Properties: Pungent, neutral, extremely cold
Meridans Entered:
Primary: Liver, Heart and Lung
Traditional Actions/Indications:
- Induce tranquilization and relieve convulsion
Palpitations
Epilepsy
Insanity (Dian Kuang), insomnia
Suggested Daily Dosage: Made into pills.
Cautions: It is forbidden to refine it into powder when using as medicine.
The body has no known need or use for silver in any form. Too much accumulation in the body can cause blue/grey discoloration of skin called argyria, which is a nonreversible condition. Renal, neurological and hepatic complications may also be caused by ingesting silver. Some people are allergic to silver.
Notes:
In Chinese alchemy it was believed that metals could be refined from lead into silver and silver into gold, thus giving rise to the ideas in internal alchemy of refining lead into gold to create the Golden Elixir of Immortality (Shuttleworth, 2010).
Does not appear in any formulae listed on this site
Research Links & References: (click to display)
Research Links:
Reference Notes:
Individual herb information has sourced mainly from TCM Wiki and American Dragon for basic data and then updated manually with my own notes. Zhou, Xie and Yan (2011): Encyclopedia of Traditional Chinese Medicines, Vol. 5, and A+ Medical Encyclopaedia have been used for entries not available from those sources with additional material searched for and filled in where available. Western herbs not appearing in the Chinese literature have used Ross (2010): Combining Western Herbs and Chinese Medicine: A Clinical Materia Medica, White Rabbit Institute of Healing and therapeutika.ch. Choices of which source to use or combine have been my own.
These pages are intended to assist clinicians and are not intended for self-diagnosis or treatment for which a qualified professional should be consulted. Actions and indications are taken from traditional uses and do not necessarily reflect the evidence base which should be researched independently. Dosages are for guidance only and will vary dependening on the potency of the batch and the tolerance of the individual so should be evaluated by a professional based on individual needs.
