Massa Medicata Fermentata
Aliases：Shén Qū (Medicated Leaven), Liù Qū (Six-Process Leaven).
Liù Shén Qū is a traditional Chinese medicinal preparation. It is made from Polygonum hydropiper (辣蓼), Artemisia annua (青蒿), Prunus armeniaca (苦杏仁), and other ingredients, mixed with flour or wheat bran, and processed through fermentation. The product appears as irregular small blocks or coarse granules, with a greyish-white to slightly yellow surface, rough texture, crisp and brittle, with a musty odor and a slightly bitter taste. Its raw materials—Polygonum hydropiper, Artemisia annua, Xanthium sibiricum (苍耳草), Phaseolus calcaratus (赤小豆), Prunus armeniaca (苦杏仁), wheat bran, and flour—are all medicinal and edible substances, so it may also be included in the scope of medicinal dietary therapy. This product was included in the National Health Commission’s list of “substances that are both food and medicinal materials” in 2002.
Efficacy & Actions
Strengthens the Spleen and harmonizes the Stomach; promotes digestion and regulates the middle.
Indications
Indicated for food stagnation, indigestion, abdominal distension and fullness, poor appetite, vomiting, and diarrhea. It may also be used for undigested food stagnation, diarrhea with poor appetite, postpartum stasis abdominal pain, and infantile abdominal distension with masses.
Modern Pharmacology
Modern pharmacological studies have shown that Liù Shén Qū is a yeast preparation containing yeast, amylase, vitamin B complex, ergosterol, proteins, fats, and volatile oils. Dried yeast contains various B vitamins, thus this product exhibits B vitamin-like effects, such as stimulating appetite and maintaining normal digestive function.
Ingredients
Liù Shén Qū mainly contains yeast, amylase, vitamin B complex, ergosterol, proteins, fats, and volatile oils. Modern research has further identified 76 chemical components, including amino acids, nucleosides, flavonoids, organic acids, phenylpropanoids, terpenoids, cyanogenic glycosides, and unsaturated fatty acids. It also contains flavonoids, sesquiterpenes, sphingolipids, glyceroglycolipids, and substituted benzenes.
Usage & Dosage
For oral administration: decoct in water, 6–15 g. Alternatively, grind into powder and add to tea, pills, powders, or other preparations, 6–12 g each time. For promoting digestion, it is preferably stir-fried until charred.
Contraindications
Contraindicated during pregnancy. Use with caution in cases of Spleen Yin deficiency and excessive Stomach fire. Avoid cold, raw, greasy, and hard-to-digest foods. Not suitable for those with dry mouth, scanty saliva, or heat in the palms and soles, poor appetite, abdominal distension, and dry stools. Use with caution in breastfeeding women. Use with caution in those with allergic predisposition; contraindicated in those allergic to this product.
Selected Formulas
For epigastric pain due to food stagnation (Zhaixuan Fang) Take a piece of aged Shenqu (Medicated leaven), burn until red, quench with two large bowls of wine, and drink. For acute summer diarrhea and food injury with chest and diaphragm stuffiness (Heji Ju Fang, Qushu Wan) Take equal parts of stir-fried Shenqu and Cangzhu (Atractylodes, soaked in rice water and dried). Grind into powder, make into paste pills the size of waxberry seeds. Take 30 pills each time with rice water. For diarrhea and abdominal pain in adults and children (Diannan Bencao) Take 6g of stir-fried Shenqu, 6g of stir-fried Maiya (Malt), and 4.5g of Xingren (Apricot seed, peeled and tip removed). Put 1-2 teaspoons of pure vegetable oil at the bottom of a pot, add the herbs, add water, and simmer to drink. For food obstruction (Quesheng Zhimi Fang, Shenqu Wan) Take 30g of stir-fried Shenqu and 60g of Jupi (tangerine peel). Grind into fine powder, mix with honey to make pills the size of a Gorgon fruit. Take one pill each time, dissolve in the mouth and swallow the saliva. For low back pain due to sprain (Shiyi Dexiao Fang, Shenqu Jiu) Take a piece of Shenqu about the size of a fist, burn until red, quench with two large cups of good wine, and drink all at once. Lie down for a short while and the pain will subside. For lactation suppression in postpartum women (Bencao Gangmu) Take stir-fried Shenqu, grind into powder. Take 6g with wine, twice daily.
Daily Consumption
Fermented preparation (processed product made through fermentation).
Medicinal Parts
Fermented preparation (processed product made through fermentation).
Selection & Storage
Store in a cool, dry place, protected from moisture and insects.
