Pinyin: Ma Huang  Chinese: 麻黄
Pharmaceutical: Herba Ephedrae
Taxonomy: Ephedra sinica seu intermedia seu equisetina
English: Ephedra Stem / Joint Pine / Joint Fir / Mormon Tea / Brigham Tea

Tastes: Pungent, slightly bitter, warm
Meridians Entered: Lung and Bladder

Actions & Indications:

1. Induces sweating and releases the Exterior
   Taiyang Stage Wind-Cold Invasion of the Lung, with anhidrosis, chills, fever, headache and a tight, floating pulse
2. Disseminates and facilitates Lung Qi, calms wheezing and stops coughing
   Wind-Cold Obstructs Lung Qi
3. Promotes urination and reduces oedema
   Externally generated oedema
4. Warms and disperses Cold pathogens
   Wind-Cold Bi
   Cold extremities (Reynaud's disease)
5. Breaks up concretions, firmness, accumulations and gatherings (Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing)
   Yin sores that are firm, deeply rooted and without a head

Standard Dosage: 1.5-9g in decoction to release the exterior, and 10-15g for the treatment of oedema. Maximum dose is 20g. Toxic dose is considered to be 30-45g but side effects and risks are possible at any dosage.
Cautions: It is prohibited to be used for patients with deficient dyspnea without blockage of the lung qi and should be used with caution for patients with hypertension and insomnia because ephedrine can stimulate central nervous system and raise blood pressure. The Shang Han Lun recommends removing the nodes and decocting Ma Huang first, scooping the foam from the top of the decoction. It has been argued this is to reduce the "vexing" effects although the efficacy of this is debated and rarely done today.

It should not be used in conjunction with MAOIs, central nervous system stimulants, alkaloids ergotamines and xanthines enhancing their effects by acting as a receptor level agonist.

In the UK the maximum daily dose permitted without prescription is 1.8g daily in three 0.6g doses. This makes it difficult to achieve a pharmacologically active effect and must be complemented with other herbs that release the exterior and expel Wind-Cold such as Gui Zhi, Jing Jie, Fang Feng and Zi Su Ye.

Huang Hua Zi (Sida cordifolia), more common in Ayurveda where it is known as Bala बला, also contains ephedrine at lower concentrations and has no legal restrictions placed on it by the UK MHRA. It is considered more cooling, Heat clearing and Damp draining without Exterior Releasing properties in Chinese medicine so best used as a substitute in Warm Diseases, especially Damp-Warm Disease, or supplemented with increased warm Exterior Releasing herbs like those described above.

Pinyin: Xing Ren  Chinese: 杏仁
Pharmaceutical: Semen armeniacae
Taxonomy: Prunus armeniaca seu mandshurica seu sibirica
English: Bitter Apricot Kernel

Tastes: Bitter, slightly warm, slightly toxic
Meridians Entered: Lung and Large Intestine

Actions & Indications:

1. Stops coughing and calms wheezing
   Coughs due to either Heat or Cold (depending on combination) Wind-Dry coughs (especially useful)
2. Moistens the Intestines and unblocks the bowels
   Constipation

Standard Dosage: 3-10g in decoction.
Cautions: It should not be overused for its slight toxicity. It should be used with cautions for infants and patients with diarrhea.

Pinyin: Shi Gao  Chinese: 石膏
Pharmaceutical: Gypsum Fibrosum / Calcium Sulphate
Taxonomy: CaSO₄
English: Gypsum / Plaster of Paris

Tastes: Pungent, sweet, cold
Meridians Entered: Lung and Stomach

Actions & Indications:

1. Clears Heat in the Qi Stage, drains Fire, relieves irritability and quenches thirst
   Heat in the Qi Stage or Yangming Heat with high fever, no chills, irritability, intense thirst, profuse sweating, restlessness, encephalitis, a flooding, big pulse and a red tongue with a yellow coat
2. Clears Excess Heat from the Lungs
   Lung Heat with cough, wheezing, fever and a thick viscous sputum
3. Clears Blazing Stomach Fire
   Stomach Fire with headache, toothache or swollen gums
4. Heals eczema, burns and ulcerated sores and wounds
   Sores and wounds (topically or internally)

Standard Dosage: 15-60g in decoction.
Cautions: 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.

Conventional replacements include Huang Lian and Zhi Mu but its actions are difficult to substitute in many cases and the patient may have to rely on OTC mineral based antacids from the pharmacy such as sodium bicarbonate and calcium carbonate which have a similar effect of binding and neutralising the stomach acid, then using herbal medicines as an adjunctive treatment. Another possibility would be to use sodium alginate that is often found in antacid medications and extracted from seaweed.

