Pinyin: Hua Shi  Chinese: 滑石
Pharmaceutical: Talcum / Magnesium Silicate
Taxonomy: Mg₃Si₄O₁₀(OH)₂
English: Talc / Talcum Powder

Tastes: Sweet, bland and cold
Meridians Entered: Bladder, Lung and Stomach

Actions & Indications:

1. Promotes urination and drains Heat from the Urinary Bladder (aids the movement of gravel and stones), (expels Damp-Heat)
   Hot Painful Urinary Dysfunction (Lin Syndrome) with hot, painful urination, dark, painful, burning, scanty urine
   Damp-Heat diarrhoea
   Qi Level Heat with Dampness with unremitting fever, heavy feeling in the body, thirst, yellow tongue coat
2. Releases Summeheat and resolves Dampness
   Summerheat (fever, urinary difficulty, thirst)
3. Absorbs Dampness and clears Heat (topically)
   Damp skin lesions (eczema, damp sores, prickly heat)
4. Stops bleeding due to Heat
   Heat type bleeding
   Nosebleed, vomiting blood (taken internally) Bleeding from wounds and sores (topical)
5. Aids fasting
   Mentioned in the Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing as part of the superior class of minerals which can, with protracted taking, make the body light, free from hunger 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: 10-20g in decoction, or applied externally.
Cautions: Talc can cause granulomas in the rectum, vagina or wounds and prolonged external use has also been linked to ovarian (Wentzensen & O'Brien, 2021), stomach (Chang et al., 2020) and lung (Chang et al., 2017) cancer but other reviews contradict these findings (Goodman et al., 2020) suggesting this may only be an effect seen in rats (Prueitt et al., 2024). For safety it should therefore not be used for prolonged periods.

It should also not be in inhaled as it can cause lung irritation and remain in the body for up to 40 years (Johnson, 2021).

Mineral products are prohibited from use in the UK under the Medicines Act 1968 ch. 67 which restricts herbalists to the use of plant products only. It is generally substituted with Chi Fu Ling and Ze Xie.

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.

Pinyin: Bo He  Chinese: 薄荷
Pharmaceutical: Herba Menthae haplocalycis
Taxonomy: Mentha haplocalyx
English: Field Mint / Wild Mint

Tastes: Pungent, cool
Meridians Entered: Lung and Liver

Actions & Indications:

1. Disperses Wind-Heat, cools and clears the head and eyes and benefits the throat
   Wind-Heat with fever, cough, headache, red eyes and a sore throat
2. Vents rashes
   Early-stage rashes e.g. measles
3. Relieves Stagnation of Liver Qi
   Liver Qi Stagnation with pressure in the chest or flanks, emotional instability and gynecological problems
4. Expels turbid filth
   Exposure to unclean Qi in the Summertime leading to gastric distress with abdominal pain, vomiting. diarrhoea and a thick, yellow, greasy tongue coat
5. Releases the Exterior and Drives Out Snakes
   Chronic inflammatory disease (Fruehauf, 2015)
   One of the chief herbs for treating Gu Syndrome, along with Bai Zhi and Zi Su Ye, classed as "open the exterior with snake killing herbs" (Fruehauf, 1998).

Standard Dosage: 3-10g in decoction.