Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang is an ancient Chinese medicine recipe that originated from "Treatise on Febrile Diseases and Miscellaneous Diseases", written by Zhang Zhongjing, a famous physician in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. The book records in detail the diagnosis and treatment methods of various diseases, and Huanglian Donkey-hide Gelatin Soup is one of them.
This prescription is mainly used to treat the syndrome of Yin deficiency and fire excess, and restlessness in Shaoyin disease. Shaoyin disease refers to the pathological changes of the Shaoyin heart meridian of the hand and the Shaoyin kidney meridian of the foot. The efficacy of this prescription is to nourish Yin and reduce fire, eliminate restlessness and calm the mind. It has significant therapeutic effects on some common modern diseases such as neurasthenia, sleep disorders, schizophrenia, menopausal syndrome, etc.
Composition and explanation of Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang
Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang is made up of five herbs: Huanglian, Huangqin, Baishao, Donkey-hide Gelatin and Jizihuang. According to the theory of "monarch, minister, assistant and envoy" in traditional Chinese medicine, these herbs can be divided into the following groups:
Main drug : Coptis chinensis Coptis chinensis is bitter and cold, enters the heart meridian, and its main function is to clear away heat and purge fire. "Compendium of Materia Medica" records that it "purges heart fire", and is the main drug in the prescription, responsible for clearing heart fire.
Assistant medicine : Donkey-hide gelatin Donkey-hide gelatin is sweet and mild, nourishing blood and yin. "Compendium of Materia Medica" says that it "tonifies and moisturizes... nourishes the kidney and yin". When used together with Coptis chinensis, it can blend water and fire, relieve restlessness and calm the mind.
Adjuvants : Scutellaria baicalensis, White Peony Root Scutellaria baicalensis is bitter and cold, enters the heart meridian, and its main function is to clear away heat, purge fire, remove dampness and replenish blood. White Peony Root is sour and bitter, and its main function is to replenish blood and nourish yin. When used together with Scutellaria baicalensis, it can help Coptis chinensis nourish yin and reduce fire, eliminate restlessness and calm the mind.
Assistant drug : Chicken yolk Chicken yolk is sweet and mild, and enters the heart and kidney meridians. Its main function is to replenish yin and blood and relieve heat and toxicity. It is used in the prescription to relieve the excess of heart fire and replenish the deficiency of kidney water. It is combined with donkey- hide gelatin and white peony root to clear and replenish yin and blood, so as to restore the yin fluid that has been consumed and burned, and prevent the disadvantages of Lian and Qin from damaging the fluid due to their bitter and cold nature. Li Shizhen likened eggs to a miniature universe, with egg whites like the sky and egg yolks like the earth, symbolizing the balance of yin and yang, and containing the essence of heaven and earth. From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, eggs not only provide the human body with nutrients such as protein, but also have the effect of calming the mind and harmonizing the five internal organs, and can "calm the heart and the five internal organs, stop alarm and stabilize the fetus."
Pathogenesis of Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang
The pathogenesis of Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang mainly involves "Yin deficiency and excessive fire" and "heart-kidney disharmony" . In traditional Chinese medicine theory, the heart belongs to fire and the kidney belongs to water. Under normal circumstances, the heart fire should descend to the kidney to prevent the kidney water from being cold, while the kidney water should rise to the heart to restrain the heart fire from being too high. In this way, the heart and kidney can communicate, and water and fire can be balanced, maintaining the dynamic balance of the human body's organ activities.
If the heart fire is too strong, it will lead to insufficient kidney water. The heart fire cannot descend to the kidney, and the kidney water cannot rise to the heart, forming a state of "heart-kidney disharmony". In this case, the heart fire is high above, and the kidney water is deficient below. The more the fire is strong, the more the yin fluid is damaged, and the more the yin is deficient, the more the fire is fierce. This phenomenon is called " yin deficiency and fire is strong ", and it is manifested by dry mouth and throat, red tongue with little coating, and weak pulse .
These characteristics can be described in four words:
" Red " - red lips, red tongue, red skin, easy bleeding, bright red blood;
" Dry " - dry skin, dry hair, dry vagina, scanty menstruation;
" Annoyance " - Annoyance, insomnia, anxiety, depression, dizziness, and hot flashes;
" Count " - fast heartbeat, pulse rate.
