Insights and Updates

Time flies, and once again it is the Dragon Boat Festival. Though the annual wishes are ever the same, I still earnestly hope that this greeting of "peace and well-being" may come true. As someone in medicine, I know only too well what health and…

Prof. Yin Huihe was a great contemporary TCM physician. On the basis of ancient formulas he added corresponding herbs to form a number of modified formulas that work better than the originals. The modified Qianjin Weijing Tang is one of them. Qianjin Weijing Tang comes…

Mah Xing Shi Gan Tang is a formula from the Shanghan Lun for treating Taiyang warm disease. It consists of Mahuang (ephedra), Xingren (apricot kernel), Shigao (gypsum), and Gancao (licorice), hence its name. Zhang Zhongjing described its indication as "sweating with panting." Later generations use…

The authoritative journal Nature Metabolism recently published a large study involving researchers from the University of Florida and other institutions. The researchers analyzed the medical records of nearly 60,000 patients with varying degrees of cognitive impairment between 2012 and 2024, and found that long-term use…

Over the weekend I discovered an audiobook narration of the Biography of Qian Xuesen on the WeChat Reading app, and, curious, I gave it a listen. Once started, I could not stop. I have long admired Qian Xuesen and knew something of his story, but…

The Ming physician Gong Tingxian included a formula called Qingre Daotan Tang (Heat-Clearing Phlegm-Driving Decoction) in his Shoushi Baoyuan. Gong Tingxian described the composition and indications of the formula as follows: Huanglian (Coptis) 8 fen; Huangqin (Scutellaria) 2 qian; Gualouren (Trichosanthes seed) 4 qian, shell…

The Old Book of Tang, Biographies of Artists and Technicians records: "Xu Yinzong was a native of Yixing, Changzhou. He first served the Chen dynasty as a military aide to the Prince of Xincai. At that time the Empress Dowager Liu suffered from wind and…

A certain Guan, female, aged 10. After a cold she developed a high fever reaching above 41°C. A variety of antibacterial and anti-inflammatory drugs, including penicillin and streptomycin, were used, but the condition not only failed to resolve but tended to worsen. Blood testing showed…

Base formula: Xianhe Cao (仙鹤草, Agrimonia pilosa) 100 g; Dangshen (党参, Codonopsis) 30 g; raw Huangqi (生黄芪, Astragalus) 50–100 g; Danggui (当归, Angelica) 10–20 g; Shudi (熟地, Rehmannia glutinosa preparata) 30 g; Huangjing (黄精, Polygonatum) 30 g; Diyu (地榆, Sanguisorba) 30 g; 5 Dazao (大枣,…

1. We know that Chinese medicine contains scientific truth—very precious scientific truth—but people "judge by appearances," doubting whether TCM contains truth, or going further to regard TCM as feudal dross. Letter to Li Yinsheng, May 16, 1984—Selected Letters of Qian Xuesen, Vol. 1, p. 0088,…