, jaundice, or severe nausea
- Talk to your doctor before starting, especially if you take medication
Where it comes from
Chinaberry (Melia azedarach and M. toosendan) trees grow across China and Southeast Asia. The bark is the medicinal part, distinguished from the fruit (Chuan Lian Zi), which has its own TCM uses. Chinaberry bark has been used for parasites since at least the Han Dynasty. Modern toxicology has identified toosendanin and related compounds as both the active agents and the main toxicity source.