{"id":1819,"date":"2011-04-16T20:35:50","date_gmt":"2011-04-17T00:35:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/yang-sheng.com\/?p=1819"},"modified":"2011-11-18T14:56:45","modified_gmt":"2011-11-18T19:56:45","slug":"medicated-syrups","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yang-sheng.com\/?p=1819","title":{"rendered":"Tips of Yang Sheng"},"content":{"rendered":"

Medicated Syrups and the Nourishing Life Tradition<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

Henry McCann, DAOM<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Chinese herbal medicine is a rich tradition that utilizes an incredibly wide range of substances and methods of their administration.\u00a0 Today the most common way of preparing herbs is in the form of an aqueous decoction, in which bulk herbs are boiled in water and the resulting liquid ingested.\u00a0 Aside from this, various types of herbal pills, capsules, and extract powders are also popular Chinese medicines.\u00a0 Despite this seemingly limited list, from the earliest times Chinese herbal medicine has been used flexibly and in myriad ways.<\/p>\n

One of perhaps the least known but highly effective traditional methods of herb administration is in the form of medicated syrups.\u00a0 Nonetheless, syrups are underutilized in clinical practice, and many Western practitioners of Chinese medicine are completely unschooled in syrup production or use.\u00a0 Medicated syrups are especially useful in treating chronic conditions or for preventing disease, making them an almost essential adjunct to Nourishing Life methods (Yang Sheng Fa <\/em>\u990a\u751f\u6cd5).<\/p>\n

Basic Definitions<\/strong><\/p>\n

The word Gao<\/em> (\u818f) in Chinese means an oily or sticky substance.\u00a0 The Shuo Wen Jie Zi<\/em> (\u8aaa\u6587\u89e3\u5b50), the most important pre-modern dictionary of Chinese language that analyzes the definition and etymology of Chinese characters, defines Gao <\/em>as Zhi<\/em> (\u8102), fat.\u00a0\u00a0 In the practice of Chinese Medicine, Gao<\/em> can refer to a number of herbal preparations including liniments, ointments or plasters.\u00a0 These external preparations are commonly used, commercially available, and familiar to most practitioners in the west.<\/p>\n

However, Gao<\/em> also refers to medicinal syrups for internal use.\u00a0 In early medical writings, syrups were referred to simply as Gao<\/em> or Jian<\/em> (\u714e), and in the Shuo Wen Jie Zi<\/em>, Jian<\/em> is defined as Ao<\/em> (\u71ac), to boil, simmer or stew \u2013 an apt description of how syrups are produced.\u00a0 By the Ming (1368 \u2013 1644) and Qing (1644 \u2013 1911) dynasties, syrups for internal administration were referred to as Gao Zi<\/em> (\u818f\u6ecb) or Jian Gao<\/em> (\u714e\u818f), while topical plasters or pastes were called Gao Yao <\/em>(\u818f\u85e5) or Hei Gao Yao<\/em> (\u9ed1\u818f\u85e5) to distinguish between the two.<\/p>\n

Medicated syrups are produced by decocting and then highly concentrating herbal formulas, a process that takes repeated boiling of large amounts of bulk herbs.\u00a0 The concentration, in which as many as 15 liters of herb liquid is cooked down to less than 0.5 liters, is a process that alone can take 10 to 12 hours.\u00a0 Once the concentrated liquid is ready, it is preserved by mixing with honey or by preparing in a sugar base.\u00a0 Although the process is extensive and time consuming, unlike conventional decoctions that are prepared daily, one batch of syrup lasts anywhere from several weeks to several months, making their use very convenient.\u00a0 The formulas often rely heavily on supplementing (tonic) herbs, and, like medicated liquors, are a way to preserve and stretch out expensive or rare herbs that would be more quickly consumed if taken in pills or decoctions.\u00a0 Lastly, medicated syrups are pleasant tasting thus increasing patient compliance with treatment plans.<\/p>\n

Nourishing Life Practices and Medicated Syrups\"\"<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

From some of the earliest times in China, the search for longevity took on special cultural importance, with famous stories such as the Qin Shi Huang Di, the first emperor of a united China, expending great resources to find immortality elixirs by sending expeditions in search of Peng Lai, the mountain where immortals held the secret elixir of longevity.\u00a0 Over time practices of macrobiotic hygiene, e.g. sexual yoga, dietetics, breathing exercises, and others, became associated with the developing Nourishing Life tradition, the Chinese search for health and longevity.<\/p>\n

