Animal medicine also plays an important role in traditional medicine in China. As early as 3,000 years ago, the industrious people in China used bees as medicine. As early as the Book of Songs, there were records of birds, beasts, insects and fish. There are about 160 species of animals recorded in the book, many of which are edible and medicinal, and there are some radicals such as "worm", "fish" and "raccoon" in the names of these animals, which shows that there is an awareness of animal classification in ancient times. In addition, 67 kinds of animal medicines were recorded in Shanhaijing during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period.
As can be seen from the ancient medical books in China, Shennong Materia Medica in Qin and Han Dynasties recorded 65 kinds of animal drugs, among which pilose antler, musk, bezoar and other drugs are still used in modern medicine. China's first official compendium of materia medica, Newly Revised Materia Medica, contains 128 kinds of animal medicines. Compendium of Materia Medica written by Li Shizhen in Ming Dynasty contains 46 1 kinds of animal medicines. Zhao Xuemin's Compendium of Materia Medica in Qing Dynasty contains 128 kinds of animal medicines. The Dictionary of Modern Chinese Medicine contains 740 kinds of animal medicines. Of course, this cursive script mainly records the taste of medicinal materials, not animal species. According to statistics, there are more than 900 kinds of animals available for medicine in China.
Plants not only have ornamental value, but also have very precious medicinal value, which is a rich treasure house of traditional Chinese medicine. According to the classification methods commonly used in modern plant taxonomy, each drug is divided into phylum, class, order, family, genus and species according to the natural classification system of its original plant, with species as the basic classification unit.
Agkistrodon acutus: At present, 90% of Chinese herbal medicines are plants, including about 200-250 kinds of roots and rhizomes. Fruit seeds are about 180-230 kinds. There are about 60-70 kinds of flowers; There are about 30-40 kinds of leather medicinal materials; There are about 160- 180 species of herbs; There are about 50-60 kinds of leaf medicinal materials; There are about 40-50 kinds of rattan herbs; About 20 kinds of fungi and algae; 20-25 kinds of processed plants.
In the Yangtze River valley and the vast areas of southern China, there are many kinds of plants that like warm and wet, among which leaves, whole grass, flowers, vines and bark account for a large proportion. In the vast area north of the Yellow River, root and rhizome drugs are the majority, which are characterized by cold tolerance, drought tolerance and salt tolerance, followed by fruit drugs. Northeast cultivated species are represented by ginseng and asarum. The wild species are represented by Cortex Phellodendri, Radix Saposhnikoviae and Herba Hedyotidis Diffusae. Cultivated varieties in East China include Fritillaria, Flos Lonicerae, Rhizoma Corydalis, Radix Paeoniae Alba, Cortex Magnolia Officinalis, Atractylodis Macrocephalae and Cortex Moutan. Wild species are represented by Prunella vulgaris and Platycladus orientalis. The cultivated varieties in South China are Amomum villosum, Areca catechu, Alpinia oxyphylla, bergamot and Pogostemon cablin. Wild species are represented by Polygonum Multiflori Radix, Radix Stephaniae Tetrandrae, Fructus Tsaoko and Dendrobium nobile. The cultivated varieties in North China are represented by Radix Codonopsis, Radix Astragali, Radix Rehmanniae, Rhizoma Dioscoreae and Flos Lonicerae. Wild species are represented by Scutellariae Radix, Bupleuri Radix, Cortex et Radix Polygalae, Rhizoma Anemarrhenae, Semen Ziziphi Spinosae and Fructus Forsythiae. The cultivated varieties in Central China are Poria, Cornus officinalis, Magnolia officinalis, Radix Angelicae Pubescentis, Radix Dipsaci and Fructus Aurantii. The wild species is represented by Pinellia ternata. The cultivated varieties in northwest China are represented by Gastrodia elata, Eucommia ulmoides, Angelica sinensis, Codonopsis pilosula and Lycium barbarum. Wild species are represented by licorice, ephedra, rhubarb, Gentiana macrophylla, cistanche deserticola and Cynomorium songaricum. Southwest cultivated varieties include Coptidis Rhizoma, Eucommiae Cortex, Chuanxiong Rhizoma, Radix Aconiti Lateralis Preparata, Notoginseng Radix, Radix Curcumae, Radix Ophiopogonis, etc. The wild species are Fritillaria cirrhosa and Notopterygium.
