Properties: Acric, warm, toxic

Meridans Entered:
Primary: Lung, Stomach, Large Intestine, Heart, Spleen, Liver and Kidneys

1. Moves Qi and relieves pain
   Food stagnation
   Qi bind pain
2. Resolves toxins and kills worms
   Welling abscesses and flat abscesses, clove sore, scab and lichen
   Snake bite, dog bite
3. Warms the Zangfu, strengthens the Original Yang and expels Yin Evils
   Sinew and Bone pain from Yin Evils in the Exterior
   Abdominal distention, swelling, masses and pain, loss of appetite, vomiting, retching, Sudden Turmoil Disorder or rectal prolapse from Interior Deficiency Cold or Sinking Yang

Suggested Daily Dosage: Usually smoked in 0.5-1g doses. May also be chewed, or applied externally as a paste or fumigation.

Cautions: Should be avoided completely in pregnancy, by the young or very old and those with health concerns. Highly addictive and long term use can cause chronic obstructive pulmonary disorders, cardiovascular diseases and lung cancer. In addition nicotine can be poisonous in large doses so caution must be taken if adding to food or decoctions to avoid overdose.

Traditional contraindications are in those with Yang Abundance, Dryness and Fire because of its Yang nature, or Qi Deficiency with shortness of breath and copious sweating because its dispersing action can dissipate Qi (Zhang Jiebin, 1640). Zhao Xuemin (1755) also thought that it engendered bugs (蟲 Chong) in the abdomen which causes them to crave tobacco and the Zangfu to decay, leading to death and recommended tofu cooked with dark brown sugar inserted into holes made with a chopstick to make the bugs descend with the stool.

• Nicotine
  Principle alkaloid responsible for the stimulatory effect on the central nervous system and its addictive qualities.

Notes:

Zhang Jiebin (1640) wrote that when inhaling tobacco, the breath should descend to the Lower Jiao where it can rise to warm the Heart and Lungs, and descend to warm the Liver, Spleen and Kidneys, make the Original Yang robust and produces a mild sweat. Externally, this can expel Yin Evils, Cold Toxins and Wind-Damp Evils obstructing the pores causing Sinew and Bone pain. Internally, it strengthens the Stomach Qi, increases appetite, dispels Cold Stagnation and Yin Turbidity, disperses Drum Distension and Food Stagnation, stops vomiting, retching and Sudden Turmoil Disorder, eliminates accumulations, gatherings and all kinds of worms, resolves constraint, stops pain and moves collected Qi and Blood Stasis, raises the sunken in rectal prolapse, frees the San Jiao, and produces immediate results (Wilcox, 2025)