When frustrations rise to the Stomach

Frustrations that immediately affect the Stomach, a feeling of fullness and tension under the ribs, a bitter taste in the mouth, sighing, a temper that flares quickly, an appetite that vanishes as soon as one is upset… In TCM, these signs may be associated with constrained Liver Qi that has turned into Heat. According to tradition, this Heat does not stay put: it crosses over to the Stomach, whose natural movement is to make things descend, and thwarts it. This is what tradition calls the Liver invading the Stomach.

Jia Wei Zuo Jin Wan is a preparation from the Chinese pharmacopoeia. Its name links it to Zuo Jin Wan, a formula by Zhu Danxi (朱丹溪) recorded under the Yuan, around 1347, in the Dan Xi Xin Fa (《丹溪心法》), which pairs coptis (Huang Lian) with a hot berry, evodia. Jia wei (加味) means “augmented”. Our adapted version keeps the coptis without the evodia, and surrounds it with nine herbs, including six of the seven in Chai Hu Shu Gan Wan, the reference formula for releasing Liver Qi.

Releasing the Liver, cooling what heats up

Tradition distinguishes two stages: constraint first, then Heat. The formula addresses both. Bupleurum, cyperus and the two mandarin peels move the Qi; white peony and Chinese angelica nourish the Liver and make it supple; coptis and scutellaria, bitter and cold, clear Heat, following the principle that bitterness makes things descend.

Helps promote the smooth flow of Liver Qi: Bupleurum and cyperus release the Liver Qi; green mandarin peel, which according to tradition flows downwards towards the Liver, reinforces them.

Clears Liver Heat: Coptis, at a low dose, and scutellaria clear the Heat born of constraint, while white peony preserves Liver Yin.

Harmonizes the Stomach: Bitter orange and mandarin peel move the Qi of the centre and help it descend again. Peony and licorice, a classic pair in the tradition, relax what tenses up.