The unique "bugs" in summer can actually warm the yang, nourish the kidneys, remove dampness and strengthen the spleen

I raised silkworms when I was in primary school. My classmates and I bought a few and put them in a paper box. When they hatched, they were small black worms, so I picked a few mulberry leaves to feed them. When they were bigger and couldn't fit in the box, I moved them to a sieve to feed them. The silkworms continue to shed their skins and grow white and plump. Then, the whole body of the silkworm turns silver and it stops eating mulberry leaves. I went to find some rapeseed stalks, the kind that had been harvested for rapeseed. Put the silkworms on it, and they will spin silk on it, making their own cocoons.

Only after studying Chinese medicine did I realize that silkworms are treasures from head to toe. Bombyx mori (dried silkworms that died from infection with Beauveria bassiana or were artificially inoculated) have the function of dispelling wind and calming the nerves, resolving phlegm and dispersing nodules. It is often used to treat convulsions in children, or dizziness caused by wind and phlegm; it is used to treat swollen and painful tonsillitis, such as Liuwei Decoction (Schizonepeta, Saposhnikovia, Bombyx Batryticatus, Platycodon, Menthol, Licorice); to treat facial paralysis caused by stroke: take equal parts of White Aconitum, Bombyx Batryticatus, and scorpion (detoxified) and use them raw. Grind the above ingredients into fine powder, take 3 grams each time, mixed with hot wine, at any time. (Qiangzheng Powder from Yang Family Prescriptions); used to treat tetanus, such as Yuzhen Powder; used to treat severe heat in the exterior and interior of febrile diseases, with symptoms that are indescribable, use Shengjiang Powder (Bombyx Batryticatus, Cicada Shell, Turmeric, Rhubarb); used to treat wind-heat headaches, such as Chrysanthemum Tea Powder. Bombyx batryticatus is used to treat headaches, red and swollen eyes, and tears in the wind caused by wind-heat in the liver meridian. It is often used in combination with mulberry leaves, horsetail, and schizonepeta tenuifolia to dispel wind and heat, such as Bai Jiangcan San (Zheng Zhi Zhun Sheng). Bombyx batryticatus is used to treat pruritus caused by wind-heat. For example, Shenghui Fang uses Bombyx batryticatus to grind into powder and take it internally to treat wind sores and urticaria. It can be ground into powder and taken alone, or used together with wind-dispelling and itching-relieving drugs such as cicada shells and mint.

Bombyx batryticatus can also resolve phlegm and disperse nodules. When used together with Scrophularia ningpoensis, Fritillaria thunbergii, and Prunella vulgaris, it can eliminate scrofula phlegm nodules.

Silkworm feces (dried feces of silkworms) can dispel wind, eliminate dampness and harmonize the stomach. Used to treat dampness and heat accumulation in the meridians, chills and fever, pain in the joints, gray and sallow tongue, sallow face, the disease is called dampness and arthritis: 15 grams each of Stephania tetrandra, apricot kernel, and talcum powder, 9 grams each of Forsythia suspensa and Gardenia jasminoides, 15 grams of Coix seed, 9 grams of Pinellia ternata (fried with vinegar), 9 grams of late silkworm feces, and 9 grams of adzuki bean peel. Boil eight cups of water until three cups remain, divide into three portions and take warm. (Xuanbi Decoction from Treatise on Warm Diseases); for example, for the treatment of cholera cramps, cold limbs and abdominal pain, thirst and irritability, sunken eyes and weak pulse, and acute symptoms of the time, the prescription is Canshi Decoction (late silkworm feces, raw coix seed, soybean yellow roll, aged papaya, Coix lacryma-jobi, processed Pinellia, Scutellaria baicalensis, Glehnia littoralis, scorched Gardenia, and aged Evodia rutaecarpa); for example, for the treatment of leucorrhea and spermatorrhea with damp heat: 30 grams of raw silkworm feces and 3 grams of raw Phellodendron chinense). Grind together into powder. Take 9 grams on an empty stomach with boiling water. (Silkworm feces and Huangbai decoction from "Medical Records"); Treat rheumatic pain in the muscles and bones, neuralgia, and numbness of the limbs: fry 90 grams of late silkworm feces, put them into a cloth bag, and soak them in 500 grams of yellow wine. After 7 to 10 days, drink the wine in moderation, twice a day. For the treatment of rheumatic pain or numbness: 30 grams of late silkworm feces. Decoction, divided into three doses a day, mixed with half a cup of hot rice wine before taking. (Modern Practical Chinese Medicine)

Silkworm pupae have the functions of warming yang and tonifying the kidney, dispelling wind and dampness, strengthening the spleen and eliminating accumulation. They are suitable for kidney yang deficiency, impotence and spermatorrhea, rheumatic arthralgia, and infantile malnutrition. The "Prescriptions for Emergencies" says that silkworm pupae can "benefit the essence and qi, strengthen the male yang, and treat spermatorrhea."

1. Stir-fried silkworm pupae with leeks can replenish qi and blood, warm the kidneys and assist yang, eliminate fatigue and anti-aging. Suitable for patients with hyperlipidemia, hypertension, arteriosclerosis, impotence, spermatorrhea, constipation, etc. (50g silkworm pupae, 200g leeks, minced ginger, refined salt, MSG and other appropriate amounts. Preparation method: Wash the leeks and silkworm pupae separately and set aside. Put the wok on the fire and add oil, fry the drained silkworm pupae briefly, then add the leek segments, add minced ginger, refined salt and MSG, stir-fry evenly and serve.)

2. 150 grams of walnut meat, 80 grams of silkworm pupae, and 3 grams of cinnamon. It can nourish the liver and kidneys, strengthen the brain and improve intelligence, warm the lungs and moisten the intestines, and blacken the hair. It is suitable for symptoms such as weak waist and knees, frequent urination at night, impotence and spermatorrhea, premature graying of hair, tuberculosis, and cough caused by insufficient essence and blood. (Usage: First wash the cinnamon, dry it in the sun or oven, and grind it into a very fine powder. Wash the silkworm pupae, dry them, and stir-fry them slightly. Put them into a large bowl with walnut kernels, add appropriate amount of water, add cinnamon powder, stir evenly, and stew it in water until cooked. It can be taken as a snack, at will, or divided into 2 doses in the morning and evening.)