Dang Gui Di Huang Yin  当归地黄饮
Dang Gui and Rehmannia Decoction


Tradition:


TCM

Source / Author:


Collected Treatises of Zhang Jing Yue (1624)

Herb Name

Dang Gui (Chinese angelica)
Shu Di Huang (Rehmannia)
Shan Zhu Yu
(Cornus fruit)
Shan Yao
(Chinese yam)
Du Zhong (Eucommia)
Huai Niu Xi (Achyranthes)
Zhi Gan Cao (Fried Licorice)

Latin


Angelica sinensis
Rehmannia glutinosa
Cornus o
fficinalis
Dioscorea opposita
Eucommia ulmoides
Achyranthes bidentata
Glycyrrhiza uralensis

Amount


9 grams
6 grams

4 grams
6 grams
6 grams
6 grams
3 grams


Preparation:


Decoction, boil in 4 bowls of water to 2 bowls.
Can also be used in Powder or Pill form.

Function:


Nourish the Blood and Yin

Use:


Pale, swollen tongue with a Deep and Weak Pulse
1. Scanty Menstruation with pale blood
2. Lower Back Pain
3. Heel Pain
4. Dizziness
5. Tinnitus


Dose:


The above is taken over the course of the day in 2 equal doses, morning and night.
In Pill or Powder form, 3–6 grams, two–three times daily

Cautions:


None noted

Modifications:


1. If there is menstrual pain or discomfort, add Ligusticum Chuan Xiong and Cyperus Xiang Fu
2. More severe Blood deficiency, add Donkey Hide Gelatin (E Jiao)
3. If there is also signs of Cold, add Cinnamon (Rou Gui)
4. Lower Back Pain, increase the dose od Du Zhong and add Dipsacus Xu Duan.
5. Dizziness or Vertigo, add Gastrodia Tian Ma, White Peony (Bai Shao), Mistletoe (Sang Ji Sheng)

This is the foundation formula for Yin deficiency of the Liver and Kidneys in TCM. Whole texts have been written about this formula and the elegant way it is constructed.

In brief, the last three herbs are used to correct the first three medicines which are the primary Yin tonics. They prevent the Damp which can build up during Yin tonification; they keep the blood active which is liable to stagnate with rich, cloying, yin tonics; and they support the Spleen and Liver to enable them to support formation of Kidney Yin.
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