Fu Ling

Morning, heart is beating fast. Nose is congested. Was it the herbs or my over fragranced room? Orange blossoms are taking over my apartment complex. It smells so sweet though. Anyways I get a case of itchy throat. Maybe I took too much.

I decide to go to a Chinese herb store to find some Fu Ling (poria). I researched it online and it said it helps with:

"1.Edema

2. Tumors: Fu ling compound was used on 70 different type of tumors. In some cases only fu ling was used, and in others fu ling was used with chemo therapy, or radiation therapy or surgery. It showed that fu ling can strengthen the body, improve body weight, improve appetite, lessen or prevent side effect of chemo therapy, protect bone marrow, improve liver and kidney functions, improve radiation therapy on nose and throat cancers. (2)

3. Infant diarrhea

4. Improve schizoid condition

5. Improve liver function

6. For baldness after giving birth:

Use 10 g of fu ling. Make into decoction. Twice a day. Externally apply bu gu zhi and han lian cao tincture. All of the eight patients healed in two months. Source: Chinese Dermatology Journal"

My book however summarized it and said taking once ounce per day can make the face glow like jade because it leaches out dampness, and gets rid of water retention in your skin. It says it helps the spleen push stagnant fluids. Basically I am using it to get rid of eye bags.

I grab a bag of Poria and the herbologist tells me it's the wrong one. Fu Ling is the long white flat kind mine was another kind of Poria, for a different function. Now how was I supposed to know that? I really recommend seeing your local Chinese herb carrier.

I asked her if there was a difference between Astraglus and Astragali, she said yes they look the same but are for totally different functions. Sheesh again! How was I supposed to know. I had a feeling it was the wrong herb. Anyways I'm confused about that particular root. There is also Astraglae.

Anyhow after much discussion, I think I will stick to her for all my herb needs, she seems to know what is going on and she speaks English. So I get from her new herbs to test. Basically I was looking for herbs to help with my dark circles. Chinese medicine states dark circles are the result of weak kidneys. So I ask her for some recommendations.

So I end up buying:

• Fu Lin (Poria)- to remove dampness, and water retention
• Ba Zhu (Actractlyodes)- increase spleen qi ( i was told I had weak spleen qi some time ago, and they wanted me to come back to check up at 150 a session...ermmm....i know i'm not sick....another conspiracy to make me sick and dependent.)
• Tu Si Zi (Dodder Seed)- tonify liver and kidney
• Suo Yang (Cynomorium Songaricum) - for women lacking in kidney yang. Doh! I just researched it online, for women who have decreased libido. That's not me!
• Shao Zu Yu (Cornus fruitus)- tonifies liver, yang kidney and yin kidney
• Shen Di Huang (Cooked Rehmannia) - tonifies kidney and kindey essence
• Shu Di Huang (Raw Rehmannia) - cools blood.

The herbalist told me not to get the wrong Di Huang. The raw one cools the blood and the cooked one helps with the kidneys. The cooked on you can use a good amount. The raw one, you should never use more than 2 patties.

Now whats all this kidney business? What I do know about your kidney is that it governs your sexual vitality. And we all have a finite amount of kidney essence. If we lose this at a rapid pace we age faster. This is why the people from western culture appears to age faster than say people from the eastern culture. Western men tend to use their's up more than Eastern men. Hence American men tend to age rapidly by 30, losing their hair, wrinkling, etc.

Soooo....DO NOT ABUSE YOUR KIDNEYS! They say practicing tantric sex (for men) where you hold in your "essence" will prevent you from losing your essence and aging too quickly. This only matters for the super vain men who want absolute energy and youth.

Anyways so I concoct another tea. This time I use:

• 1 large Fu Lin flake
• 1/8 cup Zhu (Actractlyodes)
• 1/8 cup Tu Si Zi (Dodder Seed)- tonify liver and kidney
• 1/2 patty of Suo Yang - Cynomorium Songaricum
  
• 1/8 cup Shao Zu Yu (Cornus fruitus)
• 2 patties of Shen Di Huang (Cooked Rehmannia)
  
• 10 oz water

I let this boil for 30 mins. Good lord it's sour, but strangely my allergies are gone. I don't have that internal heat business and that weird feeling in my throat is gone. Heart rate is back to normal. Cool beans. The top of my tongue though is still a little sore.