〔害〕竹性寒凉。胃寒呕吐，及感寒挟食作吐者忌用。
〔利〕甘辛淡寒，入心、肺、胃，疏气逆而平呕吐噎膈，清血热而疗吐衄崩中。
淡竹茹为上，甘竹皮次之，凡用竹茹、叶、沥，须生长甫及一年者，为嫩而有力。刮去
青皮
，用第二层为鲜竹茹。入平呕逆药，姜汁炒用。
〔害〕凡风寒湿滞诸痰并禁用贝母。故云能入肺治燥，非脾家所喜也。及食积痰火作嗽，
湿
痰在胃，恶心欲吐，痰饮作寒热，脾胃湿痰作眩晕，及痰厥头痛，中恶吐呕，胃寒作泄，法
以辛温燥热之药，如南星、半夏、天麻、二术、茯苓之类治之者。
〔利〕苦辛微寒，消痰润肺，涤热清心，故能解郁结，咳嗽，上气，吐血，咯血，肺痈，
肺
痿，喉痹。
淅贝，一名象贝，体坚味苦，去时感风痰。
川贝化虚痰，土贝形大味苦，治外科化痰毒。应用有别，俱去心。
〔修治〕八月采根，根有瓣子黄白色，形如聚贝子，名曰贝母。曝干。先于柳木灰中炮
黄，
擘去内口鼻中有米许大者心一颗后，糯米拌炒，待米黄，去米用。
〔害〕本解实热，祛暑气，散邪热，止渴除烦之要药。极能寒胃。温热病多兼阳明，若
头痛
，遍身骨痛而不渴，不引饮者，邪在太阳，未传阳明，不当用。七八日来邪已结里，内有燥
屎，往来寒热，宜下之，勿用。暑气兼湿作泄，脾胃弱者勿用。疟邪不在阳明则不渴，亦不
宜用。产后寒热，由于血虚，或由恶露未尽；骨蒸劳热，由于脾胃虚寒，阴精不足，而不由
于外感者，并勿误用。伤寒阴盛格阳，内寒外热，便青舌黑，属寒者，误投之，不可救也。
宜详察之，黄色者令人淋。
〔利〕寒能清热降火，辛能发汗解肌，甘能缓脾生津止渴。清肺胃之热，故又为斑疹之
要品
。
煨石膏。经火则寒性减，而不甚伤胃。
〔修治〕有软硬二种，软石膏大块生于石中，作层如压扁米糕形，每层浓数寸，有红白
二色
，红者不可服，莹白者良。研细甘草水飞净。因其寒胃，用火 ，则不甚伤胃，但用之甚少
，则难见功，冰糖拌过，则不妨脾胃矣。
【危害】竹茹性味寒凉。胃寒引起的呕吐，以及因感受寒邪兼夹食积导致的呕吐，应当忌用。
【功效】竹茹味甘、辛、淡，性寒，归心、肺、胃经。它能疏通气逆，平抑呕吐和噎膈；清泄血热，治疗吐血、衄血及崩漏。
淡竹茹品质最佳，甘竹皮次之。凡是使用竹茹、竹叶或竹沥，必须选用生长刚满一年的竹子，因为此时质地嫩且药效强。刮去青色的外皮，取第二层作为鲜竹茹。若用于平息呕吐的药物中，需用姜汁炒制后使用。
【危害】凡是由风寒湿滞引起的各种痰证，均禁用贝母。所以说贝母能入肺治燥，但这并非脾脏所喜好的（即易伤脾阳）。此外，对于食积痰火引起的咳嗽，胃中湿痰导致的恶心欲吐，痰饮引发的寒热往来，脾胃湿痰导致的眩晕，痰厥头痛，中恶导致的呕吐，以及胃寒导致的泄泻，这些情况依法应当使用南星、半夏、天麻、苍术、白术、茯苓等辛温燥热的药物来治疗，此时禁用贝母。
【功效】贝母味苦、辛，性微寒。能消痰润肺，涤除热邪，清心除烦。因此，它能解郁结，治疗咳嗽、气逆上冲、吐血、咯血、肺痈、肺痿及喉痹。
浙贝母，又名象贝母，质地坚硬，味道苦，主要用于去除外感风痰。川贝母能化解虚痰。土贝母形体较大，味道苦，用于治疗外科化痰解毒。应用各有不同，使用时均需去除心部。
【炮制】八月采集根部，根有瓣子，呈黄白色，形状像聚集在一起的贝子，称为贝母。晒干。先在柳木灰中煨至黄色，掰开去掉内部口鼻处米粒大小的芯一颗，然后用糯米拌炒，待米变黄后，去掉糯米，只用药材。
【危害】石膏是解除实热、祛除暑气、散除邪热、止渴除烦的重要药物。但它极容易损伤胃气。温热病多兼涉阳明经，如果患者头痛、全身骨痛但不口渴，不想饮水，说明邪气仍在太阳经，尚未传入阳明经，不应当使用石膏。发病七八天后，邪气已结于体内，内有燥屎，出现寒热往来症状，应当使用攻下法，不要使用石膏。暑气兼夹湿气导致泄泻，脾胃虚弱者不要使用。疟疾邪气不在阳明经则不口渴，也不宜使用。产后寒热，如果是由于血虚，或由恶露未尽引起；骨蒸劳热，如果是由于脾胃虚寒，阴精不足，而非由外感引起，都切勿误用。伤寒病中阴盛格阳，内寒外热，大便青色，舌色黑，属于寒证的情况，如果误投石膏，将无法挽救。应当详细察辨。石膏色黄者会导致淋证。
【功效】石膏性寒能清热降火，味辛能发汗解肌，味甘能缓急健脾、生津止渴。它能清泄肺胃之热，因此也是治疗斑疹的重要药材。
【炮制】石膏有软、硬两种。软石膏大块生于石中，呈层状，像压扁的米糕形状，每层厚数寸，有红、白两种颜色。红色的不可服用，莹白色的为佳。研成细粉，用甘草水飞炼洗净。因其寒性伤胃，用火煅烧后，就不太伤胃了。但如果用量很少，难以见效；若用冰糖拌过，则不妨碍脾胃。
