Pinyin: Zhi Zi  Chinese: 栀子
Pharmaceutical: Fructus Gardeniae
Taxonomy: Gardenia jasminoides
English: Gardenia Fruit

Tastes: Bitter and cold
Meridians Entered: Heart, Liver, Stomach and Lung

Actions & Indications:

1. Clears Heat, reduces Fire and eliminates irritability in the San Jiao
   Excess Heat in the Heart, Stomach and Liver with high fever, irritability, restlessness, a stifling sensation in the chest, insomnia or delirious speech, eye problems, anger, jaundice
2. Clears Heat and resolves Dampness (Drains Damp-Heat)
   Damp-Heat in the Lower Jiao with painful urinary dysfunction (Lin Syndrome)
   Damp-Heat in the Liver/Gallbladder with jaundice
   Damp-Heat in the San Jiao
   Damp-Heat in the Gallbladder and San Jiao channels of the face affecting the nose and eyes or causing sores in the mouth or facial region
3. Cools the Blood and relieves toxicity (stops bleeding by astringing)
   Heat in the Blood with epistaxis, hematemesis, hemafecia or hematuria (partially charred)
4. Reduces swelling and invigorates the Blood
   Blood Stagnation due to trauma (topical)

Standard Dosage: 5-15g in decoction.
Cautions: Being strongly bitter in flavor and cold in nature, it is not good for deficiency-cold syndrome because it can easily impair spleen and stomach. It is contraindicated in case of loose stool due to spleen deficiency.

Pinyin: Dan Dou Chi  Chinese: 淡豆豉
Pharmaceutical: Semen Sojae Preparatum
Taxonomy: Glycine max
English: Fermented Soybean

Tastes: Pungent, bitter and cool
Meridians Entered: Lung and Stomach

Actions & Indications:

1. Releases the Exterior
   Wind-Cold or Wind-Heat
   Yin Deficiency with superimposed Exterior disorders
2. Eliminates irritability, harmonizes the Middle Jiao and relieves stuffy sensations in the chest
   Irritability, restlessness, insomnia, stifling sensations in the chest and insomnia following a febrile disease

Standard Dosage: 10-15g in decoction.

Pinyin: Ge Gen  Chinese: 葛根
Pharmaceutical: Radix Puerariae
Taxonomy: Pueraria lobata
English: Kudzu Vine Root

Tastes: Sweet, pungent, cool
Meridians Entered: Lung, Spleen and Stomach

Actions & Indications:

1. Discharges Exterior conditions and releases the muscles, especially of the neck and upper back
   Wind-Heat or Wind-Cold lodged in the muscles of the upper back and neck
2. Relieves Heat and generates fluids (relieves thirst)
   Thirst due to Stomach Heat or Wind-Heat or Wasting and Thirsting
3. Vents and discharges measles
   Measles with incomplete expression of the rash
4. Raises Spleen Yang and stops diarrhoea
   Diarrhoea or dysentery due to Heat
   Diarrhoea due to Spleen Deficiency (with appropriate herbs)
5. Lowers blood pressure
   Hypertension symptoms such as headache, dizziness, tinnitus or paresthesia

Standard Dosage: 3-10g in decoction.

Pinyin: Huang Qin  Chinese: 黄芩
Pharmaceutical: Radix Scutellariae baicalensis
Taxonomy: Scutellaria baicalensis
English: Baical Skullcap Root

Tastes: Bitter, cold
Meridians Entered: Lung, Stomach, Gallbladder, Large Intestine and Bladder

Actions & Indications:

1. Clears Heat and dries Dampness
   Damp-Heat in the Stomach or Intestines with diarrhoea or dysenteric disorder
   Damp-Warmth with fever, a stifling sensation in the chest and thirst with no desire to drink
   Damp-Heat in the Lower Jiao with painful urinary dysfunction
   Damp-Heat jaundice (auxiliary), infectious hepatitis
2. Drains Fire and detoxifies
   Heat and Fire especially in the Upper Jiao (Lung) with high fever, irritability, thirst, cough and expectoration of thick, yellow sputum
   Upper respiratory tract infection
   Hot sores and swellings (topical or internal)
3. Cools the Blood and stops bleeding
   Xue Stage Heat or Blood Heat causing bleeding with epistaxis, hemoptysis, hematemesis and hemafecia
4. Clears Heat and calms the fetus
   Fetal restlessness due to Heat
5. Calms ascending Liver Yang
   Liver Yang Rising with headache, irritability, red eyes, flushed face and bitter taste
   Hypertension (high blood pressure)
   Gallbladder Heat

Standard Dosage: 5-15g in decoction.

Pinyin: Huang Lian  Chinese: 黄连
Pharmaceutical: Rhizoma Coptidis
Taxonomy: Coptidis chinensis
English: Coptis Rhizome / Goldthread Rhizome

Tastes: Bitter, cold
Meridians Entered: Heart, Stomach, Large Intestine and Liver

Actions & Indications:

1. Clears Heat and drains Dampness
   Damp-Heat in the Stomach or Intestines with diarrhoea or dysenteric disorder
   Stomach Heat with vomiting and/or acid regurgitation
2. Drains Fire and resolves Fire toxicity
   Heat with Blazing Fire (Toxic Heat) with high fever. irritability, disorientation, delirium, a red tongue and a rapid, full pulse
   Heat from Excess with toxicity: painful, red eyes and a sore throat
   Boils, carbuncles and abscesses (Chuang Yung)
3. Clears Heat and stops bleeding
   Blood Heat with epistaxis, hematuria, hemafecia and hemoptysis
4. Clears Heat topically
   Infected wounds, red and painful eyes, ulcerations of the tongue and mouth (topical)
5. Clears Heart Fire (sedative)
   Heart Fire
   Lack of communication between the Heart and Kidneys
6. Drains Stomach Fire
   Stomach Fire
7. Aids fasting
   Mentioned in the Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing as part of the superior class of herbs which can, with protracted taking, improve memory. This may suggest it was part of supplementing the diet when engaging in an "avoiding grain" (Bigu 辟穀) fasting regime to cultivate life (Yangsheng 養生).

