"Materia Medica Mengquan" written by Chen Jiamo in the Ming Dynasty comprehensively elaborated on the processing methods, experience and mechanism, which had a profound influence on later generations. Although Li Shizhen's "Compendium of Materia Medica" is a comprehensive work on materia medica, most of it has a "cultivation and treatment" section. It first refers to previous records, then records the experience of preparation at that time, and finally talks about personal opinions. In terms of preparation content, it far exceeds Previous monographs on processing comprehensively reflected the level of processing technology in the Ming Dynasty and are still important reference materials for traditional Chinese medicine processing.

The "Pao-Zhao Dafa" written by Miao Xiyong in the Ming Dynasty is a special book on processing. In addition to introducing the main content of "Leigong Pao-Zhao Lun", it also focuses on describing the specific processing methods used at that time. Zhao Xuemin's "Supplements to the Compendium of Materia Medica" of the Qing Dynasty developed the frying method of traditional Chinese medicine processing, and proposed that attention should be paid to the heat when frying charcoal, emphasizing the problem of carbonization, and contributed to the development of processing technology. Zhang Rui's "Guide to Cultivation" is a monograph on processing in the Qing Dynasty. It introduces 232 processing methods, and points out that "Wuyu juice suppresses bitter cold and supports stomach qi, and pig bile suppresses gallbladder fire and relieves stagnant wood", which provides additional explanations. The mechanism of roasting excipients. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, each province and city formulated "Specifications for the Processing of Traditional Chinese Medicine" on the basis of comprehensively inheriting the processing experience of previous generations.

The National Pharmacopoeia contains the processing content and formulates the "General Principles for the Processing of Traditional Chinese Medicine", which makes the processing technology of traditional Chinese medicine develop in a standardized, standardized and scientific direction. In addition, the emergence of works such as "Integration of Traditional Chinese Medicine Processing Experience", "Traditional Chinese Medicine Processing Science", and "Collection of Historical Traditional Chinese Medicine Processing Materials" have promoted the organization and research of traditional Chinese medicine processing theory. The processing, processing and production of modern traditional Chinese medicine are becoming increasingly mechanized. Research on processing mechanisms, processing methods, process reforms and processed product specifications and quality continues to be in-depth, promoting the standardization, modernization and scientificization of traditional processing methods. (1): Enhance the effect of drugs and improve clinical efficacy

(2): Reduce or eliminate the toxicity or side effects of drugs to ensure drug safety

(3): Change the performance and efficacy of drugs , expand its scope of application

(4): Change some properties of medicinal materials to facilitate storage and/or preparation

(5): Pure medicinal materials to ensure the quality and weighing of medicinal materials Accurate amount

(6): Correction of smell and taste, easy to take

(7): Introduction of medicine into the meridians, convenient for directional drug selection, processing and purpose

Before cutting, roasting, blending or preparing medicinal materials, the prescribed medicinal parts should be selected and non-medicinal parts and impurities should be removed. Commonly used methods such as selection, screening, winnowing, washing, and bleaching are used to remove soil, sand, foreign matter, and mildew mixed in medicinal materials to achieve the purpose of cleaning medicines, and to separate medicinal materials of different sizes. In order to process them separately. Through processing such as hair removal, reed removal, heart removal, core removal, and head, foot, and wing removal, the purpose of removing non-medicinal parts is achieved, such as removing hair from Shiwei brush, removing reed from ginseng, removing heart from Morinda officinalis, and removing ebony plum. Remove the core, cantharides, head, feet, wings, etc. Some minerals, shells, fruit seeds and medicinal materials such as magnet, Cassia, Ligustrum lucidum, perilla, etc. need to be crushed. Some medicines that are soft and silk-like in texture, such as bamboo root, glutinous rice grass, etc., need to be kneaded into a ball. Some medicines are crushed into velvet shape, such as ephedra velvet, moxa leaf velvet, etc. After some drugs are moistened, excipients are added to adhere to them to enhance the therapeutic effect, such as cinnabar mixed with Poria Goddess, indigo naturalis mixed with rushes, etc.

