When is the best time to take Chinese medicine?

By grasping the correct time to take Chinese medicine, you can achieve the best therapeutic effect. When taking Chinese medicine, you should determine the correct time to take it according to your condition. Generally speaking, most Chinese medicines are suitable to be taken about 30 minutes to an hour after a meal. When taken on an empty stomach, many Chinese medicines are cold or irritating in nature, which can damage the gastric mucosa. Therefore, it is important to determine the best time to take the Chinese medicine. If it is a tonic Chinese medicine or an anthelmintic or laxative medicine, it is suitable to drink it on an empty stomach, while Chinese medicine for calming the nerves and promoting sleep is best taken before going to bed.

Traditional Chinese medicine is a bitter but effective medicine and is often used to treat various diseases. If you can grasp the right time to drink it, you can better exert the medicinal effects of it. Do you know the best time to take Chinese medicine?

Generally speaking, around 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. is the "golden time" for the body to absorb drugs, so it is best to take Chinese medicine at this time.

However, Chinese medicines with different medicinal properties require different times for taking them. Generally speaking, drugs for the treatment of deficiency syndrome and gastrointestinal diseases should be taken 30 to 60 minutes before meals. Drugs that are taken on an empty stomach should be taken at least one hour before meals, and should be taken on an empty stomach in the morning as much as possible. When the stomach and duodenum are empty, the drugs can avoid mixing with food and quickly enter the intestines, which is conducive to the digestion and absorption of the drugs. These drugs include the following three categories:

Tonic medicines: such as Siwu Decoction, Sijunzi Decoction, Shengmai Drink, etc., when taken on an empty stomach can allow the medicine to be fully absorbed and better play the role of nourishing qi and blood and regulating yin and yang.

Drugs for treating intestinal diseases: such as laxatives, taking them on an empty stomach can prevent the drugs from being blocked by food and allow the drug to exert its therapeutic effect quickly.

Anthelmintics: such as Lizhong Anwei Decoction, Wumei Pills, etc., taken on an empty stomach can maintain a higher drug concentration in the intestines, making it easier for the drugs to kill the parasites and allow them to be expelled quickly.

Different medicines are used for different diseases. There are approximate requirements for the time of taking Chinese medicine, which the doctor will generally give you. Moreover, the condition changes every day, and the doctor will make adjustments based on the patient's physical recovery. Patients need to maintain a good mood, pay attention to dietary taboos and maintain good living habits, which will be beneficial to the recovery of the disease.