Pinyin: Yi Yi Ren  Chinese: 薏苡仁
Pharmaceutical: Semen Coicis
Taxonomy: Coix lacryma-jobi
English: Job's Tears / Chinese Pearl Barley

Tastes: Sweet, Bland, Slightly Cold
Meridians Entered: Spleen, Stomach and Lung

Actions & Indications:

1. Strengthens the Spleen and resolves Dampness
   Dampness Stagnation or Spleen Deficiency Dampness with diarrhoea, leg Qi, painful urinary dribbling
   Damp-Warmth (treats root and manifestations)
2. Expels Wind-Dampness and relieves pain
   Wind-Damp Bi (increases joint mobility and decreases spasms in chronic cases) for stiffness of the muscles, severe arthralgia and joint immobility
3. Clears Heat and expels pus
   Soft, pustulated carbuncles, Lung and Intestinal abscess
4. Clears Damp-Heat
   Any Damp-Heat condition at any level with a greasy, white tongue coat and digestive problems
5. 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 boost the Qi. 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). At ~70% carbohydrates (Zhu, 2017), this would represent one important source of of this nutrient class which could be had in the amounts that could be foraged, as opposed to farmed, to maintain this kind of diet long term. Its root is also suggested to expel the Three Worms.

Standard Dosage: 9-30g in decoction.

Pinyin: Cang Zhu  Chinese: 蒼朮
Pharmaceutical: Rhizoma Atractylodes
Taxonomy: Atractylodes lancea seu chinensis seu japonica
English: Black Atractylodes / Gray Atractylodes / Sword-like Atractylodes root

Tastes: Pungent, bitter, warm
Meridians Entered: Spleen, Lung and Liver

Actions & Indications:

1. Strongly dries Dampness and tonifies the Spleen
   Dampness Obstructing the Middle Jiao and blocking transformative and transportive functions of the Spleen with anorexia, diarrhoea, epigastric distention and pressure, fatigue, nausea and vomiting and a thick, greasy tongue coat
2. Induces sweating and expels Wind-Dampness
   Wind-Cold Dampness and Wind-Dampness with chills and fever, headache, body aches and nasal congestion
   Painful extremities due to Wind-Damp Bi
3. Clears Dampness from the Lower Jiao
   Damp-Heat Pouring Downward with Leg Qi, some forms of atrophy disorders, vaginal discharge, swollen, sore joints
4. Improves vision
   Night blindness and diminished vision with a rough sensation in the eyes
5. Repels Ghosts
   "Strange diseases 奇病" that involve seeing ghosts
6. 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, prolong life and make one free from hunger. 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: 5-10g in decoction.

Pinyin: Huo Xiang  Chinese: 藿香
Pharmaceutical: Herba Pogostemonis seu Agastaches
Taxonomy: Pogostemon cablin seu Agastache rugosa
English: Patchouli / Korean Mint

Tastes: Pungent, slightly warm
Meridians Entered: Spleen, Stomach and Lung

Actions & Indications:

1. Aromatically transforms Dampness, releases the Exterior and dispels Summerheat (transforms turbidity)
   Turbid Dampness Obstructing the Middle Jiao
   Summer Heat-Dampness, Damp-Warmth or Wind-Dampness
2. Harmonizes the Middle Jiao and stops vomiting
   Nausea or vomiting due to Dampness Obstructing the Middle Jiao
   Other types of vomiting, and morning sickness when combined with appropriate herbs
3. Treats dermatosis and fungal infection
   Dermatosis and fungal infections affecting either the hands or feet

Standard Dosage: 5-10g in decoction.

Pinyin: Qing Hao  Chinese: 青蒿
Pharmaceutical: Herba Artemisiae Annuae
Taxonomy: Artemisia Annua
English: Sweet Wormwood

Tastes: Bitter, pungent, cold
Meridians Entered: Liver, Gallbladder and Kidney

Actions & Indications:

1. Clears Summerheat or Damp-Heat
   Summerheat with low fever, headache, dizziness and a stifling sensation in the chest
2. Clears Deficiency fevers
   Blood Deficiency or Yin Deficiency fevers
   Sequelae of a febrile disease
   Especially good when steaming bone patterns are marked by anhidrosis
3. Cools the Blood and stops bleeding
   Purpuric rashes or epistaxis due to Blood Heat
4. Stops malarial disorders and relieves Heat
   Malarial disorders with alternating chills and fever
5. Clears Liver Heat and brightens the eyes
   Liver Yang Rising with red eyes, dizziness and photophobia
6. Kills Parasites and expels Ghosts and Demons
   Gu Sydnrome (Fruehauf, 1998)
   Chronic inflammatory disease (Fruehauf, 2015)
   Around 1^st century BCE, it's fragrance was used ritually to mask the smell of the dead (Liu et al., 2013), where it may have earned its ability to treat ghost possession and then other lingering pathogens with perceived supernatural origins.

