"Compendium of Materia Medica" says that it "strengthens the spleen and stomach, removes moisture and improves diet", but there are five points to note.

For those who love health care and believe in traditional Chinese medicine, strengthening the spleen and removing dampness is a very common health care method. But have you noticed that when it comes to strengthening the spleen and removing dampness, Atractylodes macrocephala is indispensable in many cases. Even to a certain extent, Atractylodes is a "stepping stone" for strengthening the spleen and removing dampness.

Atractylodes macrocephala is a Chinese herbal medicine that is “bitter and warm in nature and can dry out dampness”. It is recorded in the Compendium of Materia Medica and other herbal classics that it has a bitter and warm nature and flavor, and enters the spleen and stomach meridians. It has the functions of “strengthening the spleen and stomach, removing dampness, and promoting "food" and many other functions. It is precisely this point that modern people have noticed and used it to strengthen the spleen and remove dampness to achieve the purpose of maintaining health.

In fact, according to traditional Chinese medicine and the records of doctors of the past dynasties, although Atractylodes macrocephala does have many functions, it cannot be used arbitrarily. First of all, because Atractylodes has a "hard and warm" nature and flavor, it is good for removing moisture, but it also has the risk of "easily damaging body fluids and consuming qi". If used improperly, not only will it greatly weaken the spleen and remove dampness, but it will also damage the body's body fluids.

Secondly, traditional Chinese medicine has always paid attention to "processing", and Atractylodes macrocephala is no exception. The Atractylodes we often see on the market are basically "raw Atractylodes", which puts more restrictions on the use of Atractylodes and is something we need to pay attention to. Even the famous spleen-strengthening prescription "Sijunzi Decoction" does not specify the raw and cooked ingredients of Atractylodes macrocephala, so it needs to be used flexibly when clinical symptoms arise.

In short, there are five points to pay attention to when using Atractylodes:

1. Stir-fried Atractylodes: The so-called "stir-fried" is not the loess we understand, but refers to " Stove heart soil", also known as "Fulonggan", in layman's terms, is the soil dug out from under the stove where firewood is burned. It is also a kind of traditional Chinese medicine.

To stir-fry Atractylodes macrocephala, you need to crush the hearth soil, sift it, and stir-fry it in an iron pot over high heat. How deep should it be stir-fried? That is to say, being "fired". The so-called stir-frying means that there is no need to use any force when stir-frying, and even the soil in the pot will feel like "flowing and shaking".

Then put in the raw Atractylodes macrocephala and stir-fry quickly over low heat until the surface of Atractylodes macrocephala becomes brown. After stir-fried Atractylodes, the hardness of Atractylodes is alleviated, and the functions of reducing dampness and removing dampness are enhanced, and there is less possibility of damaging body fluids and consuming Qi;

2. Stir-fried Atractylodes with bran: so-called stir-fried Atractylodes with bran Atractylodes, that is, wheat bran (wheat hull) is used as the base material for frying Atractylodes. First stir-fry the wheat bran quickly until it smokes, then add Atractylodes macrocephala and flip it quickly, which is equivalent to using the smoke of wheat bran to roast Atractylodes macrocephala until the wheat bran is charred and black, while Atractylodes macrocephala only turns golden brown and will not be charred. Stir-fried Atractylodes with bran also reduces the laboriousness of raw Atractylodes, but strengthens its effect of strengthening the spleen and stomach, so it is more suitable for spleen-strengthening people with weak spleen.

3. Honey Zhizhi Atractylodes: Compared with the above two, honey Zhizhi Atractylodes is used slightly less. That is to say, mix water with honey and mix well, heat it in the pot until it boils and bubbles, then add raw Atractylodes macrocephala, stir-fry quickly over low heat until the Atractylodes macrocephala becomes stranded, and finally all the honey water is absorbed by Atractylodes macrocephala, and the fried Atractylodes macrocephala becomes golden and moist. Transparent, with little pungent smell. It has more functions of strengthening the spleen, stomach, and nourishing blood. This point is more suitable for modern people's health care of "strengthening the spleen and promoting blood".

4. The difference between Atractylodes macrocephala and Atractylodes macrocephala: In ancient times, "shu" actually included two types: Atractylodes macrocephala and Atractylodes macrocephala. From the appearance, Atractylodes macrocephala is reddish in color, has loose soil, and is more pungent and warm in nature and flavor. , it is worse than Atractylodes for removing dampness, but it is not as good as Atractylodes for strengthening the spleen, so it is rarely used for health preservation.

5. There are three "phases" when using Atractylodes: The so-called "phases" refer to the compatibility of two traditional Chinese medicines to promote each other.

When using Atractylodes macrocephala, there are three "combinations" you can learn about:

1. Atractylodes macrocephala with white peony root: white peony root softens the liver, and atractylodes macrocephala strengthens the spleen. When the two are combined, they can "suppress wood and strengthen the spleen", It is used to soften the liver and strengthen the spleen;

2. Atractylodes macrocephala with fangfeng: Atractylodes macrocephala strengthens the spleen and fangfeng moves the lung meridian, which coincides with the meaning of "cultivating soil to generate metal". This combination is often used in cases of superficial deficiency syndrome;

3. Atractylodes macrocephala combined with Poria cocos: Both of them can strengthen the spleen and remove dampness. When used in combination, one plus one is greater than two in terms of strengthening the spleen and removing dampness.

In short, Atractylodes macrocephala is indeed a very commonly used medicine for strengthening the spleen and removing dampness, and it is also familiar to everyone. However, we need to pay attention to the above 5 points when using them. Only by using it rationally and preparing it properly can it achieve better health-preserving effects.