These people are like dried red roses, beautiful but sick.
Later generations of doctors found that the tongue image of people who took Huanglian Ejiao Soup was an important indicator of the efficacy of this prescription. The tongue of these people is usually red with little coating, or bright red like a strawberry , sometimes accompanied by erosion, rupture, cracks on the tongue, dry and dry tongue surface, or mirror tongue, mottled coating, etc.
For example, Ye Tianshi's medical records mentioned "tongue color", "tongue red and dry" and other descriptions; Cao Renbo used this prescription to remove Scutellaria baicalensis and add Radix Rehmanniae to treat yin deficiency and peeling tongue coating; Mr. Liu Duzhou's medical records mentioned "tongue red like strawberry". Clinical observations found that the lips of these people were darker in color, dark red or dark red, like lipstick, dry and peeling, and sometimes painful and cracked.
Easy bleeding is also one of the characteristics of "Huanglian Ejiao Tang Syndrome". Huangqin and Ejiao can be used together to treat blood syndrome; Huanglian and Ejiao can be used together to treat red and white dysentery, which are recorded in "Qianjin Fang" and "Wai Tai Mi Yao". This prescription can stop bleeding, and later doctors have also confirmed this. "Zhang's Medical Tong" records the treatment of "red stool" and "Lei Ju Fang Guang Yi" records "treatment of various blood loss". Not only blood in the stool, but also bleeding in the lower part of the body, especially uterine bleeding, is also very common.
The efficacy of Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang
Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang is mainly used to treat the syndrome of yin deficiency and fire excess and restlessness in Shaoyin disease. Its main symptoms include heat in the heart, insomnia, dry mouth and throat, red tongue with little coating, and weak pulse. These symptoms are often seen in diseases such as neurasthenia, sleep disorders, schizophrenia, and menopausal syndrome in modern medicine.
Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang can not only be used to treat insomnia and upset, but also can be used to treat some bleeding diseases, such as hemorrhoidal bleeding, radiation enteritis bleeding, Crohn's disease, bacterial dysentery and intestinal bleeding caused by typhoid.
These bleeding problems often lead to anemia, but if accompanied by symptoms such as slippery pulse, irritability and oral ulcers, Huanglian Ejiao Tang is still a good choice. In addition, for some skin diseases, such as eczema, erythema and dry skin, this prescription can also be used if the skin is red and dry. These skin problems are usually more stubborn and conventional treatments are not effective, especially for those with dry and red skin, severe itching, accompanied by sleep disorders or easy fatigue, especially women.
The application scope of Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang goes far beyond the Shaoyin heat syndrome mentioned in the Treatise on Febrile Diseases, which states that "the heart is upset and the patient cannot sleep". It is now widely used in various diseases, especially in gynecology, psychiatry, hematology and dermatology. The key is to identify the constitution of "Huanglian Ejiao Soup users". These people usually have symptoms such as upset and insomnia, congestion and dryness of the mucous membranes and skin, and rapid pulse, which are more common in thin young women.
Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang clears away heat and purges fire, nourishes yin and replenishes blood. The main ingredients in Huanglian Donkey-hide Gelatin Soup include Huanglian, Huangqin, Baishao, Donkey-hide Gelatin and Jizihuang. Huanglian and Huangqin are responsible for clearing away heat and purging fire, while Donkey-hide Gelatin and Baishao nourish yin and replenish blood, and Jizihuang has the effect of replenishing yin and blood and relieving heat and toxicity. These drugs work together to regulate the functions of the heart and kidney, so that the heart fire descends and the kidney water rises , achieving the effect of both water and fire, and the intersection of the heart and kidney. This can relieve the heat in the heart, improve sleep disorders, and achieve the effects of nourishing yin and reducing fire, eliminating troubles and calming the mind.
