New Concept of Dachaihu Tang January 10, 1995

New Concept of Dachaihu Tang January 10, 1995

This soup is a famous prescription from “Shanghan Lun,” specially formulated by Zhang Zhongjing for Shaoyang and Yangming. Its composition is: Xiaochaihu Tang minus Dangshen, plus Dahuang, Zhishi, and Baishao. The composition embodies the meanings of Xiaochaihu, Xiaochengqi, and Guizhi Tang. The main symptoms of this soup, according to “Shanghan Lun,” are “restlessness, abdominal fullness and pain, and dry stools.” Recently, Japanese scholars have suggested removing Dahuang from this soup, arguing that its anti-inflammatory and antibacterial effects can be replaced by modern antibiotics, so Dahuang is unnecessary when antibiotics are used, and unnecessary when antibiotics are not used. (“Foreign Medical Dynamics·Traditional Chinese Medicine Section,” February 1993 issue)