Is it better to take Chinese medicine before or after meals?

It is best to take Chinese medicine after meals, mainly because taking Chinese medicine after meals is good for reducing gastrointestinal damage and absorbing the value of Chinese medicine. Unless there are special Chinese medicines that require drinking before meals, you only need to take them before meals, but you cannot choose Chinese medicines that are too harmful to the gastrointestinal mucosa, so as not to damage the mucosa. Let us analyze in detail whether it is better to take Chinese medicine before or after meals.

The correct time to take medicine should be determined according to the condition. If the disease is in the upper part of the body (heart, lungs), in order to make the medicine work longer, it is better to take it after meals; if the disease is in the lower part of the body (bladder, intestines), in order to make the medicine work quickly, it is better to take it before meals; heat-clearing and detoxifying drugs, laxatives, and tonic drugs should be taken on an empty stomach, when the stomach is empty and easy to absorb. The so-called taking the medicine on an empty stomach means taking the medicine one hour before breakfast or one hour after dinner.

Special medicines should be taken specially. For example, digestive aids should be taken with a small meal before taking the medicine to help the medicine work; anthelmintics should be taken on an empty stomach in the morning, and some sugar water should be drunk before taking the medicine, which can enhance the insecticidal effect; laxatives should be stopped immediately after defecation; sedatives, tonics, and anti-aging drugs should be taken before bedtime; sleeping pills should be taken 2 hours before bedtime; antimalarial drugs should be taken 2 hours before an attack. Emergency medications are not restricted by time, while patients with chronic diseases who often take pills, powders, pastes, and wine should take them on time. If you have difficulty sweating, you can shorten the time of taking the medicine to facilitate sweating.

Correct medication temperature: Decoctions should be taken warm when treating general diseases, and should be taken according to special methods for special treatment needs. For medicines that regulate qi, heat can easily relieve it, but cool it down; for medicines that activate blood, replenish blood, cool blood, and stop bleeding, cold can cause blood stasis, but heat can cause boiling. All antidotes should be taken cold to facilitate the excretion of stagnant poisons, while taking them hot will increase the efficiency of dispersing poisons. For all fever diseases, it is better to take the medicine cold (such as Sihu Decoction), while for cold diseases, it is better to take the medicine hot, to disperse the qi and attack downwards, so as to help the efficacy of the medicine. Those that promote blood circulation, unblock the meridians and reach the tendons and bones should be taken hot, while those that astringe, consolidate semen and stop bleeding should be taken cold. Medicines for relieving restlessness, thirst and heat should be taken while hot. Medicines for relieving exterior symptoms are mostly pungent and dispersing, which can disperse the skin surface and should be taken while hot. Medicines for clearing away heat and relieving summer heat should be taken while cold. For severe fever, cold medicines should be taken warm; for severe cold, hot medicines should be taken cold. Decoctions that should not be taken cold may cause gastrointestinal irritation, abdominal pain or vomiting after taking them. You can stop the irritation by rubbing your tongue with ginger.

Regarding the Chinese medicine introduced in this article, it is best to drink it after meals. I believe you all know that drinking Chinese medicine after meals is more effective for us to absorb the medicinal value of Chinese medicine, so we do not recommend that you drink Chinese medicine on an empty stomach or before meals. We take Chinese medicine up to three times a day, after each meal.