bubble_chart Efficacy

Releasing the exterior to resolve dampness, regulating qi and harmonizing the middle.

bubble_chart Indications

External contraction of wind-cold with internal damage due to damp stagnation. Symptoms include fever and chills, headache, chest and diaphragm fullness, epigastric and abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, borborygmus and diarrhea, a white and greasy tongue coating, and a floating and slippery pulse.

bubble_chart Formula Principles

This formula is based on the Two Old Ingredients Decoction, with the addition of ingredients that relieve external pathogens and regulate the spleen and stomach. It is suitable for conditions of external contraction of wind-cold and internal damage caused by dietary damp stagnation. It is commonly used for common colds throughout the four seasons, especially for those who suffer from cold and dampness injury in summer with spleen and stomach disharmony. In the formula, Patchouli is used as the monarch herb to disperse wind-cold with its acrid nature, and it also acts as an aromatic herb to resolve dampness, while simultaneously ascending lucidity and descending turbidity, making it effective for treating cholera. The minister herbs include cultivated purple perilla leaf and Dahurian Angelica, which assist Patchouli in externally dispersing wind-cold with their acrid and aromatic properties, while also resolving dampness. Pinellia and Dried Tangerine Peel are pungent and fragrant herbs that fortify the stomach and downbear counterflow to stop vomiting. White Atractylodes Rhizome and Poria strengthen the spleen and transport dampness, harmonizing the middle and stopping diarrhea. Magnolia Bark and Areca Peel move qi and resolve dampness, relieving fullness in the middle. Additionally, Platycodon Root is used to ventilate the lungs and benefit the diaphragm, aiding in both releasing the exterior and resolving dampness. Fresh Ginger Rhizome, Chinese Date, and Liquorice Root regulate the spleen and stomach and harmonize the medicinal properties, serving as the guiding herbs. When all these herbs are combined, they disperse wind-cold externally, transform damp turbidity internally, ascend lucidity and descend turbidity, and promote the smooth movement of qi, thereby resolving all symptoms.

1. Summer seasonal affliction or four-season common cold, wind-cold fettering exterior, damp stagnation in the spleen and stomach.
2. Chills and fever, headache, abdominal pain, vomiting, and diarrhea.
3. Tongue coating white and greasy.

bubble_chart Formula Modification

1. Exterior pathogen predominance: Add Chinese Mosla.
2. Internal dampness predominance: Add Coix Seed, Alisma, Magnolia Bark, Atractylodes Rhizome.
3. Food stagnation (anorexia): Add hawthorn fruit, Medicated Leaven, radish seed.
4. Without sweating, aversion to wind: Add Saposhnikovia Root, Schizonepeta, Ephedra.
5. Sore throat: Add Lonicera, Forsythia.
6. Abdominal pain: Add Peony Root.
7. Abdominal pain with diarrhea: Add Atractylodes Rhizome, Coptis Rhizome.
8. Severe cold: Add Aconite Lateral Root, Dried Ginger.
9. Thirst with diarrhea, dysuria: Combine with Five Ingredients with Poria Powder.

bubble_chart Cautions and Contraindications

This prescription contains many pungent and warm-drying herbs, and should be used with caution in cases of blood deficiency.

bubble_chart Modern Application

This formula strengthens the stomach, relieves vomiting, alleviates spasms of gastrointestinal smooth muscles, regulates gastrointestinal function, has antibacterial properties, inhibits influenza viruses, reduces fever, promotes diuresis, and dispels phlegm. It is used for gastrointestinal-type common cold, acute gastroenteritis, summer heat stroke, vomiting, acute and chronic nephritis, cholera with vomiting and diarrhea, difficulty adapting to new environments, and pediatric dietary disorders.