The purpose of cleaning processing:

1. Remove sediment impurities and insect-eaten and moldy products.

2. Remove non-medicinal parts.

3. Distinguish medicinal parts with different curative effects.

4. Classify medicinal materials into batches 5. Simple processing.

Cutting and purpose of decoction pieces

A processing process in which the selected medicinal materials are softened by water treatment and then cut into slices, shreds, segments, blocks and other shapes with a certain knife. process. Decoction pieces originally referred to medicines cut into tablets for the preparation of decoctions. Nowadays, they generally refer to medicines that can be mixed with prescriptions and concocted into various shapes. After the medicine is cut into decoction pieces, its active ingredients are easy to extract, and it is easy to crush and process, making it easy to prepare decoctions and other preparations; it is easy to combine with auxiliary materials during roasting, which is convenient for further processing and roasting; the decoction pieces are pure and dry, easy to store and keep, and are small in size. Dispensing; prepared pieces are easy to reveal tissue structure characteristics and facilitate drug identification.

When cutting into decoction pieces, you should first use different water management methods such as leaching, washing, soaking, bleaching, and moistening according to the characteristics of the medicinal materials, season and temperature conditions, so that the dried medicinal materials absorb a certain amount of water and soften, and There are bending method, finger pinching method, puncture method and hand pinching method to check the quality of water treatment processing, which is customarily called "looking at the water head". It is necessary to prevent the water head from being too high, so that the active ingredients are lost too much, and the medicinal materials are too soft, and they are easy to mold; it is also necessary to prevent the water head from being insufficient, so that the medicinal materials are too hard and difficult to cut, so the softness and hardness are appropriate. After water treatment, it should be processed into a certain type according to the natural condition of the medicinal materials and the different needs of roasting, identification, medical treatment and appearance of the pieces. Generally speaking, medicinal materials with dense and solid texture, such as betel nut and black medicine, should be cut into thin slices (1 to 2 mm thick). Whole-herb medicinal materials such as Qumai and Artemisia annua should be cut into segments (10 to 15 mm in length). Medicinal materials such as tangerine peel and neem peel are mostly cut into thin strips (2 to 3 mm wide), and leaf medicinal materials such as lotus leaves and loquat leaves are mostly cut into wide strips (5 to 10 mm wide). The cutting methods mainly include cutting, pounding, filing, splitting, etc., depending on the texture of the medicinal material and the type of processing of the slices. After the medicinal materials are cut into pieces after water treatment, they contain a large amount of water and must be dried in time to ensure the quality of the pieces. There are two main methods for drying pieces: one is natural drying, that is, sun drying and shade drying; the other is artificial drying, that is, using direct fire, steam, electric heating, infrared, microwave and other mechanical drying equipment for drying.

Purpose of cutting the decoction pieces: to facilitate decoction of the active ingredients. Good for roasting. Convenient for preparation and preparation. Conducive to identification. Convenient for storage. Processed traditional Chinese medicine products are a complex category. They can be divided into the following categories according to the different methods and techniques of traditional Chinese medicine processing:

1. Clean products; 2. Cut products; 3. Fried products; 4. Hot products; 5. Forged products; 6. Charcoal products; 7. Steamed products; 8. Stewed products; 9. Chan products; 10. Boiled products; 11. Wine products; 12. Vinegar products; 13. Salt products; 14 , Ginger juice-fried products; 15. Honey-grilled products; 16. Oil-grilled products; 17. Water-based products; 18. Cream products; 19. Simmered products; 20. Purified products; 21. Retorted products; 22. Baked products ; 23. Fermented products; 24. Germinated products; 25. Replicated products; 26. Specially prepared products. Due to different clinical drug needs, the requirements for the corresponding processed products are different, regardless of the products prepared by any processing method. Collectively referred to as processed products. (1) Liquid excipients

Conventional liquid excipients: wine, vinegar, honey, salt water

Concoction liquid excipients: licorice juice, Evodia juice, black bean juice, ginger juice, polygonatum juice etc

Special liquid excipients: rice swill, bile, sesame oil, ghee, mutton fat oil, turtle blood, etc.

(2) Solid excipients

Mineral solid excipients : Alum, talcum powder, river sand, lime, loess, stove soil, etc.

Food solid excipients: rice, tofu, radish, wheat bran, etc.

