I've introduced basic concepts about rare and expensive Chinese herbs Now I'm going to talk about a specific one Let's start with the first category rare but not expensive I'm going to introduce this category in a couple of sessions The first one is Gui Zhi (Ramulus Cinnamomi) Here I'd like to explain why Gui Zhi is considered a rare and expensive herb Of numerous Chinese herbs Gui Zhi is highly important and claimed to be indicated for a hundred diseases Of course 'a hundred' here is a function word just indicating Gui Zhi can be used to treat many medical conditions In addition, there is a classical formula containing Gui Zhi known as Gui Zhi Tang (Cinnamon Twig Decoction) As known to all Gui Zhi Tang is honored as father or ancestor of formulae Obviously Gui Zhi is highly important and has a very long history That's why I introduce Gui Zhi as a rare and expensive Chinese herb We mainly use the twig of cinnamon trees which mainly grow in hot and humid places such as Guangdong, Guangxi and Yunnan provinces The distinictive feature of this herb can be summarized into the following four words a pure yang product Why these four words First, let's take a look at this herb from its property It is pungent, sweet in flavor and warm, heat in property We have learned about the theory of five flavors and medicinal properties As for pungent and warm, herbs with a pungent flavor can circulate and dissipate and herbs with a warm property can unblock as a result, we can summarized the functions of this herb as follows (1) it is pungent in flavor and warm in property and can induce sweating and release the exterior (2) it circulates and can warm and unblock meridians What about 'sweet' We've learned that sweet tonifies Tonify what Tonify yang This indicates that Gui Zhi can warm and tonify yang qi Therefore Gui Zhi has always been believed to have three major functions: (1) treats the exterior syndrome: remove wind, dissipate cold, induce sweating and relax muscles in this sense, it can be used to treat wind-cold exterior syndrome (2) warms and unblocks meridians and can be used to treat cold-induced pain (3) warms yang and transformes qi or assists yang to transform qi in this sense, it can tonify yang and can be used to treat yang deficiency syndrome How can we understand the specific application of this herb I summarize the distinctive functions of this herb into two words warm and unblock. Warm and unblock what This is associated with its functions and meridian tropism First, it warms and unblocks the surface of the body and can remove wind and dissipate cold in the surface of the body and thus circulate qi and blood That's why we say Gui Zhi can remove wind and dissipate cold In this sense undoubtedly, it can be used to treat wind-cold exterior syndrome As for wind-cold exterior syndrome it involves two patterns and is associated with individual consitutions If someone with a strong body constitution extract external wind-cold he/she present with an excessive syndrome we call exterior excessive syndrome with absence of sweating This syndrome can be treated by Gui Zhi combined with Ma Huang (Herba Ephedrae) we've learned previously for example, Ma Huang Tang (Ephedra Decoction) If someone with a weak constitution extract external wind-cold he/she may present with sweating we call an exterior deficient syndrome with sweating This syndrome needs to be treated by inducing sweating to remove the pathogenic wind-cold and at the same time avoid too much sweating What shall we do We can use Gui Zhi and Bai Shao (Radix Paeoniae Alba) for example, Gui Zhi Tang (Cinammon Twig Decoction) It can be seen that for exterior wind-cold syndrome Gui Zhi can be used for both exterior excessive and exterior deficient syndromes This is the first aspect of Gui Zhi in warming and unblocking The second aspect is warming and unblocking meridians Warming is directed at cold unblocking is directed at block or obstruction Block or obstruction of what block or obstruction of meridians What caused the block or obstruction of meridians Pathogenic cold What are the main clinical manifestations It's known to all that in Chinese medicine cold causes pain Pain in which parts of the body Pain along the pathways of meridians We can say that since Gui Zhi is pungent in flavor and warm in property it can dissipate cold and unblock meridians and can therefore be used to treat all kinds of pain due to cold retention in meridians For example, dysmenorrhea joint pain low back pain and abdominal pain can all be treated with Gui Zhi This is the second aspect The third aspect is especially related to its function in warming and unblocking heart yang We know that the major function of the heart is to circulate blood The circulation of blood is associated with heart yang Insufficiency of heart yang may comproise its ability to warm and pumb blood further leading to chest tightness or chest pain known as chest-Bi impediment (cardiac pain) Gui Zhi can warm and unblock heart yang, dissipate cold and alleviate pain The 4th and 5th aspects are actually two sides of the same issue Gui Zhi can warm and unblock blood or body fluids We all know that both blood and body fluids are yin in nature They need to circulate to function normally and their circulation depends on the warming function of yang qi in orther words, they need to be pumped and activated by yang qi Insufficiency of yang qi may cause stagnant blood further forming masses in Chinese medicine i.e., tangible masses or tangible lumps for example, uterine firbroids. Now we have a formula that mainly contains Gui Zhi Gui Zhi Fu Ling Wan (Cinnamon Twig and Poria Pill) for this condition Body fluids that cannot circulate normally may retain in the body and result in edema We have a basic formula for edema Wu Ling San (Five Substances Powder with Poria) also containing Gui Zhi Retention of body fluids may also result in phlegm-fluid We have a basic formula for fluid retention Ling Gui Zhu Gan Tang (Poria, Cinnamon Twig, Atractylodes Macrocephala and Licorice Decoction) of which the 'gui' here refers to Gui Zhi Consequently, we can see that the distinctive feature of Gui Zhi lies in warming and unblocking It can warm and unblock both exterior and interior both qi and blood can tonify and unblock