FONG WAN - Library

CHAPTER V
THE LUNGS AND THE THROAT
CHINESE THEORIES REGARDING THE LUNGS
The Lungs
Shin Nong classified the
lungs as belonging to the min-
eral element. Just as the heart
controls the blood circulation,
the lungs control the air cir-
culation of the human system.
If the blood of the lungs is
in good condition, and the
pores of the body are kept
clean, while at the same time
the lungs are free from in-
flammation, impurities, and
abnormal temperature of for-
eign origin, the lungs are
strong and healthy.
Herbs of white color and of either pungent or insipid taste belong
to the mineral element. The former cause the heat of the body to ex-
pand and to go down to the limbs and pass outward through the skin.
The activity of the lungs extends also to the sub-organs and the in-
testines. The herbs of insipid taste free the lungs and intestines of
fever.
COLDS AND LA GRIPPE
When one has a cold in any part or in the whole of the body, the
passages of the pores are closed. As the internal heat cannot then
escape, it forces its way up to the head, which begins to ache. If this
heat (fever) reaches the lungs, pneumonia may result. When a cold
settles in any part of the body, it stops the circulation both of the
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