Gui Zhi Fu Zi Tang
Star桂枝附子汤 (Cinnamon Twig and Aconite Decoction)
Source: Shang Han Lun — Zhang Zhong-Jing (Eastern Han, c. 220)
Last updated October 20, 2026
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Description
Gui Zhi Fu Zi Tang (Cinnamon Twig and Aconite Decoction) is the formula given in Line 174 of the Shang Han Lun for cold damage of eight or nine days in which wind and dampness contend, with generalized vexing pain, inability to turn sides, no retching or thirst, and a floating, vacuous, rough pulse.
Source: Mitchell C, Feng Y, Wiseman N. Shang Han Lun: On Cold Damage, Translation & Commentaries. Paradigm Publications, 1999, pp. 290–291.
Composition
Liquorice — estimated at the Chinese Pharmacopoeia's minimum content: about 313 mg of glycyrrhizic acid a day (zhi Gan Cao 31.25 g × 1.0 %). The EU Scientific Committee on Food considers 100 mg/day an upper limit for regular intake that protects most people. The estimate assumes all of it passes into what is taken, uses the pharmacopoeia's dry-weight minimum, and takes the amounts as one day's dose.
Sources
Sources: Chinese Pharmacopoeia 2020, 甘草 and 炙甘草, assay (glycyrrhizic acid not less than 1.8 % in the dispensed slices and 1.0 % in honey-fried liquorice, by dry weight). EU Scientific Committee on Food, Opinion on glycyrrhizinic acid and its ammonium salt, SCF/CS/ADD/EDUL/225 Final, 2003. The Committee notes this limit may not protect people with high blood pressure, electrolyte or fluid-balance disorders, slow gut transit, or reduced 11β-HSD2 activity.
- 《中华人民共和国药典》2020年版一部 — 甘草, 饮片 甘草片【含量测定】甘草酸 不得少于1.8%（按干燥品计算） (opens in a new tab)
- 《中华人民共和国药典》2020年版一部 — 炙甘草【含量测定】甘草酸 不得少于1.0%（按干燥品计算） (opens in a new tab)
- EU Scientific Committee on Food, Opinion on glycyrrhizinic acid and its ammonium salt, SCF/CS/ADD/EDUL/225 Final (10 April 2003) (opens in a new tab)
- EMA/HMPC/108399/2024 — European Union herbal monograph on Glycyrrhiza glabra L.; Glycyrrhiza inflata Bat.; Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch., radix, §4.9 Overdose (opens in a new tab)
| Herb | Amount | % | Role | Function |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Gui Zhi
as printed: 桂枝四两（去皮） (4 liang, remove bark); 62.5 g at 1 liang = 15.625 g (p. 64)
|
62.5g | 44.44% | — | |
|
Zhi Fu Zi
as printed: 附子三枚（炮，去皮，破） (3 pieces, blast-fried, skin removed, crushed); blast-fried (炮)
|
3pieces | 20% | — | |
|
Sheng Jiang
as printed: 生姜三两（切） (3 liang, cut); 46.875 g at 1 liang = 15.625 g (p. 64)
|
46.88g | 33.33% | — | |
|
Da Zao
as printed: 大枣十二枚（擘） (12 pieces, broken)
|
12pieces | 80% | — | |
|
Gan Cao
as printed: 甘草二两（炙） (2 liang, mix-fried); 31.25 g at 1 liang = 15.625 g (p. 64)
|
31.25g | 22.22% | — |
Dui Yao — Core Herb Pairs
The classical two-herb combinations at the heart of this formula, as recorded on the herbs' own pages — each pair has an action neither herb has alone.
Energetics dose-weighted
The formula's overall nature, taste balance and channel reach, weighted by each herb's dose. Classical formulas often pair warm and cool herbs on purpose, so a net figure summarises the mix — it doesn't describe every herb in it.
Nature
Net warm (+0.78)
From 100% of the weighed grams.
Grams by band: neutral 22%, warm 78%.
Taste
- pungent 56%
- sweet 44%
From 100% of the weighed grams.
Channels reached
- Lung 100%
- Heart 67%
- Stomach 56%
- Spleen 56%
Share of the grams entering each channel, from 100% of the weighed grams.
2 herbs without a dose in grams, so left out of every figure above: Zhi Fu Zi, Da Zao.
Dose-weighted from each herb's recorded nature, taste and channels (missing values are left out, never counted as neutral). It describes the composition — it is not a recommendation.
Preparation
[For] the above five ingredients use six shēng of water. Boil to get two shēng, and remove the dregs. Separate into three [doses] and take warm. (Mitchell, Feng & Wiseman 1999, pp. 290–291, Line 174)
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Formula family
Each entry reads as the larger formula written out: “+” adds its other catalogue cores, then the herbs none of them hold. A catalogue formula counts as a core only when at least 80% of its herbs are present, no more than 1 is absent, and the absent herb is not its chief.
Formula Network
Formulas that share herbs with this one — the closer to the centre, the stronger the match. Click a node to explore.
Similar Formulas by composition
Match score combines dosage-weighted composition (cosine, 70%) with shared-herb overlap (Jaccard, 30%).
Traditional formula information is for educational purposes only. Herbal formulas should be prescribed by a qualified practitioner — dosages and combinations are individualized and can interact with medications.
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