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Hello, Lazy Rabbit.
Today, I will share a case study that arose from a craving. A few days ago, I felt a bit bland (zui dan), so I went to a small supermarket to buy some pig stomach made from konjac, which was spicy and fragrant, with a hint of cumin (I love cumin; as Bai Zhantang said, give me a handful of cumin, and I could eat this whole table).
I bought about 8 or 9 packs, thinking I would eat one pack occasionally. However, once I started eating, the more I ate, the spicier it became, and the more I wanted to eat. I bought it in the evening and finished all of it before going to bed. But it was too spicy; drinking water didn’t help. Luckily, I had some fried rice I made to dispel dampness, and after eating a few handfuls, I finally felt much better.
In the past, eating very spicy food would quickly cause stomach pain and diarrhea, but this time, after eating, I felt a bit itchy around my knees, and my body also felt a bit itchy. I thought I had come into contact with something I was allergic to and didn’t pay much attention. Unexpectedly, that night, my feet, which hadn’t itched in a long time, itched all night. When I woke up the next morning, I found my body covered in bumps, and the more I scratched, the itchier it became.
Now I understand that in the past, when I ate spicy oil, my body would self-rescue by expelling it through diarrhea due to poor absorption in my intestines and stomach, so I never developed bumps. But this time, all the spicy oil was absorbed, and combined with the dampness in my body, it turned into damp-heat that manifested as bumps all over, resembling an allergy.
At that time, I had some Saturated Granules and Gan Lu Xiao Du Dan (which I had bought but never used, as it dispels damp-heat, and I was hesitant due to my long-term white greasy tongue coating). Given my current condition, I took two packs of Saturated Granules and then took Gan Lu Xiao Du Dan twice. That night, my feet still itched a little, but when I woke up the next day, the bumps had disappeared, and my body was no longer itchy, just with a few red marks. On the third day, I took Gan Lu Xiao Du Dan twice again, and now my skin color has returned to normal, and my feet are no longer itchy.
This story tells us that cravings… are okay, as long as you have remedies on hand…
This case study is quite simple, but it was selected for publication because it is the time to use Gan Lu Xiao Du Dan, and this case is quite typical.Gan Lu Xiao Du Dan is a type of Chinese patent medicine that acts as a dampness-dispelling agent, with the effects of promoting dampness elimination, clearing heat, and detoxifying. It is indicated for damp-warm epidemic conditions, with both dampness and heat present. Symptoms include: fever, fatigue, chest tightness, abdominal distension, limb soreness, sore throat, yellowing of the skin and eyes, swelling of the cheeks, thirst, short and red urine, diarrhea with turbid urine, white or thick greasy or yellow tongue coating, and a slippery or rapid pulse. Clinically, it is often used to treat typhoid enteritis, acute gastroenteritis, jaundice-type infectious hepatitis, leptospirosis, cholecystitis, and other conditions characterized by damp-heat. Look, the instruction manual does not state that it can treat body allergies, so why did the author use it to eliminate rashes? It goes back to the fundamental theory of TCM— as long as the pathogenesis is the same, it can be used. Whether it is the author’s rash or the diseases listed in the manual, the underlying pathogenesis is ultimately one: damp-heat. Let’s look at the composition of Gan Lu Xiao Du Dan: Fei Hua Shi (Talc), Dan Huang Qin (Scutellaria baicalensis), Mian Yin Chen (Artemisia capillaris), Shi Chang Pu (Acorus tatarinowii), Chuan Bei Mu (Fritillaria cirrhosa), Mu Tong (Akebia), Huo Xiang (Agastache rugosa), Lian Qiao (Forsythia), Bai Dou Kou (Amomum villosum), Bo He (Mentha haplocalyx), She Gan (Belamcanda chinensis). “In the formula, Fei Hua Shi promotes urination and dispels dampness, clears heat and relieves summer heat; Yin Chen effectively clears and dispels damp-heat and reduces jaundice; Huang Qin clears heat and dries dampness, purges fire and detoxifies. The three herbs work together to address the pathogenesis of damp-heat. When damp-heat stagnates, it can obstruct the flow of Qi, hence the use of Shi Chang Pu, Huo Xiang, and Bai Dou Kou to promote Qi movement and transform dampness, harmonizing the spleen and stomach, allowing Qi to flow and dampness to be eliminated; Mu Tong clears heat and promotes urination to expel damp-heat through urination, enhancing its ability to clear heat and dispel dampness. When heat toxins attack upward, causing swelling of the cheeks and sore throat, it is supplemented with Lian Qiao, She Gan, Bei Mu, and Bo He to clear heat, detoxify, disperse masses, and relieve sore throat.” Now it is mid-May, and the rainy season is approaching in various regions, where damp-heat conditions will be very common, and many people will experience symptoms of summer damp-cold flu. Regardless of how damp-heat manifests, whether as eczema, fever with dizziness, acute gastroenteritis, or jaundice-type hepatitis, as long as the diagnosis of damp-heat is clear, Gan Lu Xiao Du Dan can be used.The key diagnostic points are: rapid pulse, body heat, limb soreness, thirst, red urine, or sore throat with yellowing of the body, white greasy or slightly yellow tongue coating.
Thanks again to the author for sharing, and I look forward to receiving more case studies from you. Please submit to [email protected] (this email is only for case study submissions, no consultations, thank you for your understanding). Selected submissions will receive a signed copy of “Yi Mu Liao Ran” or a Lazy Rabbit backpack (choose one). We are waiting for you.
Actually, on Mother’s Day
The complete story is as follows:
