yin qiao san & gan mao ling

Remedies for Cold and Flu… continued

Two (more / Ban Lan Gen Chong Ji discussed in my previous blog) preeminent formulas in our Chinese medicine pharmacy for resolving common cold and flu symptoms:

Yin Qiao San (or Yin Qiao Jie Du Pian/ Honeysuckle & Forsythia Tablets) has been relied upon by practitioners for many years to combat the common cold and influenza. Originally formulated in 1798, Yin Qiao San directly resolves 'heat toxins' with two herbs: Flos Lonicera(Honeysuckle)/ Jin Yin Hua and Fructus Forsythiae(Forsythia)/ Lian Qiao. They make up 36% of the formula. In Chinese herbal medicine, ‘heat toxins’ in this context are the viruses causing upper respiratory infections. The body-response to toxic viral invaders is fever(heat). Body temperature rises in order to literally burn up and out illness. The rest of the herbs in the formula join in to reduce fever, clear sore throat and push the heat toxins 'to the surface' and out of the body. Because the formula's active ingredients have such functionality and potency, Yin Qiao San has also been the foundation formula for pediatric measles and chicken pox.

Then, a formula from the modern times - Gan Mao Ling (Common Cold Effective Remedy). Only three decades old and not three centuries, Gan Mao Ling surpasses Yin Qiao San in treating the common cold, influenza and other upper respiratory infections. It is faster and more effective because the four component herbs — Radix Ilex/ Gang Mei Gen, Radix Evodia/ San Cha Ku, Radix Isatis/ Ban Lan Gen and Flos Lonicera/ Jin Yin Hua — are specifically antiviral and make up 74% of the formula. Twice as much of Gan Mao Ling is devoted to directly attacking the common cold and flu viruses when we compare to Yin Qiao San. Gan Mao Ling has taken the lead in treating colds and influenza. Its extensive and repeated use confirms the efficacy of this modern formula.

If you have one or both of these Chinese patent medicines in your medicine cabinet, you are well on your way to Taking Care of Colds and Flu anytime and every time.

As soon as you can, begin dosing with one or the other formula. My recommendation is to begin at the earliest stage with Gan Mao Ling, taking one, two or three doses that first day. This treatment may knock the cold or flu right out. If not and symptoms develop further, continue taking Gan Mao Ling and/or Yin Qiao San (take both with more initial severe symptoms) every three hours. If the cold/flu goes deeper settling into the chest and lungs especially with cough, we move to or add another more specific cough and/or phlegm formula. More on that in a soon to come blog…

ban lan gen chong ji... first signs of cold or flu

ban lan gen chong ji

For remedies that are effective and/or specific to the FIRST SIGNS of a cold or the flu, we begin with…

BAN LAN GEN CHONG JI

Packets of sweetened herbal granules, taken as a tea, dissolved in hot water.

If you have managed to take BAN LAN GEN CHONG JI at the true first sign of getting sick, the first packet can be enough to stop it from developing any further, period.

I let my patients know they can take this formula in several ways.

Take it immediately at the FIRST SIGN of COLD or FLU (scratchy throat, first sniffles or cough), once or twice or three times the first day. Monitor your symptoms and improvement. Then decide whether to continue taking BAN LAN GEN CHONG JI or move on to one or more of our other formula remedies if symptoms don't seem to be decreasing or disappearing. With fever and sore throat, you will very likely feel better after taking one or two doses.

isatis tinctoria

You can take BAN LAN GEN CHONG JI as your only remedy for acute cold and flu symptoms. Drink the tea 3–4 times a day for a week and up to 2 weeks.

For prevention, you can take a dose a day BEFORE or AS SOON AS you may be in contact with seasonal colds or flu. Definitely start regular daily doses (3 times daily) when someone around you is sick and you are exposed.

Interesting fact: During the SARS outbreak in China, families DEPENDED on Ban Lan Gen Chong Ji, used it consistently, and now it is a home medicine cabinet must-have.

Ban lan gen is the Chinese pin yin name for Radix Isatis or Woad Root. This very potent root drains heat and toxins, cools down fire and fever. It is used widely in formulas to resolve seasonal toxic pathogens (sore throat and upper respiratory infections) and epidemic disorders (measles and mumps). It also treats jaundice and hepatitis. It is a flowering plant in the same family as broccoli and the root was cultivated throughout Europe for its beautiful blue dye color. Medicinally, in our time, it is being researched for its ability and efficacy for inhibiting the influenza viruses.

Also. Please note. The tea packets contain some sugar for sweetening the tea to taste. This remedy may not be appropriate for everyone.

COLD or FLU: Which Is It?

Seems like everyone’s got it. You’re down for the count and you’ve got the flu. Or is it a cold??? The test says: it’s viral but it’s not the flu. Or, it says it IS the flu so it’s time for Tamiflu. (FYI: I am probably not a fan. Of Tamiflu. Or the flu, of course. I’d prescribe some HERBS!! Of course).

