Chinese medicine compatibility table

The way of combining Chinese medicine is very critical. If the combination is unreasonable, not only will the true efficacy of the medicine not be brought into play, but the medicines will counteract each other. If you are not careful, it may endanger people's lives. Therefore, you must pay more attention and must use two medicinal materials that will not counteract or oppose each other to avoid poisoning reactions to your body.

1. Single-acting: A single medicine that can produce the expected effect and does not need the assistance of other medicines is called a single-acting medicine. For example, Du Shen Tang, which uses only ginseng, is effective in treating the syndrome of severe deficiency of vital energy.

2. Mutual dependence: The combined use of drugs with similar properties and effects can enhance their original therapeutic effects. For example, gypsum combined with Anemarrhena asphodeloides can enhance the effect of clearing heat and purging fire.

3. Mutual use: that is, the combination of drugs that have certain common properties and effects, with one drug as the main one and the other as the auxiliary one, can improve the efficacy of the main drug.

4. Drug-to-drug toxicity or side effects can be alleviated or eliminated by another drug. For example, the toxicity of raw pinellia can be reduced or eliminated by ginger, so it is said that raw pinellia is afraid of ginger. [5]

5. Mutual antagonism: one drug can reduce or eliminate the toxicity or side effects of another drug. For example, ginger can reduce or eliminate the toxic side effects of raw pinellia, so it is said that ginger can kill the toxicity of raw pinellia.

6. Antagonism: When two drugs are used together, one drug interacts with the other drug, causing the original efficacy to be reduced or even lose its efficacy.

On the contrary: that is, the combination of two drugs can produce toxic reactions or side effects. Such as some of the medicines in the “Eighteen Antidotes”.

Medicinal diet can be divided into two categories: dietary Chinese medicine and dietary medicinal diet:

1. Diet therapy of Chinese medicine. Dietary Chinese medicine refers to food and drink that has the function of preventing and treating diseases or maintaining health and recovery. It is also called "edible Chinese medicine", "dietary herbal medicine" or "food Chinese medicine". This type of dietary Chinese medicine includes grains, fruits, vegetables, seasonings, poultry, animals, aquatic products, etc.

2. Diet therapy and medicinal food. Medicinal diet is a meal made from medicines, foods and seasonings with therapeutic effects. Generally speaking, medicinal diet can be made from edible Chinese medicine alone, or it can be made from Chinese medicinal materials and food as raw materials, processed and cooked according to a certain formula.