Search in formulas
Minor Center-Fortifying Decoction
小建中汤 〔小建中湯〕xiǎo jiàn zhōng tāng
Source: Shān Hán Lùn 伤寒论
Ingredients:
- Guì zhī (桂枝 Cinnamomi Ramulus, cinnamon twig) 6–9g
- Bái sháo (白芍 Paeoniae Radix Alba, white peony [root]) 12–18g
- Gān cǎo (甘草 Glycyrrhizae Radix, licorice [root]) 3–6g
- Shēng jiāng (生姜 Zingiberis Rhizoma Recens, fresh ginger) 2–5g
- Dà zǎo (大枣 Jujubae Fructus, jujube) 5–7g
- Yí táng (饴糖 Maltosum , malt sugar) (drenched) 30–60g
Action: Warms the center and supplements vacuity; relaxes tension and relieves pain.
Indication: Center burner vacuity cold causing crampy pain in the stomach that is relieved by warmth, pressure, and food; vacuity taxation heat effusion; heart palpitation and vacuity vexation due to insufficiency of heart qì.
Category: Interior-warming formulas / Center-warming cold-dispersing formula
Method: Decoct with water, remove dregs, and add malt sugar, allowing it to melt. Then split the brew into two helpings.
Rationale: Yí táng is sweet and moistening and slightly warm; it abides and does not move. It supplements vacuity and fortifies the center; it also has the mild effect of relieving tension and pain. It supplements both spleen yīn and spleen yáng. Guì zhī is acrid, sweet, and warm; it moves and does not abide. It does not have the same supplementing effect as Yí táng but is quick-acting to warm and free yáng qì, disperse cold, and relieve pain. These two agents work together to relieve acute abdominal pain due to vacuity cold. Bái sháo is used in twice the amount as Guì zhī to work with the Gān cǎo and Yí táng to emolliate the liver and relieve pain. Shēng jiāng, Dà zǎo, and Gān cǎo have the function of stimulating the spleen.
Variations: Severe