This insect "companion" is actually a wonderful traditional Chinese medicine

When talking about mulberry leaves, we have to mention one of its special functions, which is raising silkworms. Thinking of the cute silkworms, my heart is filled with excitement again. Silkworms are not only widely praised by scholars, but also regarded as a good medicine for curing diseases by doctors. However, mulberry leaves for feeding silkworms are often overlooked.

The buds of mulberry leaves are rich in nutrients and are loved by people, so they are also called mulberry sprouts. When mulberry leaves are used as medicine, it is generally better to use mulberry leaves after frost. Because mulberry leaves are shaped like a fan, they are also called iron fans; because mulberry leaves are the main food of silkworms, they are also called silkworm leaves; when used as medicine, mulberry leaves after frost are the best, so when prescribing, "winter mulberry leaves" and "frost mulberry leaves" are mostly used.

Many people only know that it is used to feed silkworms, but few people know that it is a Chinese medicine!

Mulberry leaf is a traditional Chinese medicine with a wide range of uses. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that mulberry leaves are sweet and bitter in taste and cold in nature; they belong to the lung and liver meridians; they have the effects of dispersing wind-heat, clearing the lungs and moistening dryness, calming liver yang, clearing the liver and improving eyesight; they can be used for wind-heat colds, the initial stage of febrile diseases, lung heat coughs, dry heat coughs, liver yang hyperactivity, and hemoptysis, hematemesis, epistaxis and other symptoms caused by blood heat.

Mulberry leaves are very effective in treating wind-heat colds and the initial stage of febrile diseases. Mulberry leaves are sweet, cold and light in nature, and are light, clearing and dispersing. Although their effect in dispersing wind-heat is relatively mild, their ability to clear lung heat and moisten lung dryness is their highlight. Therefore, they are often used for wind-heat colds, or the initial stage of febrile disease, fever, itchy throat, cough and other symptoms caused by warm and heat invading the lungs. They are generally used together with chrysanthemum, and the effect is better when used in combination with forsythia, mint, platycodon and other medicines, such as the famous Sangju Drink (7.5 grams of mulberry leaves, 3 grams of chrysanthemum, 6 grams of almonds, 5 grams of forsythia, 2.5 grams of mint, 6 grams of platycodon, 2.5 grams of licorice, and 6 grams of reed root).

Many people only know that it is used to feed silkworms, but few people know that it is a traditional Chinese medicine!

Mulberry leaves are a good medicine for treating lung heat cough and dry heat cough. Since mulberry leaves have the dual properties of being bitter and cold in clearing away lung heat, and sweet and cold in moistening the lungs, they can be used for lung heat or dry heat damaging the lungs, cough with little sputum, yellow and sticky sputum, or dry cough with little sputum, itchy throat, etc.

For mild symptoms, it can be used together with almonds, Adenophora, Fritillaria, etc., such as Sangxing Decoction (3 grams of mulberry leaves, 4.5 grams of almonds, 6 grams of Adenophora, 3 grams of elephant shells, 3 grams of fragrant beans, 3 grams of Gardenia bark, and 3 grams of pear peel); for slightly more serious symptoms, it can be used together with gypsum, Ophiopogon japonicus, donkey-hide gelatin, etc., such as Qingzao Jiufei Decoction (9g of frosted mulberry leaves, 8g of calcined gypsum, 3g each of licorice, fried sesame seeds, real donkey-hide gelatin, and roasted loquat leaves, 4g of Ophiopogon japonicus, 2g each of ginseng and fried almonds).

From the perspective of meridians, mulberry leaves mainly enter the lung and liver meridians. In addition to treating diseases of the lung meridian, they can also treat diseases related to the liver meridian. For example, symptoms such as headache, dizziness, heavy head and light feet, irritability and anger caused by hyperactivity of liver yang can be treated by taking advantage of the effect of calming liver yang with mulberry leaves, which are often used together with chrysanthemum, semen cassiae, white peony and other liver yang-calming drugs.

Many people only know that it is used to feed silkworms, but few people know that it is a traditional Chinese medicine!

Mulberry leaves are also good at treating red and blurred eyes. Mulberry leaves are bitter and cold, and enter the liver, dispersing wind-heat. They can be used to treat symptoms such as red eyes, astringent pain, and excessive tears caused by wind-heat and liver fire. They can be used in combination with chrysanthemum, cicada shells, and self-healing drugs that dispel wind-heat, clear the liver, and improve eyesight. Mulberry leaves are bitter and cold, and have the effect of clearing away liver heat. If dizziness, headache, and other symptoms are caused by liver heat, they can be used together with chrysanthemum, semen cassiae, self-healing drugs such as self-healing. Mulberry leaves are sweet and moist, and can benefit yin to improve eyesight. If the eyes are not nourished, blurred vision, and other symptoms caused by insufficient liver and kidney essence and blood, they can be used in combination with black sesame, which nourishes essence and blood, such as Sangma Pills (10 grams of mulberry leaves, 4 grams of black sesame, and 10 grams of white honey), Fusang Pills (equal parts of mulberry leaves and black sesame, made into honey pills).

There are many records of the benefits of mulberry leaves in herbal books of all dynasties, especially the effect of mulberry leaves in cooling blood and stopping bleeding, which has been overlooked by many people. It is recorded in "Bencao Congxin" that mulberry leaves have the effects of "nourishing, cooling blood, and stopping bleeding". If the hemoptysis, hematemesis, and epistaxis are caused by blood heat, mulberry leaves can be used in combination with other blood-cooling and hemostatic drugs.