WH Acupuncture & Herbs Centre

Xiao qing long tang(Minor Blue Dragon Decoction )

 [INGREDIENTS]:

Ephedra 9g , Cassia twig 6g,  White peony root 9g,   Asarum herb 3g,  Dry ginger 3g , Roasted licorice 6g,  Pinellia tuber 9g,  Schizandra fruit 3g

[DIRECTIONS]:Decoct ephedra first. After getting rid of the floating foam, put in the other herbs.

[EFFECTS]: Relieving the exterior and resolve fluid-retention to alleviate cough and asthma.

[INDICATIONS]: Attack of wind and cold on the exterior with internal fluid- retention manifested by chill, fever, absence of sweat, asthma and cough with abundant thin expectoration, or cough due to fluid-retention accompanied by diffi­culty in lying position, or heaviness and pain of body with edema of face and limbs, white and slippery coating, floating pulse.

[ANALYSIS OF FORMULA]: This is a common formula for expelling cold to relieve the exterior and warming lung to resolve fluid-retention. As the main herb, ephedra is to induce perspiration for relieving the exterior, to disperse the lung for relieving asthma, and to excretes water for alleviating edema. Being pun­gent and sweet flavors and warm nature, cassia twig acts as the assistant herb to help ephedra relieve the exterior as well as warming yang to promote the transformative function of qi. According to the principle that “diseases pertaining to fluid-retention should be treated with warm-natured herbs”，dry ginger warms the spleen and lung; pinellia tuber dries dampness, resolves phlegm and lowers the turbidness;both asarum berb and schizandra fruit strengthen the effect of war­ming the lung and resolving fluid-retention and can prevent consuming the lung-qi for relieving cough and asthma; white peony root cooperates cassia twig to harmo­nize the nutrient and defensive qi and cooperates schizandra fruit to prevent over­dispersing of ephedra and cassia twig. All the five herbs act as adjuvans. As the dispatcher herb, Roasted licorice harmonizes all the components.