Mineral drugs are divided into twelve categories: sodium compounds, potassium compounds, ammonium compounds, magnesium compounds, calcium compounds, aluminum compounds, silicon compounds, manganese compounds, iron compounds, copper compounds, zinc compounds and arsenic compounds.
Although stones and jade are dead, they also play an important role. Gold can calm the mind and strengthen the bone marrow, while silver can calm the five internal organs and calm the nerves. Copper can cure bromhidrosis, iron can cure proctoptosis and so on. Agate is mainly used to treat the white membrane on the eyeball, and it can be used to treat the pathogenic factors of chest and abdomen, and realgar can be used to treat malignant sores, hemorrhoids and muscle necrosis.
Alum is a crystal extracted from alunite. There is an interesting story about it. Once upon a time, there was a doctor who kept his mouth shut and never told anyone his secret recipe In particular, he has a wonderful prescription for treating arsenic poisoning, which is very effective and many doctors try their best to get it. A colleague thought of a way to get him drunk and pretend: "There is arsenic in the wine." Surprised and drunk, he let the cat out of the bag-"Give me the alum quickly". It turns out that his secret recipe for relieving arsenic poisoning is actually alum that is not worth a few cents.
Water is the source of all things. It becomes rain, dew, frost and snow in the sky, and sea, river, spring and well in the ground. The flow and stillness of water, cold and warm are the differences formed by different moisture; The sweetness and bitterness of water are different tastes of water. Therefore, the ancient sages distinguished the good and evil of human nature and the length of life around Kyushu by distinguishing the differences of soil and water in Jiuchuan. If water is lost, blood will be exhausted; if Shui Gu does not advance, he will be exhausted. In this case, the gender and taste of water are different. In particular, doctors who prevent and treat diseases should study hard. The water of autumn dew bears the cold at night, decocts and takes drugs for regulating lung, and cultivates various powders for treating scabies and furuncle. Ganquan water can be used to treat diseases such as heart and abdominal pain and foul smell, as well as symptoms such as upset, thirst, nausea and vomiting.
In addition, some stones are also valuable medicinal materials. Calculus bovis is a common animal stone in clinic, which is a stone in the gallbladder, bile duct or liver duct of cattle and buffalo. It has expectorant, cholagogic and sedative effects. It is used to treat fever, delirium, epilepsy, convulsion and convulsion in children, and is used to treat Japanese encephalitis and other diseases in modern times. Ma Bao is a gastrointestinal calculus in Equine, which has the functions of clearing away heat and toxic materials, relieving convulsion and resolving phlegm. Dog treasure is a stone in the stomach of dogs, which can reduce qi, relieve depression and detoxify. Monkey jujube is a kind of stone in the viscera of monkeys and other animals, which has the functions of eliminating phlegm, relieving convulsion and eliminating heat toxicity. In ancient times, it was called the holy medicine for treating heat phlegm.
China has a long history, complex terrain, vast territory and diverse climate, which creates favorable conditions for the reproduction of animals, plants and minerals. Historically, Shennong's Herbal Classic, the first monograph on materia medica in China, only included 365 kinds of drugs, and the later Notes on Materia Medica (Liang Dynasty) included 730 kinds of drugs, twice as much as Shennong's Herbal Classic. In the newly revised Compendium of Materia Medica (Tang Dynasty), it has developed to 1774 kinds, and the Compendium of Materia Medica in Ming Dynasty has included 1892 kinds of drugs. According to statistics, there are 13268 species of Chinese medicinal materials in China after the founding of New China, including 403 families of animal medicinal materials, 1634 species; Plant medicines belong to 369 families, 1 147 1 species; 4 drugs 163, the rest are folk and ethnic drugs. The rapid development of modern science and technology has also accelerated the pace of TCM classification and entered a brand-new development period.