Treatment principles formula composition

As soon as a treatment principle is established, the composition plan and treatment strategies can be arranged. For instance, to treat the syndrome of excess heat in the Lung and Stomach, one would first prescribe herbs that have sweet-cold, bitter-cold or salty-cold properties, and which have the functions of clearing heat and reducing fire in the Lung and Stomach. Second, herbs that are sweet and cold and that can nourish body fluids and protect the Yin, which has been severely consumed by the excess heat, should be selected. Herbs that can tonify the Qi should be selected if the Qi is weakened severely by the heat. Herbs that moderate the actions of the harsh herbs in the formula, and reduce their side effects, should also be added. 

Chinese Herbal Formulas Treatment Principles and Composition Strategies carries on this good work and greatly enlarges upon it. To make safe and effective herb combinations, the practitioner must understand the structure of herbal formulas and the principles underlying their construction. 

As a teacher and practitioner of Chinese herbal medicine, I have searched for a new way of studying, teaching and practicing. In this book, I have aimed to summarize from a large number of formulas the basic rules which inform treatment principles and composition strategies. I hope by training practitioners to follow these principles and use these strategies that they will be able to select appropriate herbs independently and to compose individualized formulas to treat various syndromes. 

In traditional Chinese herbal medicine, the treatment strategy and the composition of herbal formulas should follow a certain sequence, taking into account the following principles. 

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