Animal solid excipients: The "Guide to Cultivation" by Zhang Rui, a Qing Dynasty physician such as Clam Fen, is the third monograph on the processing of traditional Chinese medicine. The book discusses the functions of various processing methods, "Forging removes hardness, simmering brings dryness, and stir-frying brings aroma." The spicy nature can be removed by soaking, and the flavor can be obtained by steaming. "It has been widely used in the theory of traditional Chinese medicine processing.

Classification of Preparation Methods

Preparation: A method of purifying, crushing and cutting drugs. Purification is the use of manual or mechanical picking, sifting, winnowing, brushing, scraping and other methods to remove soil impurities and non-medicinal parts in order to achieve the purpose of cleaning drugs. Crush is the use of pounding, grinding, grinding, grinding, filing and other methods to change the shape of the drug so that it meets the requirements of dispensing, preparation and other processing methods. Cutting is the use of manual or mechanical cutting and guillotining methods to cut drugs into various shapes such as slices, segments, wires, and blocks to facilitate the dissolution of the active ingredients of the drug and the dispensing and use of the drug.

Water-based: A method of processing medicinal materials with water or other liquid excipients. Commonly used water preparation methods include rinsing, soaking, moistening, etc. The purpose is to clean the medicine, soften the medicine, and adjust the properties of the medicine. Rinse is to place the medicine in wide or long running water and change the water repeatedly to remove the fishy smell or salt.

The main purpose is to make the medicinal materials soft and crisp, easy to cook and crush, and convenient for preparation and dispensing, such as talcum powder fried elephant skin, yellow dog kidney; reduce toxicity and correct bad odor, such as talc powder fried hedgehog skin, leeches, etc.

Roasting method

A processing method in which a certain amount of liquid excipients are added to the cleanly selected or cut drugs and stir-fried to gradually penetrate the excipients into the drug tissue. According to the different auxiliary materials added, the grilling method can be divided into wine grilling, vinegar grilling, salt grilling, ginger grilling, honey grilling, oil grilling and other methods.

① Wine roasting method. That is, add a certain amount of wine to the cleaned or cut medicines and stir-fry them. For 100 kilograms of medicine, use 10 to 20 kilograms of rice wine and half of the white wine. The purpose of wine-roasting is that wine can change the potency of medicine, change the properties of the medicine, and induce the medicine to ascend. For example, Coptis chinensis mainly clears the dampness and fire stagnation in the gastrointestinal tract. After wine-roasting, it can clear the upper burns and heat; wine can promote blood circulation, such as Chuanxiong, Achyranthes bidentata, etc. Drugs for promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis are often made with wine, which has a synergistic effect and can improve the curative effect; wine is used to correct odor, and drugs with a fishy odor, such as black snake, akid snake, etc., are often used to be cooked with wine.

②Vinegar roasting method. That is, add a certain amount of rice vinegar to the cleaned or cut medicine and stir-fry. For 100 kilograms of medicine, use 20 to 30 kilograms of rice vinegar, up to 50 kilograms. The purpose of vinegar roasting is to introduce drugs into the liver to enhance the effects of promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis, soothing the liver and relieving pain, such as frankincense, myrrh, Corydalis, Wulingzhi and other blood-activating and blood-stasis analgesics, and Bupleurum, Cyperus rotunda, Qingpi and other soothing and relieving liver-relieving drugs. Depressive analgesics are often stir-fried with vinegar; to reduce toxicity, highly toxic medicines such as kansui, euphorbia, and genkwa are all fried with vinegar; at the same time, vinegar is also used to correct the smell and flavor, such as Wulingzhi, Frankincense and myrrh are boiled in vinegar to enhance their flavor and make them easier to take.

③Salt roasting method. That is, add a certain amount of salt aqueous solution to the cleaned or cut medicine and stir-fry. For every 100 kilograms of medicine, use 2 to 3 kilograms of table salt. The purpose of salt roasting is to induce the medicine to enter the kidneys and enhance the curative effect. For example, salt roasting of Eucommia ulmoides, Morinda officinalis, and Psoralen psoralen can increase the kidney-tonifying effect. Salt roasting of fennel, orange core, litchi core, etc. can enhance the effect of treating hernia and analgesic. It is known that The mother and Phellodendron bark with salt can enhance the effect of nourishing yin and reducing fire.

