@algancao – on Gancao, The Two Most Herb
@La_Yerberia Glycyrrhiza glabra is known as the “two most herb” in Chinese culture. It is the MOST sweet and the MOST yellow.
Licorice root is sweet & yellow, both point to the Earth element (meaning digestion). Sweet calms too, which is why it is added to formulas.
Licorice root’s (gan cao) sweetness is like a sweet person amongst an angry crowd. They can calm others and make them work together better.
Excessive long-term use of gancao can cause fluid retention -> hypertension. There are extracts available with the culprit molecule removed.
Because sweetness slows and makes the digestion comfortable, using too much (sweet) can weigh down the digestive qi -> spleen damp.
Just about any excess in digestion can lead to dampness, including excess quantities of any kind of food, especially sweet food, rich, oily.
Food stagnation is peristaltic, while dampness is enzymatic. The two can arise together. Third leg is neurological, or “qi stagnation”.
Last modified: July 16, 2010 
Posted in: Tweetz
