Releases exterior and dispels Wind-Cold — bulb base of the four-season scallion cultivar; pungent-warm dispersion for early wind-cold colds with chills, headache, and blocked nasal passages; functionally equivalent to Cong Bai (white base, herb #92) from standard Allium fistulosum
Invigorates Yang and disperses Cold — abdominal cold-pain, cold limbs, and nausea from Cold accumulation in the Middle Jiao; Yi Yang Jiu Ni (revolve Yang to rescue counterflow) application shared with all Allium fistulosum bulb drugs
Resolves toxicity and reduces swelling — topical fresh application for mastitis, carbuncles, and minor infections
Secondary Actions
Year-round kitchen medicine — Si Ji ('four seasons') designates a cultivar bred for continuous year-round production; the bulb base is used identically to standard Cong Bai in folk and culinary medicine
Promotes urination — classical folk use of white onion bulb with salt for umbilical compress in cold-obstruction urinary retention
Classic Formulas
Cong Chi Tang (葱豉汤) variant — bulb base combined with Dan Dou Chi for early Wind-Cold cold; functionally identical to the standard Cong Bai formulation (herb #92); use is interchangeable in clinical practice
Classical References
CULTIVAR NOTE: Si Ji Cong Tou (四季葱头, 'four-season onion head/bulb') designates a year-round-producing cultivar of Allium fistulosum — the same species as Cong Bai (葱白, herb #92) and Cong (葱, herb #93); the XLSX source filed three separate entries for Bulbus Allii Fistulosi, likely representing the standard white base, the whole plant, and this specific four-season cultivar; in standard TCM Pharmacopoeia usage, Cong Bai (Bulbus Allii Fistulosi) is the recognised drug; Si Ji Cong Tou is primarily a culinary designation used in markets distinguishing continuous-harvest cultivars from seasonal varieties
Ben Cao Gang Mu (Li Shizhen): the onion bulb base (Cong Bai) is 'pungent and warm, opens the pores, invigorates Yang, disperses Cold — the white root is the medicinal part, the green stalk is secondary; consumed in all seasons as a kitchen medicine since antiquity'
Modern Research
Active Compounds
Allicin and diallyl disulfide (organosulfur compounds; antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory)
Quercetin and kaempferol glycosides (flavonoids; anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, cardioprotective)
Cycloalliin (organosulfur; mild antithrombotic)
Fructo-oligosaccharides (prebiotic polysaccharides; gut microbiome support)
Vitamin C and folate (micronutrients; antioxidant, immune support)
Studied Effects
Antimicrobial: allicin and organosulfur compounds from Allium fistulosum demonstrate broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity against upper respiratory pathogens including Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Haemophilus influenzae — consistent with traditional exterior-releasing, anti-infective use shared by all Allium fistulosum bulb preparations
Cardiovascular and prebiotic: quercetin reduces LDL oxidation and platelet aggregation; fructo-oligosaccharides selectively feed Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus species in the colon — pharmacological profile identical to Cong Bai (herb #92) given shared species, part, and chemistry
Safety & Interactions
Contraindications
Wind-Heat exterior patterns (fever with sweating, sore throat, yellow phlegm) — pungent-warm action inappropriate for Heat-type exterior conditions
Excess sweating patterns — further pore-opening depletes fluids
Cautions
Standard dose: 3–5 stalks white base in decoction; external use: roasted or fresh bulb applied to skin for mastitis and carbuncle
Anticoagulants: cycloalliin and quercetin have mild antiplatelet activity; not clinically significant at culinary doses
Considered safe at culinary and folk-medicine doses; classified as a food herb (shi yao 食药)