Standard Dosage: 2-10g in decoction.
Cautions: It is contraindicated for deficiency-cold syndrome. Because its taste is extremly bitter and dryness, overdosage and long-time taking will impair spleen and stomach, yin and fluids.

Pinyin: Mu Dan Pi  Chinese: 牡丹皮
Pharmaceutical: Cortex radicis Moutan
Taxonomy: Paeonia suffruticosa
English: Tree Peony Root Bark / Moutan Peony Root Bark

Tastes: Bitter, pungent, light cold
Meridians Entered: Heart, Liver and Kidney

Actions & Indications:

1. Clears Heat and cools (and harmonizes) the Blood
   Xue Stage Heat with epistaxis, hemoptysis, hematemesis or subcutaneous bleeding
   Menorrhagia due to Blood Heat
2. Clears Deficiency Fire
   Yin Deficiency Heat signs especially in the aftermath of Warm Febrile Disease with fever at night and coolness in the morning (most appropriate when the is no sweating)
3. Invigorates the Blood and dispels Blood Stasis
   Blood Stasis with amenorrhea, abdominal masses, lumps or bruises due to trauma
   Liver Blood Stagnation
4. Clears Liver Fire
   Liver Fire with headache, eye pain, flank pain, flushing and dysmenorrhea
5. Drains pus and reduces swelling
   Non-draining sores (topical)
   Intestinal abscesses (internal)

Standard Dosage: 6-12g in decoction.
Cautions: It is contraindicated in cases of profuse menstruation and pregnant women.

Pinyin: Jie Geng  Chinese: 桔梗
Pharmaceutical: Radix Platycodi
English: Balloon Flower Root

Tastes: Bitter, pungent, neutral
Meridians Entered: Lung

Actions & Indications:

1. Opens the Lungs, spreads Lung Qi, expels Phlegm and benefits the throat
   Cough due to Wind-Cold or Wind-Heat (with profuse sputum, sore throat, loss of voice)
   Loss of voice or sore throat due to external Heat, Phlegm Heat or Yin Deficiency Heat
2. Expels pus
   Lung or throat abscess (Phlegm and Qi Stagnation) with fevers, chest pain, coughing of yellow sputum with a fishy smell and hemoptysis
3. Opens and raises Lung Qi, directing the effects of other herbs to the upper body
   Reinforces the actions of the other herbs and focuses the formula on the upper body
4. Expels Gu Toxins
   Vomiting blood due to Gu-Toxins (with Gan Cao; in the Soushen Ji, Record of Searching for Spirits; Wilcox, 2024).

Standard Dosage: 3-10g in decoction.
Cautions: Overdose can cause nausea and vomiting.

Pinyin: Gan Cao  Chinese: 甘草
Pharmaceutical: Radix Glycyrrhizae
Taxonomy: Glycyrrhiza uralensis seu glabra seu inflata
English: Liquorice Root

Tastes: Sweet, slightly cold
Meridians Entered: Heart, Lung and Spleen (and all 12 meridians)

Actions & Indications:

1. Tonifies the Spleen and augments Qi
   Spleen Qi Deficiency with shortness of breath, lassitude and loose stools
   Qi and Blood Deficiency with an irregular pulse and/or palpitations
   Heart Qi Deficiency or Heart Yang Deficiency
2. Moistens the Lungs, resolves Phlegm and stops coughing
   Lung Heat or Cold
   Productive or non-productive coughing
3. Moderates spasms and alleviates pain
   Painful muscle spasms of the abdomen and legs
4. Clears Heat and relieves Fire Toxicity
   Raw for Toxic Heat with sore throat or carbuncles and sores (Chuang Yung)
5. Antidote for many toxic substances (internal and topical)
   Poisoning
   Bites (after washing the wound, chew Gan Cao and apply a thick layer on the bite wound, changing whenever it dries out; Bao Xiang-Ao, 1846, New Compilation of Proven Formulas)
6. Moderates and harmonizes the harsh properties of other herbs and guides the herbs to all twelve channels
   Often added in small doses to harmonise formulas
7. Tonifies the Qi while suppressing Parasites
   Gu Sydnrome (Fruehauf, 1998)
   Chronic inflammatory disease (Fruehauf, 2015)
8. Aids fasting
   Mentioned in the Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing as part of the superior class of herbs which can, with protracted taking, make the body light and prolong life. This may suggest it was part of supplementing the diet when engaging in an "avoiding grain" (Bigu 辟穀) fasting regime to cultivate life (Yangsheng 養生).

Standard Dosage: Typically 1.5-9g in decoction. Large doses can be up 30g.
Cautions: It is contraindicated for combining with Hai Zao, Da Ji, Gan Sui and Yuan Hua because of "eighteen antagonisms". It is also contraindicated in cases of dampness obstruction in middle energizer and edema because it can help dampness obstruct qi, and it is prohibited from long-term usage in large dosage (more than 20g/day) and should be avoided or used with extreme caution in patients with high blood pressure because it may raise aldosterone levels in the blood causing retention of sodium.

The NHS recommends avoiding during pregnancy.