https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/A4PeQB2Vq1CW8xtc-5KQOA
Everyone is welcome to share their experiences with trying the medicine in the replies, to facilitate other students’ search and learning.
166. Bottle Gourd
Bitter at the entrance, but tonic. The bottle gourd soaked in water is not as hard, and after breaking it into smaller pieces, it can be eaten like sugarcane.
To some extent, it can replace bamboo leaves; its effect of clearing turbidity is no worse than bamboo leaves, and it additionally nourishes the heart blood and kidney qi. Diuresis and reducing swelling are only part of its effects; the main means of reducing edema rely on tonifying and clearing turbidity.
I wonder if anyone has thought about why bottle gourd is called “抽葫芦” (chōu húlu). What I heard before was that those bottle gourds with good appearance cannot be used as medicine, but those with wrinkled (抽巴) appearance or cracked bottle gourds have better effects. Therefore, as a medicinal material, it is called “抽葫芦” (chōu húlu).
I am a lover of bottle gourds (purely analogous to dog lovers), so I hesitate to break open bottle gourds with good appearance to compare. Everyone can compare on their own if they have the opportunity.
167. Xiangjapi (Fragrant Bark)
Toxic, basically no one uses it anymore, omitted.
168. Zhijuzi (Citri Fructus)
The taste is somewhat like the red soup made by soaking mung beans, slightly bitter, overall rather bland.
Effects: Has the effect of consolidating spirit qi and guiding yang into yin, stronger than sour jujube seed (Suanzaoren), can nourish liver fluid, but basically has no effect on tonifying heart and liver blood, so it can only partially replace Suanzaoren.
Because it can nourish liver fluid, it can accelerate the liver’s metabolism of alcohol, and can also be used to treat various liver diseases. It has a certain effect on muscle twitching, cramps, and tic disorders caused by liver fluid deficiency or yin deficiency with wind movement. It has some diuretic and anti-swelling effects, but not strong.
169. Zeqi (Euphorbia)
The water brewed from this herbal medicine tastes similar to many others, Zeqi is somewhat distinctive: sour, bitter, astringent, with a bit of sweetness, but not very pleasant to drink, and it has some throat irritation.
It is quite cold in nature, between causing chills and not causing chills, similar to winter melon peel. Both can gather water from the limbs back to the internal organs and then discharge it. However, Zeqi adds the effect of activating blood and unblocking the meridians, so it can also be used for edema caused by visceral stasis, such as ascites from cirrhosis and nephrotic syndrome.
Zeqi is toxic. The fresh white latex squeezed from Zeqi is extremely irritating in taste, usually used externally, and can directly treat psoriasis, common warts, and many other uses that I cannot recall immediately. It often appears in dermatology folk remedies and prescription formulas (Yadanzi, Wolfiporia, Zeqi are all legendary examples of “fighting poison with poison”).