Properties: None given

Meridans Entered:
Primary: None given

1. Fortifies Qi and Blood; builds flesh
   Consumption (癆瘵 Laozhai)

Suggested Daily Dosage: Mainly mentioned in the descriptions of cannibals of earlier times with no prescription information, but Yu (2012) describes cutting small slices of flesh from one's own thigh and mixing it with congee to aid the recovery of sick, elderly parents.

Notes:

Li Shi-Zhen strongly criticises the use of this drug and provides no prescriptions but recalls Chen Cangqi's Bencao Shiyi and Tao Jiucheng's Chuogeng Lu (both 8th century) which cite the use of this drug.

This practice is also mentioned in Yu (2012, Sanctity and Self-Inflicted Violence in Chinese Religions, 1500-1700) where he writes of a custom of slicing the flesh of one's own thigh and mixing it with congee to feed to your elderly parents as a form of medicine. It was important that the parents did not know their child was doing this as the mechanism was one of sacrifice in the name of filial piety to earn the favour of heaven. Heaven would reward the sacrifice of the child, but to knowingly eat the flesh of one's child would be an abomination so the medicine had to be given in secret.