Cutch
儿茶 · Ér Chá
Heals wounds and cools inflamed sores
What it does
Cutch heals stubborn skin: persistent ulcers, oozing sores, mouth sores, and slow-healing lesions. In TCM, it stops exudation (leakage from inflamed tissue) and promotes tissue regeneration. The high tannin content gives it strong astringent action that pulls tissue tight while new skin forms. Some Chinese hospitals use it in wound dressings.
How to take it
Crush or grind dried cutch and apply directly to slow-healing wounds, ulcers, or mouth sores. Or dissolve 1–3g in water as a mouth rinse for canker sores.
Try a cutch mouth rinse for stubborn canker sores
Safety
- Generally safe in topical use
- Strong astringent. Internal use can cause constipation at high doses
- Skip during pregnancy
- Test small skin patch before broader topical use
- Talk to your doctor before starting medicinal use, especially if you take medication
Where it comes from
Cutch comes from the heartwood of acacia trees (Acacia catechu), boiled down and dried into hard dark blocks. It's been a staple of Indian Ayurveda and Southeast Asian medicine for centuries, entering Chinese pharmacopeia through trade. Chewing cutch with betel leaf was a regional habit across South Asia. In modern Chinese medicine, it's primarily used as a topical for wounds and in some sore-throat lozenges.