In Chinese medicine, the emphasis on disease prevention in the search for longevity almost defines the core tenets of the tradition.\u00a0 The Si Qi Tiao Shen Da Lun<\/em> (\u56db\u6c23\u8abf\u795e\u5927\u8ad6, Su Wen<\/em> Chapter 2) admonishes that the \u201csage will prevent disease rather than cure it, maintain order rather than correct a disorder.\u201d (\u662f\u6545\u8056\u4eba\u4e0d\u6cbb\u5df2\u75c5,\u6cbb\u672a\u75c5,\u4e0d\u6cbb\u5df2\u4e82,\u6cbb\u672a\u4e82).\u00a0 The first chapter of the Su Wen<\/em>, the Shang Gu Tian Zhen Lun<\/em> (\u4e0a\u53e4\u5929\u771f\u8ad6), is almost entirely about longevity methods.<\/p>\n

One common method of the Nourishing Life traditions is the ingestion of special herbal medicines.\u00a0 In particular, highly concentrated forms of herbs such as Dan<\/em> (\u4e39), specials tablets containing rare herbs or minerals, are emphasized in disease prevention.\u00a0 In general, aqueous decoctions and powders effect more the upper jiao and are best in treating acute or exterior patterns.\u00a0 Herbal formulas that undergo a process of concentration, such as tablets, medicated liquors, or medicated syrups, have a greater affinity with the lower jiao and affect a better storage of qi and blood.\u00a0 Thus, these formats, like Dan<\/em>, are suited for long-term administration in disease prevention.<\/p>\n

Exemplar Formula<\/strong><\/p>\n

Medicated syrups were an herbal format favored by Chinese nobility.\u00a0 Their recipes abound in the medical records of the Qing elite, the last imperial dynasty to rule over China.\u00a0 In particular, the medical records of the Empress Dowager Ci Xi have been academically studied and then published in both Chinese and English.<\/p>\n

Jia Jian Fu Yuan He Zhong Gao<\/em> is an example of a medicated syrup prepared for Ci Xi.\u00a0 Its ingredients are primarily qi and blood tonics that focus on the spleen and kidney.\u00a0 The instructions call for the formula to be ground and then prepared in sugar or honey for daily ingestion.<\/p>\n

Jia Jian Fu Yuan He Zhong Gao:<\/em><\/p>\n

Ingredients: Dang Shen, Chao Bai Zhu, Fu Ling, Chao Dang Gui, Xu Duan, Huang Qi, Chao Gu Ya, Chao Ji Nei Jin, Fa Ban Xia, Xiang Fu, Shu Di Huang, Sha Ren, Pei Lan, Da Zao<\/p>\n

Adjunctive herbal therapies in modern clinical practice expand the Chinese medicine practitioner\u2019s therapeutic repertoire and allows for a better ability to help patients prevent disease.\u00a0 For more information on medicated syrups, and other herbal preparations of the Nourishing Life tradition such as medicated liquors and congees, please join us at the TCM Kongress.<\/p>\n

References:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Chen K. Imperial Medicaments: Medical Prescriptions Written for Empress Dowager Cixi and Emperor Guangxu with Commentary<\/em>. Beijing: Foreign Language Press, 1996.<\/p>\n

Lai TH. Gao zi \u2013 medicinal syrups in Chinese medicine. Unpublished article.<\/p>\n

Lu HC, trans. A Complete Translation Of The Yellow Emperor\u2019s Classic of Internal Medicine And The Difficult Classic<\/em>. Vancouver, Canada: International College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 2002.<\/p>\n

Wang GQ. Zhong Guo Gao Yao Xue [Chinese Medicated Syrups]. (text in Chinese) Xian: Shaanxi Science and Technology Press, 1981.<\/p>\n

[Originally Published in Naturheilpraxis<\/em>, April 2010]<\/p>\n

[Henry McCann, DAOM, LAc<\/strong>, is on faculty at the Pacific College of Oriental Medicine (USA) and is the head lecturer for the Cork Institute for Post Graduate Acupuncture (Ireland).\u00a0 He also teaches doctoral candidates at the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine (USA).\u00a0 Dr. McCann finished his doctoral degree in geriatrics of Chinese Medicine and is an expert on the Nourishing Life tradition and the treatment of chronic recalcitrant diseases.\u00a0 He maintains a clinical practice in New Jersey.]
\n<\/address>\n
Do you like this? Please share it:<\/div>
Tweet<\/a>