Is it okay to boil a dose of Chinese medicine 5 times?

The medicinal components in Chinese herbal medicines can be effectively analyzed when they are boiled, so Chinese herbal medicines generally need to be boiled twice before they can effectively exert their medicinal properties. When boiling Chinese medicine, you must soak the Chinese medicine first, so that it will be easier for the medicinal power of the Chinese medicine to evaporate better. However, it is not suitable to boil the same Chinese medicine several times, because it will lose the original medicinal power of the Chinese herbal medicine. So how many times can a Chinese medicine be boiled?

1. How many times should Chinese medicinal materials be boiled?

Before decocting Chinese medicine, it should be soaked for about 1 hour to soak the Chinese medicine thoroughly. There is no actual amount of tap water, so cold water will do for the first time. It is usually better to use water that has just barely passed through the Chinese medicinal materials. Decoction the Chinese medicine for about 40 minutes for the first time and pour out 100ml. Add boiling water for the second time (some Chinese medicinal materials contain tannins, which will coagulate when they come into contact with cold water, affecting the dissolution of the ingredients) and simmer for about 30 minutes, pour out 100ml. The third time is the same as the second time, pour out 100ml.

Mix the three doses of medicine together, which should make up to a small bowl. More will cause nausea and vomiting. Drink it in three doses. Generally, supplements should be taken before meals, and medicines that irritate the stomach (such as medicines for treating rheumatism) should be taken after meals. If you boil a lot of water three times, it's okay, you can heat the juice and extract it. Of course, for some prescribed medicines, do not fry for a long time, because they are mainly extracted from their volatile oil components, which will become ineffective over time, so they should be added later. For harmful drugs, you must follow the doctor's advice. For example, Lu Te Technology's Aconitum and others must be decocted for an hour to remove toxic side effects. Don't be careless. The frequency of boiling Chinese medicine must be appropriate, because some Chinese medicinal materials have lost their medicinal properties after being boiled several times.

2. Which pot should be used to boil Chinese medicine?

The best ceramic containers for boiling Chinese medicine are stone pots and sand pots, because they have stable physical properties, are not easy to react with medicinal ingredients, and have uniform heat transfer and good air permeability. Secondly, you can use white porcelain containers or stainless steel pots. It is not suitable to use metal equipment such as iron, copper, and aluminum when decocting Chinese medicine. Since rare elements can easily undergo chemical reactions with the ingredients of traditional Chinese medicine in the potion, their efficacy may be reduced or even cause toxic side effects.

3. How long does it take to boil Chinese medicine?

The medicine must be soaked before decocting to make the ingredients easier to extract. Generally, for medicines dominated by flowers, leaves and stems, the soaking time is usually 15 minutes. The soaking time for medicines mainly based on roots, seeds, underground stems and fruits is generally thirty minutes.

How to make the right medicine

1. Generally, you need to cover the lid tightly when you start decocting Chinese medicine. When the water boils, you can use two wooden chopsticks to lift the lid, leaving some space for the steam to escape. Some Chinese medicinal materials contain volatile ingredients, such as mint, patchouli and other tonic medicines, as well as precious Chinese medicinal materials such as Korean ginseng. In order to prevent the ingredients from being released into the air during the decocting process, they must be simmered with the outer lid on.

2. Soak: Before decocting Chinese medicinal materials, soak them in cold water first.

3. Drinking water can be used to decoct Chinese medicine. The water flow rate should be 1-3 cm above the surface of the Chinese medicine. If there are too many Chinese medicinal materials or they are easy to absorb moisture, the amount can be increased appropriately.

4. When decocting, first boil the medicine over a low heat (i.e. high fire), then switch to a slow fire (i.e. low heat) and simmer.

5. When decocting Chinese medicine, pay attention to stirring the aromatics to ensure that the medicine is fully decocted. Each dose of Chinese medicinal materials is generally decocted twice, and the second time can be slightly shorter. Some medicines require different amounts of time, such as decocting first, taking the medicine later, or taking it orally, etc. Chinese medicine practitioners will explain this clearly when you are handing out the medicine.