Laifu San for Senile Cough and Asthma

Laifu San comes from Quanguo Zhongcheng Yao Chengyao Chufang Ji (National Collection of Chinese Patent Medicine Formulas). Its composition is: Chaolaifuzi (Semen Raphani Stir-fratum, stir-fried radish seed) and Doufupi (tobean skin) 150 g each; Chuanbeimu (Fritillariae Cirrhosae Bulbus, Sichuan fritillary bulb) 9 g; Bingtang (rock sugar) and Baitang (white sugar) 75 g each; Baiguoren (Ginkgo Semen, ginkgo nut) 9 g. Bake the four herbs—Laifuzi, Doufupi, Chuanbeimu, and Baiguoren—dry in an earthenware pot, grind into a fine powder, sift through a silk sieve, then grind the rock sugar finely and mix it together with the white sugar and the medicinal powder. Take once each in the morning and evening, 6 g each time, washed down with warm boiled water.

This formula digests food and resolves phlegm, stops cough and calms asthma. It is indicated for senile phlegm-asthma that flares up in winter, or for qi stagnation with vomiting, chest and diaphragmatic fullness and oppression, or for young people with cough combined with the excess pattern of stomach disease.

This is almost a dietary-therapy formula. The Laifuzi is radish seed; the Baiguoren is ginkgo seed. Both Laifuzi and Baiguoren resolve phlegm, stop cough and calm asthma. Chuanbeimu moistens the lung, resolves phlegm and stops cough. Doufupi has a good action of promoting diuresis and resolving phlegm. Moderate amounts of rock sugar and white sugar not only improve the taste but also moisten the throat and remove dryness. Such a combination both resolves phlegm, stops cough and calms asthma, and is easily accepted by patients—a very good treatment approach.

The stir-fried Laifuzi and Doufupi in this formula both promote gastrointestinal peristalsis and speed up digestion, so this formula not only stops cough but also markedly improves indigestion, and is especially suitable for patients with cough-asthma plus indigestion.

Common causes of cough-asthma in the elderly include emphysema and tracheitis, all of which can be treated symptomatically with this formula. The original intent of this formula is similar to Sanzi Yangqin Tang, but its herbs are milder than those of Sanzi Yangqin Tang; whether taken by elderly people or children, it causes no obvious adverse reactions. However, it is not suitable for diabetic patients.