A study of 'Asari Herba should not exceed Jeon(錢, Qian, 3.0 gram)'

'세신불가전(細辛不過錢)'에 관한 연구

Objectives: Asari Herba comes from the dried perennial herbaceous plant, Asarum sieboldii $M_{IQ}$., A. heterotropides $F_R$. SCHMIDT var. mandshuricum($M_{AXIM}$) $K_{ITAG}$. and A sieboldii $M_{IQ}$ var. seoulense $N_{AKAI}$., family Aristolochiaceae. This medicine is pungent in flavor(味辛), warm in nature(性溫), mildly toxic and affects the lung, kidney, and heart meridians. It is able to repel wind dispel cold(祛風散寒), remove the obstruction of the nose(宣通鼻竅), relieve pain(止痛) and warm the lungs to remove the retention of fluids(溫肺化飮). In a clinic it is prescribed for exterior syndrome of wine-cold type(風寒表證) manifested as headache and general pain. It is indicated for headaches, toothaches, bisyndrome of wind-cold-dampness type(風寒濕痺), etc. For many generations medical books have warned doctors that the dosage of Asari Herba should not be excessive because the pungent flavor has the effect of dispersing exopathogens from superficies of the body. The principle, 'Asari Herba should not exceed Jeon(錢, Qian, 3.0 gram)' is still considered to be relevant. Methods : Extensive research of several ancient medical texts has lead to the following conclusion. Results : The statement 'Asari Herba should not exceed Jeon' is a dosage which is used to prepare single recipe and powder. Conclusion : The definition of Jeon is not 1 Jeon(3.0 gram), but 1 Jeonbi(錢匕, Qianbi, 1.0 gram), moreover, the usage, collection. and refinement process are not in accordance with the contents of the ancient medical texts. A deeper study of Asari Herba's dosage in the future is expected to have interesting results.