Would you be able to diagnose with this chart

Whether you figure out that it’s a cold or the flu, you can fix it, cure it, or at the very least endure it less symptomatically with remedies from our awesome Chinese Herbal Pharmacy. Our upper respiratory formulas are just that good. I am not being un-serious here. Chinese Patent Medicines are EXCELLENT curers of upper respiratory ailments. Please come find me. Or an acupuncture practitioner or herbalist near you. If you have not discovered our pharmacy it is time that you do. Please check back as I’ll be posting more with the hope that ever more of you will learn and turn to Chinese herbs for your everyday remedies.

fertility and acupuncture

Next month, another Mother’s Day will come around which will include me since I am definitely a mother. I mark the occasion with sons and now a daughter-in-law! I’ve been lucky in life to have been pregnant, given birth and to have experienced parenthood with all its challenge, reward -  and love. 

The happiness in the reason for the day has me thinking about a particular happiness in my practice: working with hopeful moms-to-be, some just coming to the decision to start ‘trying’ and some coming after a time of 'trying' - even a long time of ‘trying’. Moms - and dads - come for treatment to increase or restore fertility and then they continue to come for support during their pregnancies. For those undergoing additional fertility methods like IVF, acupuncture increases their chances for pregnancy too. On behalf of acupuncture and Chinese herbs, let it be known:  we can play a helpful and success-fulfilling role in bringing fertility where it seems hard to be.

Chinese herbs and acupuncture have a long history of use promoting fertility. Can Americans benefit from the experience and the results afforded by East Asian medicine to treat infertility? Clinical studies conducted in China indicate that about 70% of all cases of infertility (male and female) treated by Chinese herbs and acupuncture resulted in pregnancy or restored fertility. These are cases of infertility that include obstruction of the fallopian tubes, amenorrhea, absent ovulation, endometriosis, uterine fibroids, low sperm count, and non-liquefaction of semen. Depending on the particular study and the types of infertility treated, success rates range from about 50% to more than 90%. We don’t see quite that percentage of success in the United States with East Asian medicine therapy but that is because the Chinese integrate both traditional and modern methods of medicine somewhat easily and have a long experience and confidence in using herbs and acupuncture. Nevertheless, practitioners here (and this includes my own practice) have had many experiences and success in treating infertility.

No single herb is considered the ‘miracle’ fertility herb. Instead, herbal formulas have been developed with the purpose of correcting the functional or organic problem that is causing infertility.

Formulas vary for men and for women, but there is overlap in the compositions of the formulas. Some “exotic” ingredients are found in some fertility formulas but for the most part, ingredients are roots, barks, leaves, flowers, and fruits.

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Using the language of traditional Chinese medicine diagnosis, infertility presents with one or more of these three significant factors:

1. DEFICIENCY. Our delicately balanced system of hormones is not able to sufficiently or properly influence and direct the sexual and reproductive functions. The symptoms may show as lack of or infrequent or irregular menstruation, impotence, frequent urination, weakness and aching of the back and legs, difficulties regulating body temperature. Deficiency syndromes are treated with tonic herbs (ginseng, astragalus, dong quai) and tonifying acupuncture points that nourish qi and blood especially. 

2. STAGNATION. The sexual and reproductive organs are blocked and prevented from functioning despite normal hormone levels and normal ability to respond to hormones. When ‘qi’ and ‘blood’ are ‘stagnant’ or blocked in some way, proper circulation to the tissues is impossible. The signs of this condition can be muscle tension, anger that feels restrained, chronic inflammation, formation of lumps (cysts and tumors) and digestive problems with abdominal pain or bloating. Blood stagnation often occurs after a childbirth, surgery, injury or serious infection. When there is severe pain (like very strong and debilitating menstrual cramps) or lumps or swellings that are hard (rather than soft and fluid filled) we think, stagnation. Stagnation is treated with points and with herbs that are ‘moving’ and directional.

3. HEAT. Infection or inflammation can cause organs to function abnormally. Heat syndromes in males may produce abnormal semen quality. Gynecologic infections can cause female infertility by blocking the passages, altering the mucous membrane conditions, or influencing the local temperature. For this presentation, we use herbs that reduce, clear and inhibit infection and inflammation and with acupuncture protocols that do the same.

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In each of these three conditions, the purpose of the acupuncture treatment and an accompanying herbal formula is to correct the underlying body imbalance in order to restore normal function. Western medicine will diagnose tubal blockage (which usually corresponds to blood STAGNATION) and infection (which corresponds to HEAT) and in many cases successfully treats these causes of infertility. Western medicine does not generally assess or diagnose DEFICIENCY presentations and many of the STAGNATION presentations as we know them in Chinese medicine. With herbs and acupuncture we address these issues with our patients and improve the potential for achieving and maintaining pregnancy all the way to giving birth. 

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