Standard Dosage: 6-12g in decoction.

Pinyin: Hu Zhang  Chinese: 虎杖
Pharmaceutical: Rhizoma Polygoni cuspidati
Taxonomy: Polygonum cuspidatum
English: Japanese Knotweed Root

Tastes: Bitter and cold
Meridians Entered: Liver, Gallbladder and Lung

Actions & Indications:

1. Invigorates the Blood, dispels Blood Stasis, unblocks the channels and stops pain
   Amenorrhea due to Blood Stasis
   Wind-Damp Bi
   Traumatic injury
2. Clears Heat and resolves Dampness
   Damp-Heat jaundice
   Turbid vaginal discharge
   Turbid, painful urinary dysfunction
3. Discharges toxins and disperses swelling
   Toxic skin conditions, burns and carbuncles
4. Drains Heat, transforms Phlegm and stops cough
   Lung Heat cough
   Constipation due to clumping of Heat

Standard Dosage: 9-15g in decoction.
Cautions: It is contraindicated for pregnant women.

Caution should also be taken if growing or wild foraging as careless harvesting can encourage propagation which is illegal in the UK due to the extreme invasive nature and damage to property values and biodiversity that this plant can do.

Pinyin: Ma Bian Cao  Chinese: 馬鞭草
Pharmaceutical: Herba Verbenae
Taxonomy: Verbena officianalis
English: Verbena / Vervain

Tastes: Bitter, cool
Meridians Entered: Liver and Spleen

Actions & Indications:

1. Invigorates the Blood, reduces abdominal masses, cools the Blood and unblocks the menses
   Dysmenorrhea or amenorrhea due to Blood Stasis
   Abdominal masses (can be used as a stand-alone herb in decoction chased by warm wine)
2. Clears Heat and resolves toxicity
   Severe sore throat, throat Bi, and other accumulations of Heat toxin including breast abscess (use the macerated fresh herb)
3. Facilitates urination and check malarial disorders
   Internal blockage of Dampness with oedema or ascites
   Malarial disorders (use the fresh juice)
4. Promotes urination and reduces oedema
   Edema, ascites and water accumulation during the later stages of parasitic infections

Standard Dosage: 15-30g in decoction.
Cautions: It is contraindicated to pregnant women.

Pinyin: Lu Gen  Chinese: 芦根
Pharmaceutical: Rhizoma Phragmitis
English: Reed Rhizome

Tastes: Sweet and cold
Meridians Entered: Lung and Stomach

Actions & Indications:

1. Clears Heat and irritability from the Lungs and Stomach and generates fluids
   Internal Heat patterns with high fever, irritability and thirst, dry mouth and throat.
   Lung Heat (especially when acute) , Lung carbuncle, Lung abscess
2. Clears Stomach Heat, regulates Stomach Qi, relieves thirst and stops vomiting
   Stomach Heat (especially when accompanied by rebellious Qi)
3. Clears Heat and promotes urination
   Dark, scanty urine and hematuria especially when accompanied by irritability and thirst
4. Vents rashes
   Wind-Heat rashes that are not completely expressed
5. Relieves food poisoning
   Relieves food poisoning due to ingestion of fish and crabs
   Alcohol poisoning

Standard Dosage: 15-30g in decoction.

Pinyin: Ting Li Zi  Chinese: 葶苈子
Pharmaceutical: Semen Lepidii
English: Pepperweed Seed

Tastes: Bitter, pungent, extremely cold
Meridians Entered: Lung and Bladder

Actions & Indications:

1. Drains the Lungs, reduces Phlegm and calms wheezing
   Phlegm accumulation or Lung Heat with wheezing or cough with copious sputum and a gurgling sound in the throat
2. Circulates water and reduces oedema
   Lung and Bladder Qi Obstruction with facial oedema, or fluid accumulation in the chest or abdomen with urinary difficulty

Standard Dosage: 3-10g in decoction.
Cautions: With strong action it can damage healthy qi, so it is fit for excess syndromes. It should be used with cautions for lung qi deficiency cough and spleen deficiency edema.

Pinyin: Hua Ju Hong  Chinese: 化橘红
Pharmaceutical: Exocarpium Citri Grandis
Taxonomy: Citrus Gradis
English: Pomelo Peel

Tastes: Pungent, bitter, warm
Meridians Entered: Lung and Spleen

Actions & Indications:

1. Moves Qi and soothes the Middle Jiao, dried Dampness and resolves Phlegm
   Cough due ot Phlegm-Damp or Cold-Phlegm
   Nausea and chest stuffiness due to Food Stagnation

Standard Dosage: 3-10g in decoction.

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.