CHINESE HERBS
It is well known that Traditional Chinese Medicine has over 3000 years history
How to cook the Raw Herbs
The best container is ceramic. Glass is okay; Stainless steel is better than the other metals. Put herbs in pot; add 1 liter of the water covering the herbs.
Let them sit for 30 minutes without turning on the heat beneath the tea pot. (Soak the herbs)Bring water to a rolling boil. Then, turn down the fire to a low simmer.
Cook herbs for 20 minutes. Strain the tea, (about 1 cups of tea left). Repeat 2, 3 Put 2 cups together. Drink 1 cup twice a day. It is best to take the herbal tea in warm in the morning before eating, or if the stomach is upset after drinking, the tea can be taken 1-2 hours after meal.
It is best to take the herbal tea in warm in the morning before eating, or if the stomach is upset after drinking, the tea can be taken 1-2 hours after meal.
Chinese Herbal Granules
This is a modern formulation that is based upon the decoction and syrup. They are made by decocting the ingredients until a thick, concentrated semi-liquid remains. Then a stabilizer (usually starch, the ground up dregs of the decoction) is added and thoroughly mixed with the concentrate.
The resulting mixture is made into granules or powder by sifting through a series of sieves, or rolled like pasta dough through a series of rollers, after which is cut up or crashed.
The powder or granules are then dried. If properly packaged and stored, granules can retain their potency for long period of time.
The granules are concentrated with 5:1 and 10:1 as most suitable and practical ratio. They are more quickly absorbed and stronger-acting than the most pills and tablets, and are more convenient and require less medicine per volume than decoctions or syrup. Usually we prescribe 10-15 herbs in each prescription that will come out 6 – 8g granules in total for one day use, thus the treatment will be 2 – 3 tea spoons twice a day.
Put the right amount of granules into a cup, add 80 ml (1/3 cup) boiling water, stirring well until the granules dissolved in the water, drink all after it cools down, and then rising mouth with plenty water.
Chinese Herbal Pills and Tablets
Chinese patent medicine is standardised herbal formulas. From ancient times, pills were formed by combining several herbs and other ingredients, which were dried and ground into a powder. They were then mixed with a binder and formed into pills by hand. The binder was traditionally honey.
Modern tea pills however, are extracted in stainless steel extractors to create either a water decoction or water-alcohol decoction, depending on the herbs used.
They are extracted at a low temperature to preserve essential ingredients. The extracted liquid is then further condensed and some raw herb powder from one of the herbal ingredients is mixed in to form herbal dough.
This dough is then machine cut into tiny pieces, a small amount of excipients are added for a smooth and consistent exterior, and they are spun into pills. Herbal pills are characteristically little round black pills.
Chinese patent medicines are made easy and convenient. They are not easy to customise on a patient-by-patient basis, however. They are often used when a patient’s condition is not severe and the medicine can be taken as a long-term treatment. In general, pills and tablets are more easily stored and ingested than decoction, are less expensive. They are more commonly to use in our modern world for quick taking and convenience. The pills and tablets are made in very good quality controlled pharmaceutical factories in China.