Traditional Chinese medicine Shenling Baizhu Powder: A classic Chinese medicine prescription that strengthens the spleen and replenishes Qi, harmonizes the stomach and moisturizes the stomach
Shenling Baizhu San is one of the commonly used prescriptions in traditional Chinese medicine for strengthening the spleen and removing dampness. It has the characteristics of replenishing Qi and strengthening the spleen without causing dryness and heat, and promoting diuresis without damaging body fluid. It has an outstanding effect on regulating the spleen and stomach, especially for those who often feel tired and have no appetite on weekdays, but feel that they have no illness.
1. Historical Origins and Cubic Basis
Shenling Baizhu San was first mentioned in the Song Dynasty's Taiping Huimin Hejiju Fang, a book that collected many commonly used and effective prescriptions at the time. The formula was based on the profound understanding of the importance of the spleen and stomach in traditional Chinese medicine. The spleen and stomach are called the "foundation of acquired constitution" in traditional Chinese medicine theory, and are the key organs for the human body to absorb nutrients and transport and transform the essence of water and grain.
Once the spleen and stomach function is out of balance, a series of health problems will arise. Shenling Baizhu San is designed to treat spleen and stomach weakness and dysfunction. In ancient times, people's living conditions were limited. Factors such as improper diet and overwork often led to damage to the spleen and stomach, resulting in symptoms such as loss of appetite, abdominal distension, and loose stools. Shenling Baizhu San became a common prescription for doctors to treat such diseases. It has been passed down to this day and its effectiveness is still highly recognized.
2. Formula composition and medicinal properties
The prescription is composed of multiple Chinese medicinal herbs including ginseng, Poria cocos, Atractylodes macrocephala, yam, white hyacinth bean, coix seed, lotus seed, Amomum villosum, Platycodon grandiflorum, and licorice.
Ginseng is sweet, slightly bitter and slightly warm in nature, and is an important medicine for replenishing vitality. It can greatly replenish the spleen and stomach qi, enhance the spleen and stomach's transportation and transformation functions, just like injecting a strong power source into the weak spleen and stomach, promoting the absorption and transportation of nutrients, and quickly restoring and improving the body's vitality.
Poria cocos is sweet, mild and has the effect of strengthening the spleen and moistening the body. It can help the spleen and stomach to transport water and moisture, so that the water and moisture stagnant in the body can be discharged through urine. It can not only eliminate the symptoms such as swelling and phlegm caused by the overflow of water and moisture, but also improve the operating environment of the spleen and stomach, so that the spleen and stomach functions can be exerted normally.
Atractylodes macrocephala is bitter, sweet and warm, and focuses on strengthening the spleen and drying out dampness. It can enhance the spleen's ability to transport and transform water and grain, dry out dampness in the body, and effectively improve problems such as poor appetite, abdominal distension, and loose stools caused by spleen and stomach weakness and dampness in the spleen. It is one of the main medicines for strengthening the spleen and stomach.
Yam is sweet and mild in nature, and can nourish the spleen and qi, as well as the spleen and yin. Its effect is mild, not dry or greasy. While nourishing the spleen and stomach, it can also nourish the spleen and stomach yin fluid, so that the spleen and stomach function can be repaired and improved in a state of yin and yang balance. It is especially suitable for patients with long-term illness, weak body, and spleen and stomach yin and yang damage.
White lentil is sweet and slightly warm, and can strengthen the spleen and eliminate dampness. It can assist the spleen and stomach in transporting and transforming the essence of water and grain, dissolving dampness and turbidity, and improving symptoms such as indigestion and chest and abdominal distension caused by spleen and stomach weakness. It is an important member of the prescription for regulating the transport and transformation function of the spleen and stomach.
Coix seeds are sweet, mild and slightly cold, and have the effects of promoting water and moisture, strengthening the spleen and removing numbness, clearing away heat and removing concentration. In Shenling Baizhu powder, it mainly plays the role of strengthening the spleen and moistening, helping Poria cocos, Atractylodes macrocephala and other drugs to remove the evil of water and dampness in the body. And because of its slightly cold nature, it can prevent the warm and dry nature of other drugs in the prescription from being too strong, playing a certain balancing role.
Lotus seed flesh is sweet, astringent and mild in taste. It can nourish the spleen and stop diarrhea, benefit the kidneys and consolidate essence, and nourish the heart and calm the mind. It can not only enhance the spleen and stomach's ability to consolidate and improve diarrhea symptoms, but also replenish the kidney essence and calm the mind, thereby comprehensively regulating physical weakness and restlessness caused by weak spleen and stomach.
Amomum villosum is pungent and warm, and has the effects of promoting qi and relieving the stomach, removing dampness and invigorating the spleen. It can promote the movement of qi in the spleen and stomach, making the digestion and absorption function of the spleen and stomach smoother, and its aromatic nature can invigorate the qi of the spleen and stomach, eliminating symptoms such as spleen and stomach distension and poor appetite caused by dampness and turbidity. It is the key medicine in the prescription for regulating qi and invigorating the spleen.
Platycodon grandiflorum is bitter, pungent and neutral, and has a unique role in the prescription. It can promote qi and clear the lungs, and can also guide the drugs upward. By promoting qi in the lungs, it can help the spleen and stomach to transport water and moisture, because the lungs regulate the water channels and are closely related to the transportation of water and moisture by the spleen and stomach. At the same time, Platycodon grandiflorum can lead the drugs to go up to the lungs, and then spread throughout the body through the lungs' function of dispersing qi, so that the medicinal power of the prescription can be more fully exerted.