④Ginger roasting method. That is, add a certain amount of ginger juice to the cleaned or cut medicine, stir-fry or boil it. For 100 kilograms of medicine, use 10 kilograms of ginger to squeeze or boil the juice. The purpose of roasting ginger is to control its cold nature and enhance its anti-vomiting effect. For example, roasted ginger, berberine root, and magnolia bark can alleviate the side effects of irritating the throat and enhance the effect of warming and reducing dampness.

⑤Honey roasting method. That is, add a certain amount of refined honey to the cleaned or cut medicine and stir-fry. About 25 kilograms of refined honey is used for 100 kilograms of medicine. After the honey is heated and refined, it is called refined honey. The purpose of honey-roasting is to enhance the curative effect. For example, honey-roasted root bark, coltsfoot flower, aster, etc. can enhance the effect of moistening the lungs and relieving cough; honey-roasted astragalus, licorice, etc. can enhance the effect of tonifying the middle and replenishing qi; honey-roasted ephedra can alleviate the sweating effect. It can enhance the effect of moistening the lungs and relieving cough; roasting with honey can also correct the taste and alleviate the side effects of irritating the stomach and causing vomiting, such as roasting Aristolochia with honey. ⑥Oil roasting method. That is, the selected or cut medicine is heated together with a certain amount of edible oil, also known as the crisping method. There are three methods: stir-frying with suet oil, frying with vegetable oil, and baking with fat. For example, epimedium is roasted in mutton fat (20 kilograms of mutton fat oil is used for every 100 kilograms of epimedium).

Calcination method

A method of calcining the drug directly in a smokeless fire or in an appropriate refractory container. It can be divided into open forging method, forging and quenching method and dull forging method.

①Ming forging method. That is, put the medicine directly on the fire or put it into a suitable refractory container for high-temperature calcination. The purpose is to loosen the medicine or lose its crystal water, making it easier to crush and decoct, such as alum, cassia, etc.; to enhance the astringent effect of the medicine, such as oyster, red stone resin, etc.

②Forging and quenching method. That is, the medicine is calcined according to the obvious calcining method until it is completely red, then put into a certain amount of quenching liquid or cold water while it is hot, and then cooled suddenly to make it crispy. The purpose of quenching is to change the physical and chemical properties of the drug, enhance the efficacy, reduce side effects, remove impure ingredients, and make the drug crispy and easy to crush, which is beneficial to decoction of the active ingredients. Such as vinegar quenching natural copper (25 to 30 kilograms of vinegar for every 100 kilograms of natural copper), vinegar quenching ocher, water quenching calamine, etc.

③The simmering method. That is, the drug is calcined into charcoal under high temperature and oxygen-deficient conditions, which is also called closed calcining, dark calcining, and buckle pot calcining.

The purpose is to enhance the hemostatic effect, such as blood residual charcoal and lamp core charcoal; to reduce toxic and side effects, such as calcined dry paint.

Steaming method

Water and fire cooking method. The drug is changed from raw to mature, thereby changing certain properties to meet medicinal requirements.

①Steaming method. That is, put the cleaned medicine with excipients (wine, vinegar, etc.) or without excipients into a steaming container and heat it to a certain level with water. The purpose is to change the properties of the medicine and expand the scope of use. For example, black bean juice is mixed with steamed polygonum multiflorum to make polygonum multiflorum (100 kilograms of polygonum multiflorum tablets are mixed with 10 kilograms of black beans), and raw rehmannia glutinosa is mixed with rice wine to make mature rehmannia glutinosa (100 kilograms of raw rehmannia glutinosa is mixed with 30 kilograms of rice wine). , can significantly enhance the effects of nourishing the liver and kidneys, nourishing yin and replenishing blood; reducing toxic and side effects. For example, steaming Huangjing with wine can avoid the toxic and side effects of irritating the throat when used raw; steaming Scutellaria baicalensis with wine can prevent the enzymatic decomposition of baicalein and help preserve the medicinal effect; steaming Mulberry octopus can kill insect eggs to facilitate storage; Xuan papaya becomes soft after steaming and is suitable for slicing.

②Cooking method. That is, put the medicine into the pot with or without excipients (solid excipients need to be crushed first), add an appropriate amount of water and cook together. The purpose is to eliminate or reduce the toxicity of drugs, such as boiling Sichuan Wu and Cao Wu in clean water, boiling tofu with garcinia cambogia, sulfur, etc.; and boiling tofu with pearls can make them clean and easier to take.

