Sang Xing Tang comes from Treatise on Febrile Diseases by Wu Jutong, a Qing Dynasty physician. This is a classic work that systematically expounds on the theory and treatment of febrile diseases. In the book, Wu Jutong introduced in detail the composition, usage and main efficacy of Sang Xing Tang, providing an important reference for later physicians.
It is mentioned in Treatise on Warm Diseases that "the dryness syndrome of the original Qi must be in the lung defense at the beginning, so Sang Xing Tang is used to clear the dryness of the Qi." It explains that Sang Xing Tang is used for the initial stage of warm and dryness, when the evil is in the lung defense, and when the dryness turns into fire without phlegm. It is also pointed out in Medical Extracts that "the treatment of dryness syndrome/dryness disease" is "if the right pulse is rapid and strong at the beginning, and dryness damages the Qi of the hand Taiyin, Sang Xing Tang is the main treatment." It further emphasizes the important role of Sang Xing Tang in treating the initial symptoms of dryness damage and the hand Taiyin lung meridian.
Explanation of the recipe of Sang Xing Tang
Sang Xing Tang is composed of seven medicinal ingredients, which can be divided into the following parts according to the principle of monarch, minister, assistant and envoy grouping:
Sovereign drug : mulberry leaf Mulberry leaf has the characteristics of being light, clear and dispersing, which can both dissipate wind-heat and clear the lungs and moisten dryness. It is the sovereign drug in the prescription. It is mainly responsible for clearing and dispersing lung dryness and dispersing exogenous wind-heat evil.
Auxiliary drugs : Apricot kernel, Radix Adenophorae, Fritillaria thunbergii, and Fructus sojae Almond is bitter and sweet, and it can lower lung qi, moisten dryness and relieve cough. It complements the main drug, mulberry leaf, and they can clear and relieve lung dryness. Adenophora is sweet and cold, moistens the lung, nourishes yin and clears heat, and promotes fluid production and quenches thirst. Fritillaria thunbergii is bitter and cold, clears heat and resolves phlegm, moistens the lung and relieves cough. Fructus sojae can gently penetrate evil, disperse superficial evil, and lead evil out. These four drugs work together to assist the main drug and enhance the effect of clearing, moistening and descending.
Auxiliary drugs : jujube and pear peel. Jujube clears lung heat, pear peel clears heat and produces body fluid, moistens the lungs and relieves cough. These two herbs work together to strengthen the power of clearing heat and moistening dryness, making the prescription more comprehensive.
Pathogenesis of Sang Xing Tang
Sang Xing Tang is mainly used to treat exogenous fever and dryness syndrome, which usually occurs in autumn because the weather is dry and people are easily infected by dryness. Dryness invades the lungs, causing the body fluids in the lungs to be consumed, resulting in a series of symptoms, such as slight fever, thirst, dry throat, dry nose, dry cough without sputum or with little and sticky sputum, red tongue, and rapid pulse. These symptoms are all caused by the dryness damaging the body fluids in the lungs, burning the lung fluids, and causing the lungs to lose their normal moisture and function.
Sang Xing Tang uses some cool and cold herbs to dispel external wind and heat evils, and nourish the yin fluid of the lungs and stomach, so that the body's heat disappears and the body fluids are restored, so that various symptoms disappear. This recipe is particularly suitable for treating warm and dry syndromes in the dry autumn season, helping people get through this season when they are prone to illness.
The efficacy of Sang Xing Tang
The main effect of Sang Xing Tang is to clear away heat and dryness, moisten the lungs and resolve phlegm. It can disperse the exogenous wind and heat evils through the method of pungent, cool, sweet and moist, and can nourish the yin of the lungs and stomach, so that the dryness and heat are removed and the body fluids are restored, thereby relieving symptoms such as cough, dry throat and thirst.
Although the ingredients in Sangxing Tang are few, they are very well matched. The main herb, mulberry leaf, can clear away heat and moisten the lungs, and dispel external wind and heat pathogens; the auxiliary herb, apricot kernel, can lower qi and moisten the lungs, relieve cough and resolve phlegm. The auxiliary herbs, Adenophora Root, Fritillaria Thunbergii, and Fructus Sojae Indici, help mulberry leaf and apricot kernel to better play their roles, nourish the yin fluid of the lungs, and remove heat pathogens from the lungs. The auxiliary herbs, Fructus Amarae and Pear Peel, further enhance the effect of clearing heat and moistening dryness, allowing the lungs to restore normal function.
This prescription can, on the one hand, clear and disperse the heat evil in the lungs, allowing the lung qi to function normally, and on the other hand, it can moisten and lower the qi, allowing the lung qi to be smooth and restore normal function. It can both dispel external wind evil and heat evil, and nourish the yin fluid in the lungs, allowing the body's dryness and heat to disappear and the body fluid to recover, so that various symptoms will disappear.
Modern Application of Sang Xing Tang
In modern medicine, mulberry and apricot soup is often used to treat upper respiratory tract infection, acute and chronic bronchitis, bronchiectasis hemoptysis, whooping cough and other diseases. The pathogenesis of these diseases is mostly caused by exogenous warm and dryness, and the evil invades the lung defense, which is consistent with the main therapeutic effect of mulberry and apricot soup.
Modern research also shows that Sang Xing Tang has multiple pharmacological effects such as anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and antiviral, which provides a scientific basis for its wide application in clinical practice.
Notes
When using Sang Xing Tang, you need to pay attention to the following points:
The dosage should not be too heavy : Since this prescription treats mild evil qi, the dosage of the medicine is relatively light, and the decoction time should not be too long. As the original book says after the prescription: "Light medicine should not be used heavily, and heavy use will exceed the diseased area."
Treatment based on syndrome differentiation : This prescription is a commonly used prescription for treating mild symptoms of warm and dry lung injury. In clinical application, the key points of syndrome differentiation are mild fever, dry cough without sputum or little and sticky sputum, and rapid right pulse. When using it, it is necessary to differentiate and treat according to the patient's specific symptoms and avoid blind use.
Contraindications : For those with excessive cold and dampness in the body and weak spleen and stomach, mulberry and apricot soup should be used with caution or not at all to avoid aggravating the condition.
Conclusion
As a commonly used prescription for treating mild symptoms of exogenous warm and dry diseases, Sang Xing Tang has the effects of clearing away warm and dryness, moistening the lungs and resolving phlegm. It is also widely used in modern medicine and has good therapeutic effects on upper respiratory tract infections, acute and chronic bronchitis, bronchiectasis hemoptysis, whooping cough and other diseases. When using it, it is necessary to pay attention to syndrome differentiation and avoid blind use to ensure the efficacy. The classic compatibility and modern research of Sang Xing Tang provide a solid foundation for its clinical application, and it is a shining pearl in traditional Chinese medicine.