This is another reason that we say Gui Zhi can be used to treat a hundred diseases It really deserves your attention and that's why I introduce it as the first precious Chinese herb So much for Gui Zhi Next, I'd like to introduce another herb Da Huang (Radix et Rhizoma Rhei) I believe that many of you have known that it is a herb for promoting bowel movements However, it is far more than promoting bowel movements Indeed, Da Huang has many functions Judging from its name... Da Huang "huang' refers to its yellow color the first word 'Da' has two meanings (1) this herb is dark-yellow in color (2) it also refers to its strong effects which can be explained from its another name the general or Chuan Jun (Sichuan General) This name indicates the strong effect of Da Huang Its other names are not so commonly used in clinical prescriptions we only need to get a general understanding about these names As a representative herb to promote bowel movements in terms of its flavor Da Huang is bitter and bitterness can clear and purge it is cold in nature what about its cold nature cold can clear heat Its meridian tropism seems complicated it enters the spleen, stomach, large intestine, liver and heart meridians involving 5 meridians However, upon analysis it mainly involves two aspects (1) it's associated with food digestion, absorption and discharge the spleen, stomach and large intestine meridians (2) it's associated with blood circulation the heart and liver meridians It also seems that Da Huang has many functions, including promoting bowel movements, clearing heat, cooling blood removing toxins, resolving dampness and circulating blood however, upon analysis all functions focus on one point which can be expressed by a Chinese idiom called bring forth the new through getting rid of the old Let's take a look at how it brings forth the new through getting rid of the old As for 'getting rid of the old' (1) it promotes bowel movements I dont' have to explain this any more from its functions we just say that it's known to all that Da Huang acts to promote bowel movements It has strong effects and has been extensive used in constipation or difficulty passing stools But I want to mention a couple of points here regarding its function in promoting bowel movements. Da Huang has two names in prescription: one is Sheng Da Huang (Radix et Rhizoma Rhei Recens) the other is Zhi Da Huang (Radix et Rhizoma Rhei Praeparata) You have to be clear that Sheng Da Huang is used for promoting bowel movements Secondly, in terms of its usage the effective component of Da Huang (in promoting bowel movements) is not resistant to high temperature As a result, it's not advisable to decoct for a long period of time and often add to the decoction later or even do not decoct at all instead, just soak in boiling water for a couple of minutes and then drink it Number 3 you also need to be clear about its reactions after taking Da Huang half an hour or an hour most patients may present with increased bowel sounds increased intestinal peristalsis or even abdominal pain and then the urge to go to the bathroom After the bowel movement the abdominal pain subdues Although this is just a mild normal reaction you have to inform the patients In addition because of its dark-yellow color the discharges and secretions also appear yellow For example, if someone easily sweats if he/she wears a light-colored shirt the shirt can be yellow staining. So you need to tell the patients in advance otherwise they can be scared how come I have yellow sweats This is normal Also, you cannot keep using Da Huang for promoting bowel movements otherwise patients may have dependence We often say stop using medicine when the disease is controlled especially Da Huang can have one side effect black stools consequenlty you cannot use it in large dose or for long and you cannot use it for those with diarrhea and loose stools So much for the function of Da Huang in promoting bowel movements its second function lies in clearing heat What about 'getting rid of the old" What kind of 'old' Removing pathogenic fire-heat Here it can be used to treat fire-heat syndromes For example, it can clear heat and reduce fire Symptoms such as headache, restlessness, fever and redness, swelling and pain of the eyes can be effectively treated with Da Huang It can directly clear fire-heat and remove fire-heat through the bowel movements We call this 'take away the firewood from under the cauldron' Also, it clears heat and removes toxins and can be used to treat toxic-heat problems What's its characteristic in this regard It can be used to treat toxin heat in internal organs such as intestinal abscesses skin problems likes sores or ulcerations Finally it can be used to treat jaundice due to damp-heat We need to be aware that Da Huang has a long history and remarkable effect in the treatment of jaundice We known that Zhang Zhong-jing has a special formula for jaundice called Yin Chen Hao Tang (Virgate Wormwood Decoction) containing three herbs Yin Chen (Herba Artemisiae Scopariae), Da Huang (Radix et Rhizoma Rhei) and Zhi Zi (Fructus Gardeniae) Here Da Huang has two functions (1) it direclty removes heat and resolves dampness (2) it removes heat and resolves dampness through the bowel movements We call this to open an exit for pathogenic factors (damp-heat) Its No 3 function is to clear heat and cool blood and so it can be used to treat bleeding due to blood-heat Actually modern studies have found that Da Huang has good effect for acute upper digestive tract bleeding. Its last function lies in its second aspect in 'getting rid of the old' resolving blood stasis or to circulate blood and resolve stasis Da Huang can be used to treat a variety of stagnant blood syndromes including gynecology and obstetrics internal medicine traumatic injuries, etc As a result, the indications of Da Huang can be summarized into three asepcts (1) constipation (2) heat syndrome (3) blood syndrome We dont' have to explain these points any more Da Huang is very valuable in current clinical application In addition to the aforementioned conditions it has also been found to be effective for high blood fat high blood viscosity and obesity In this session, I mainly introduced two herbs one is Gui Zhi the other is Da Huang