Licorice is sweet and mild, and its main function is to harmonize various medicines. It can alleviate the medicinal properties of various medicines, make them cooperate with each other, form a harmonious and unified whole, avoid conflicts between medicines, and ensure the safety and effectiveness of the prescription.
Shenling Baizhu Powder is composed of three types of herbs : those for replenishing qi, strengthening the spleen, and removing dampness. The herbs can be added or subtracted according to the severity of the symptoms.
If the patient has abdominal pain, vomiting or diarrhea caused by both dampness and heat, you can add costus root, coptis root, patchouli, amomum, magnolia bark, atractylodes, etc. For those with poor appetite, you can add hawthorn, chicken gizzard lining, Shenqu and other herbs that can eliminate stagnation. For those with cough due to deficiency and cold, you can add aster, almond, coltsfoot flower and dried orange peel.
3. Applicable Diseases and Symptoms
The application range of Shenling Baizhu Powder is quite wide.
In terms of the digestive system, it is mainly used to treat loss of appetite caused by spleen and stomach weakness. Patients often have no interest in food and eat less; abdominal distension, feeling of fullness and discomfort in the stomach and abdomen, especially after eating; loose stools, that is, loose stools without shape, several times a day, even accompanied by indigestion of food residues. In addition, for diseases such as chronic enteritis and irritable bowel syndrome, if the symptoms are spleen and stomach weakness and abnormal transportation and transformation, Shenling Baizhu San also has a good therapeutic effect.
In terms of poor nutrient absorption, such as those who have been ill for a long time, those who are recovering from surgery, or the elderly and weak, due to the decline of spleen and stomach function, they cannot absorb and transport nutrients normally, leading to symptoms such as weight loss, sallow complexion, and weakness in the limbs. Shenling Baizhu Powder can strengthen the spleen and qi, enhance the transportation and absorption function of the spleen and stomach, promote the absorption and utilization of nutrients, and improve the weak state of the body.
Malnutrition in children, commonly known as "malnutrition", is mostly caused by improper diet, abnormal hunger and satiety, or congenital spleen and stomach deficiency. Children with this disease often show symptoms such as loss of appetite, picky eating, short stature, developmental delay, abdominal distension, and irregular bowel movements. Shenling Baizhu Powder can effectively strengthen the spleen and stomach, help digestion, promote children's digestion and absorption function, improve nutritional status, and help them grow healthily.
Modern pharmacological research shows that Shenling Baizhu Powder has the effects of anti-ulcer, anti-fatigue, anti-inflammatory, antitussive and expectorant, diuretic, improving immunity, and regulating gastrointestinal motility. It can be used to treat chronic gastritis, chronic colitis, pulmonary tuberculosis, chronic bronchitis, chronic nephritis, indigestion, leucorrhea, anemia, loss of appetite, and gastrointestinal conditioning after illness.
4. Diet therapy and daily health care
During the treatment with Shenling Baizhu San, appropriate diet therapy can enhance the efficacy.
You can often eat foods that have the effect of strengthening the spleen and replenishing qi, such as dates, chestnuts, pumpkin, etc.
Jujube porridge: Jujube porridge is a simple and easy food therapy recipe. Take a few dates and cook them with rice. Jujubes can replenish qi, nourish blood and calm the mind. When paired with rice, it can nourish the spleen and stomach.
Stewed chicken with chestnuts: Chestnuts have the effect of strengthening the spleen and kidneys, and chicken is nourishing. The combination of the two can strengthen the spleen and qi, and strengthen the body. It is especially suitable for people with weak spleen and stomach and lack of physical strength.
Pumpkin porridge: Pumpkin is warm in nature and sweet in taste. It can strengthen the spleen and warm the stomach. The nutrients it contains are easy to digest and absorb. It can be made into porridge and can be used as a daily diet therapy for strengthening the spleen.
In terms of daily health care, first of all, we should pay attention to eating habits, eat at regular times and in regular amounts, avoid overeating, and eat less raw, cold, greasy, spicy and other irritating foods to avoid damaging the spleen and stomach.
Secondly, you should maintain moderate exercise, such as walking, Tai Chi, Ba Duan Jin, etc. Exercise can promote the circulation of Qi in the spleen and stomach and enhance the digestive function of the spleen and stomach.
Furthermore, we should pay attention to emotional regulation, keep a good mood, and avoid long-term mental tension, anxiety, depression and other negative emotions, because emotional discomfort can affect the transportation and transformation function of the spleen and stomach, the so-called "thinking hurts the spleen", maintaining a good mentality is crucial to the health of the spleen and stomach.
5. Precautions and People Who Should Use with Caution
First of all, it is not suitable to be used during the period of cold and fever. Because during the period of cold and fever, the body's Qi is in a state of dispersion. At this time, taking a prescription such as Shenling Baizhu San, which is mainly for nourishment, may cause the evil Qi to be trapped inside, making the condition worse or prolonging the course of the disease.
Furthermore, patients with high blood pressure or diabetes should consult a doctor before use. Because some of the drug ingredients in the prescription may have a certain impact on blood sugar and blood pressure, it is only safe and effective to use it reasonably according to the condition and physical condition under the guidance of a professional doctor.
As a classic Chinese medicine prescription for strengthening the spleen and replenishing qi, Shenling Baizhu San has unique therapeutic effects in treating spleen and stomach deficiency and related diseases. Combined with diet therapy and daily health care, its benefits can be fully tapped to maintain spleen and stomach health, thereby ensuring the health of the overall body.