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Mixing Up Xiao Chai Hu Tang Myself

by tracyb - June 13, 2023

Hi Steve,
I have a bunch of patients maintained well on Xiao chai hu tang. It is on backorder at Natural Path and I just mailed out the last bottle I had in stock.
In my hands the natural path products work so much better than the Kan tablets, I use if whenever the patient will accept the powder mixed into food as opposed to tablets.

I would like to be able to mix up my own during backorders. Looking at the ChenChen veterinary text it contains:
24 g of Chai Hu, the same as their human text recipe.

I have in my (handwritten) notes that veterinary Xiao Chai Hu Tang contains reduced bupleurum because the higher level of bupleurum is toxic for dogs. (that is why during backorders I have not ordered this from a manufacturer of human herbs)

Could you please clarify for me?

Thanks! Tracy

by naturevet

June 16, 2023

Hi Tracy,

You recall correctly. Eventually the human herb companies that were not following the source text (KPC in particular) got enough flack from veterinarians about their Bupleurum levels that they backed them off. The use of 24g per 100g of Chai Hu should be safe. KPC was much higher than that at one point, and was tipping animals into kidney failure with their version

Steve

by tracyb

June 19, 2023

Steve,
Thanks so much that is good to know.
I'm kind of excited to mix this up myself (though I will be glad when backorders are less common!)
Tracy

by tracyb

June 19, 2023

Hi Steve,
I am now carefully reading the Chen text, and the composition it gives:

chai hu 24 g [12 g]
huang qin 9g [9g]
ban xia 0.5 cup [9g]
sheng jiang 9g [9g]
ren shen 9g [6g]
zhi gan cao 9g [5g]
da zao 12 pieces [4pieces]

is actually for making a decoction, with alternate amounts in brackets.

Since my patients are on powder, I was hoping I could just buy the constituent extract granules, weigh them out and mix them together.

Do you know where I can find a reference for those proportions?

Thanks so much
Tracy

by tracyb

June 19, 2023

Hi Steve,
I am now carefully reading the Chen text, and the composition it gives:

chai hu 24 g [12 g]
huang qin 9g [9g]
ban xia 0.5 cup [9g]
sheng jiang 9g [9g]
ren shen 9g [6g]
zhi gan cao 9g [5g]
da zao 12 pieces [4pieces]

is actually for making a decoction, with alternate amounts in brackets.

Since my patients are on powder, I was hoping I could just buy the constituent extract granules, weigh them out and mix them together.

Do you know where I can find a reference for those proportions?

Thanks so much
Tracy

by tracyb

June 19, 2023

Hi Steve,
I am now carefully reading the Chen text, and the composition it gives:

chai hu 24 g [12 g]
huang qin 9g [9g]
ban xia 0.5 cup [9g]
sheng jiang 9g [9g]
ren shen 9g [6g]
zhi gan cao 9g [5g]
da zao 12 pieces [4pieces]

is actually for making a decoction, with alternate amounts in brackets.

Since my patients are on powder, I was hoping I could just buy the constituent extract granules, weigh them out and mix them together.

Do you know where I can find a reference for those proportions?

Thanks so much
Tracy

by naturevet

June 27, 2023

One book if you have it that is written with granules in mind is Dagmar Ehling's Chinese Herbalist Handbook. That's an option for you if you're looking for a reference. Hopefully it shows the Chai Hu as no more than 25g or so per 100g, but I don't have one handy to confirm

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