Such "sweetness" can be harmful and fatal

People have always liked sweet words, especially saying that nice words are like having honey in the mouth, but they don’t know that having a sweet mouth is a disease, and it is an ancient disease. According to ancient medical books, a disease with "sweet taste in the mouth" as the main symptom is called "spleen disease". This disease was actually recorded in the "Yellow Emperor's Internal Classic" more than 2,000 years ago.

There is a classic dialogue recorded in "Suwen·Discussion on Strange Diseases", in which Huangdi asked Qibo, "There is a disease in which people have a sweet taste in the mouth. What is the name of the disease and how does it occur?" Qibo was well versed in medical theory and answered, "This is the overflow of the five elements, called spleen disease." He also pointed out the cause of spleen disease, namely, "the five flavors enter the mouth and are stored in the stomach. The spleen circulates their essence and qi, and the body fluids are in the spleen, so people have a sweet taste in the mouth." "This is where fat and delicious food comes from. This person must eat sweet and fatty food frequently. Fatty food makes people feel hot inside, and sweet food makes people feel full, so their qi overflows." He also made a profound analysis of the prognosis of spleen disease, and believed that this disease will "turn into diabetes" over time.

The disease of spleen disease is very common in daily life, but few people have heard of this disease name. Well, let's first popularize this disease. The so-called "瘅" is actually a fever. The disease "pi tan" is actually a syndrome of damp-heat in the spleen and stomach. The main symptoms of spleen disease are a sweet taste in the mouth and a greasy tongue coating. The cause of the disease is excessive consumption of fatty, sweet and greasy foods, which promote heat and dampness, stagnate the spleen and fail to distribute body fluids, which overflow into the mouth and cause the symptom of sweetness in the mouth.

In the "Yellow Emperor's Internal Classic", most of the content is actually about medical theory and acupuncture, and there are very few records of prescriptions and medicines. In this huge work of 200,000 words, there are only thirteen prescriptions recorded. When treating the disease of "spleen disease", one of the thirteen prescriptions in the "Yellow Emperor's Internal Classic" was used, namely "treat it with orchid to remove stale air", which means using a single orchid, decocting the juice and taking it internally, which can clear away dampness and heat, and relieve swelling and fullness.

What is the principle of using orchid to treat the disease of "spleen disease"? There is no detailed interpretation in the "Yellow Emperor's Internal Classic", but Zhang Jingyue, a famous medical scientist in the Ming Dynasty, gave a more detailed interpretation of this in the "Leijing". "Orchid tastes pungent, sweet and cold, can benefit the water channels, ward off bad luck, and remove phlegm in the chest. It has a fresh and fragrant aroma, can produce fluid and quench thirst, and moisturize muscles, so it can remove stale and accumulated heat."

So what kind of plant is this orchid? Is it the orchid, the gentleman among flowers? No, it is the Perilla frutescens, one of the famous seven autumn herbs. Perilla has a pungent taste and a neutral nature; it enters the spleen, stomach, and lung meridians; it has the effects of invigorating the spleen and eliminating dampness, clearing away heat and eliminating turbidity. It is suitable for symptoms such as dampness blocking the middle part of the body, abdominal distension and nausea, sweet and greasy taste in the mouth, bad breath, excessive salivation, external symptoms of summer-heat, the initial onset of damp-heat, fever, fatigue, chest tightness and discomfort. The general dosage is 3 to 9 grams.

The herb Perilla frutescens can treat the disease of "spleen disease" and can be said to be a secret recipe that has been passed down for thousands of years. However, there are some diseases and symptoms for which Perilla frutescens is not suitable for use. For example, it is recorded in Depei Materia Medica that "it is forbidden for those with weak stomach qi to use it". In addition, people with weak yin should try not to take Perilla frutescens.