how much fuzi in place of wu tou in wtgzt

I realize that I have not taken the Jingui series, but I was studying some of the formulas I am wondering about getting Rongyan. My usuall suppliers don't seem to have it. Any thoughts on bulk herb sources or substitures? Is there an altnerantive name that I am missing. I have not checked Bensky, but I could not find any reference to it in Chen,

Many thanks in advance.

David in Atlanta

Arnaud,

  There is some confusion on the use of fu zi while women are breastfeeding.  Some say it is perfectly okay as long as the condition calls for its use.  However, many books state, with some hesitancy, that the baby may suffer from the ingestion through breast milk.  I cannot seem to find anyone that really knows what they are talking about in this case, so I bring it to  you.

Thank you,

Chris Powell 

Does anyone know if fuzi is currently not being allowed in the USA? I am seeing it dropped from herb company lists of medicinals. What's up?

-Steve 

Hi all,

I have been thinking about this for a while now. And I have been experimenting both on myself and with patients. I guess that much of this has come about from the Fire Spirit schools being so much in the public eye as of late. I want to write down some random or semi-random thoughts on the use of Fuzi. Please feel free to add your own.

Fuzi can trigger negative reactions in the following situations:

When the pattern does not call for Fuzi. This is of course obvious and goes without saying. That said, what happens when a healthy person who doesn't need Fuzi is administered Fuzi? In my opinion there are two scenarios which are likely (in order of relevance)

If the internal environment is dry, whether that is yangming excessive dryness or shaoyin deficiency dryness, Fuzi is going to cause internal heat. In excess patterns this will be yangming dry heat with dry tongue, thirst, dry stool and vexation. In shaoyin patterns this will be rapid pulse, palpitations (heart racing), insomnia, dry mouth, hot flashes, decreased urination, bleeding, etc. Both patterns did not call for Fuzi in the first place and should have been easy to differentiate.

But it is the second scenario that is harder to catch. A lot of people have latent chronic shaoyang patterns. These can sometimes flare-up, at which times they are easy to spot. But sometimes they are subdued. These asymptomatic intervals do not represent harmony of shaoyang. When Fuzi is administered, the reactions are less obvious than in the dryness conditions. And therefore it is important to point them out.

First and foremost, these patients can develop headaches and sore throat. These are also the most likely patients to feel dizzy after ingestion of Fuzi. Regardless of the fact that dizziness is a good sign for positive clinical effects of Fuzi, here it indicates the flaring of the ministerial fire.As the imperial fire is stirred, the ministerial fire flares up violently, causing full body discomfort (malaise), alternating waves of warmth followed cold extremities, swollen lymph nodes, localized rashes especially in groin and armpits, and flare-ups of pre-existing skin conditions, especially of the likes of eczema or fungal conditions, as well as dry itchy eyes, rushing sounds in the ears, etc.These are the patients who can develop hypertension.

On top of that, when Fuzi formulas are given to patients who obviously need it (e.g. auto-immune conditions), but patients develop shaoyang symptoms, then the Fuzi formula, regardless of how well it is indicated,will NOT produce ANY expected results whatsoever. Then the formula needs to be discontinued, and the patient needs to be given a shaoyang formula, most preferably Chaihu Guizhi Ganjiang Tang. In other words, when you are certain a person needs Fuzi and the formula they are on should work, but it's not, it is DEFINITELY because they have a shaoyang pattern which needs to be harmonized first.

Lastly, since Fuzi warms up the small intestine, it is rather incompatible for patients who consume daily alcohol and who are because of it experiencing a "drinker's nose" (jiu zhao bi, chin.) (rosacea on the face due to alcohol) and hemmorhoids with slight blood loss noticeable on toilet paper (near-bleeding). In mild cases thses signs are ok to disregard and one can just carry out the treatment. But in severe cases one must first cool the small intestine's hot damp condition with a Zhizi formula, before pursuing the supply of proper fire to the SI. Under no circumstances should one use Chixiaodou and Fuzi at the same time since they will cancel each other out. I have not yet tried Fuzi and Zhizi at the same time, but I prefer to treat them separately. Remember, I personally don't treat shaoyang and shaoyin simultaneously, except for the Sini San jia Fuzi scenario, which is arguably not a full-on shaoyang pattern, nor does Fuzi here treat a full-on shaoyin pattern.

So, shelve the machismo and don't think that high doses of Fuzi will fix any problem, just because of the principle that yang is the ultimate answer to the riddle of life. It is a dangerous herb. That said, use it whenever you have to and at whichever dose you have to use it at. It is a life-saver. Just don't try to save lives with your eyes closed... Be aware and watch out for warning signs.

Respectfully,

Arnaud

I have two queries about Gui Zhi dosage

1.   Why when palpitations are quite a core symptom of bothLing Gui Zhi Gan Tang and Gui Zhi Jia Long Gu Mu Li Tang is Gui Zhi only at 9gin both formulas?

2.   Is it significant that Gui Zhi dosage never exceeds FuLing dosage (apart from in Shu Yu Wan), and is this something that we shouldconsider when modifying, e.g. if adding Gui Zhi to ZWT use 9 instead of 12?

Laurie

I just got the results of an ALCAT blood test for food allergies, and I am allergic to ginger and cinnamon. very allergic to ginger, and not so much to cinnamon.  my two favorite herbs. 

what to do?  they are both in my herbal script...anyone have any experience with this?

Xia Ku Cao is mentioned in the herbs inferior class of the SNBCJ. Being bitter, pungent and cold, it is said to treat both cold and heat and head sores, concretions and damp impediment. Modern usage also includes management of high blood pressure.

Do we use this herb in the SHL/JGYL tradition at all? I would think this might be a useful addition to Rx where damp and heat cause blockage and thus  cause HBP, especially the diastolic value.

HiArnaud

Sorry toget back to the subject of replacements.

In the absenceof Bie Jia is there anything that can replace it (animal, vegetable ormineral), would Gui Ban do?

Btw doesanybody have the dose of Bie Jia in Sheng Ma Bie Jia Tang, as my Jin Gui onlysays a thumb-sized piece.

Thanks

Laurie

Arnaud,

What exactly does Chuan Jiao do? I'm afraid I don't understand this herb at all. I'm looking at it in the context of Wu Mei Wan and thinking "uhh..why? Doesn't Gan Jiang kind of cover the bases here?" Can you explain?

Mike