Modern Application of Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang
Modern medical research shows that Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang has significant therapeutic effects on a variety of diseases, including neurasthenia, sleep disorders, schizophrenia, menopausal syndrome, myocarditis, dysentery, hyperthyroidism, eyeball hemorrhage, hemorrhage, pneumonia, enteritis, erysipelas, scarlet fever, meningitis, cerebral hemorrhage, hypertension, eczema, itchy skin, etc. These diseases are mostly classified as Yin deficiency and fire excess in traditional Chinese medicine.
In modern times, the heart meridian has long been in a state of excess, while the kidney meridian has long been in a state of deficiency, so there is a high probability of "heart-kidney disharmony". In modern clinical practice, Huanglian Ejiao Decoction is commonly used to treat neurasthenia, sleep disorders, menopausal syndrome, hyperthyroidism, hypertension and other diseases. These diseases are all epidemic, so this meridian phenomenon is very worthy of research and discussion in the modern medical community.
Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang is widely used in modern times to treat psychological and nervous system diseases such as insomnia, depression, anxiety, impotence and premature ejaculation. For example, clinical studies have shown that the total effective rate of Huanglian Ejiao Decoction in treating stubborn insomnia is as high as 97%, and the total effective rate of treating depression is also 92%. In addition, Huanglian Ejiao Decoction also shows good results in treating anxiety, and the adverse reactions are significantly reduced compared with Western anti-anxiety medicines.
Secondly, Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang has also shown efficacy in many other diseases. Modern research has found that this prescription can treat chronic oral acne, oral lichen planus, neurotic syncope, chronic fatigue syndrome, dry mouth syndrome, vertigo, irritability, headache, toothache, palmoplantar heat syndrome, and other symptoms of yin deficiency and excessive fire, and heart-kidney disharmony.
In addition, Huanglian Donkey-hide Gelatin Soup is also used to treat diseases such as blood in stool, keratitis, arrhythmia, tuberculosis, bronchiectasis and functional uterine hemorrhage. These studies show that Huanglian Donkey-hide Gelatin Soup has broad application prospects in modern medicine, especially in the treatment of diseases related to Yin deficiency and fire excess and heart-kidney disharmony.
Precautions and side effects
The prescription and pathogenesis of Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang is deficiency of the body's health and excess of evil, so the following points should be noted when using it:
Bitter and cold to purge fire : The herbs such as Coptis chinensis and Scutellaria baicalensis in the prescription are bitter and cold, and their main function is to clear away heat and purge fire. Therefore, they are not suitable for those with more deficiency than evil in the body.
Sour and sweet to nourish Yin : The drugs such as donkey-hide gelatin and white peony root in the formula are sour and sweet, and their main function is to nourish Yin and replenish blood. Therefore, for those with severe Yin deficiency and severe loss of body fluid, drugs such as Scrophularia, Ophiopogon, Rehmannia, and Dendrobium can be added to increase the effect of Yin and fluid production.
Excessive heart fire : For those with excessive heart fire and feeling upset, you can add herbs such as hawthorn fruit, lotus heart, bamboo leaf heart, etc. to clear the heart fire.
Sleep disorders : For those who wake up after falling asleep and have difficulty sleeping, you can add dragon's tooth, mother of pearl and other drugs to calm the mind. For those who sleep soundly and lose their mind and spirit, you can add jujube seeds and night clover to nourish the mind and calm the mind. For those who have palpitations and restlessness, you can add poria and cypress seeds to nourish the heart and calm the palpitations.
Conclusion
Huang Lian Er Jiao Tang is an ancient and effective Chinese medicine prescription, mainly used to treat Shaoyin disease with Yin deficiency and excessive fire, and restlessness. Its main ingredients include Huanglian, Huangqin, Baishao, Donkey-hide Gelatin and Chicken Yellow. These medicines are composed according to the theory of "monarch, minister, assistant and messenger", which has the effects of nourishing Yin and reducing fire, eliminating restlessness and calming the mind.
Modern medical research shows that this prescription has significant therapeutic effects on neurasthenia, sleep disorders, schizophrenia, menopausal syndrome, etc. When using it, it is necessary to pay attention to the balance between bitter and cold to purge fire and sour and sweet to nourish yin, and to add or subtract drugs according to specific symptoms. The meridian phenomenon of modern people also shows the wide application prospects of this prescription, which is worthy of further research and discussion.