③ Put the cleaned medicine into boiling water and soak it for a short time, then take out the separated seed coat, which is also called the scalding method. The purpose is to remove the non-medicinal parts, such as almonds, and then remove the almond skin while preserving the active ingredients; peel different medicinal parts, such as white lentils, and then separate the kernels and seed coats, both of which are used for medicinal purposes.

Copying method

A method of adding one or several excipients to the selected drug and repeatedly processing it according to prescribed procedures. The purpose is to enhance the efficacy of medicine, such as ginger pinellia, which is made by soaking and bleaching pinellia pinellia in water, boiling it with ginger and alum water, and then drying it into slices, which enhances the effect of antivomiting and reducing phlegm; changing the properties of medicine, such as aroids After being soaked in bile, its nature and flavor change from pungent and warm to bitter and cool; pinellia ternata is soaked and bleached in clean water, then soaked in licorice and lime water, then washed, dried in the shade, and mashed into pieces when used, it is called pinellia ternata, which can reduce toxicity and Enhance drug efficacy.

Fermentation and germination method

Use the action of enzymes to ferment and germinate drugs.

① Fermentation method. That is, under certain temperature and humidity conditions, the drug will foam and become coated due to the catalytic decomposition of mold and enzymes. The purpose is to change the properties, produce new therapeutic effects, and expand the variety of medicines, such as the Divine Comedy, which is made from mixed fermentation of almonds, adzuki beans, fresh artemisia annua, fresh cockleburs, fresh spicy polygonum, and flour, which has the functions of promoting qi, digestion, strengthening the spleen and appetizing new effects and become a new drug.

②Sprouting method. That is, mature fruits or seeds germinate under certain temperature and humidity conditions, which was called the tillering method in ancient times. The purpose is to change or create new effects. For example, if barley is used raw, it can harmonize the stomach, stop diarrhea and diuresis; after being made into malt, it can help qi and digestion, invigorate the spleen and appetite, restore milk and reduce bloating.

Other preparation methods

Baking method. That is, the medicine is heated over a slow fire to fully dry it. It is mostly used for animal medicine such as horseflies and centipedes to reduce toxicity and facilitate crushing.

Simmering method. That is, the medicine is wrapped in wet paper or wet flour and placed in talcum powder or wheat bran for heating, which is called talc stewing and wheat bran stewing respectively. The purpose is to remove some volatile and irritating ingredients in the medicine to reduce side effects, moderate the properties of the medicine, and enhance the efficacy. For example, simmering nutmeg can reduce the oil content, prevent intestinal slippage, and enhance the effect of firming the intestines and stopping diarrhea.

Frost making method. That is, the drug is made into loose powder after oil removal, or fine crystals are precipitated. The purpose is to reduce toxicity, moderate the properties of the medicine, and eliminate side effects. For example, removing the oil from Croton and Stephanotis seeds to remove the cream can reduce toxicity and alleviate the diarrhea effect; mix watermelon and Glauber's salt into an earthen jar and seal it in a cool and ventilated place. The white color will precipitate outside the jar. The crystals are watermelon cream, which can enhance the effect of reducing heat, releasing fire, reducing swelling and relieving pain.

Purification method. That is, certain mineral medicines are dissolved, filtered, and recrystallized to remove impurities. For example, boiling Glauber's salt with radish, or boiling sand with rice vinegar, then dissolving, filtering, and collecting crystals can achieve the purpose of purifying medicinal materials and reducing toxic and side effects.

Water flying method. That is, the coarse and fine powders of certain mineral medicines are separated by their different suspension properties in water.

The purpose of pouring fine powder is to make the medicine more delicate and pure, which is convenient for internal and external use, such as talc, cinnabar, realgar, etc.

Retorting method. That is, place the medicine in a container or directly roast it with fire without adding water to make it produce juice. The purpose is to prepare medicines suitable for clinical needs. For example, the juice that flows out from the stems of bamboo after being roasted is bamboo juice; the egg yolk is directly boiled into egg yolk; black beans are sealed in a clay pot and placed on the stove to be retorted to produce black bean distillate.