[Harm] Bamboo shavings (Zhuru) have a cold and cooling nature. It is contraindicated for vomiting caused by stomach cold, as well as vomiting resulting from cold pathogen invasion combined with food stagnation.
[Benefits] Bamboo shavings are sweet, pungent, and bland in taste, and cold in nature. They enter the Heart, Lung, and Stomach meridians. They regulate adverse Qi flow to calm vomiting and dysphagia; they clear blood heat to treat hematemesis, epistaxis, and metrorrhagia.
Bamboo shavings from *Phyllostachys nigra* (Dan Zhu) are of the highest quality, while those from *Phyllostachys heterocycla* var. *pubescens* (Gan Zhu) are secondary. Whenever using bamboo shavings, bamboo leaves, or bamboo sap, one must select bamboo that has grown for exactly one year, as it is tender and potent. Scrape off the green outer skin and use the second layer as fresh bamboo shavings. When used in formulas to calm vomiting and rebellious Qi, stir-fry with ginger juice before use.
[Harm] Beimu (Fritillaria Bulb) is strictly contraindicated for all types of phlegm caused by wind-cold-dampness stagnation. Thus, although it enters the Lung to treat dryness, it is not favored by the Spleen system. Furthermore, it is contraindicated for coughs caused by food stagnation and phlegm-fire, nausea and retching due to damp-phlegm in the Stomach, chills and fever due to phlegm-fluid retention, dizziness due to spleen-stomach damp-phlegm, headache due to phlegm syncope, vomiting due to sudden evil attack, and diarrhea due to stomach cold. These conditions should legally be treated with acrid-warm and drying-hot herbs such as Pinelliae Rhizoma Preparatum (Nan Xing), Pinelliae Rhizoma (Ban Xia), Gastrodiae Rhizoma (Tian Ma), Atractylodis Rhizoma (Zhu Ru), and Poria (Fu Ling).
[Benefits] Beimu is bitter and pungent, with a slightly cold nature. It resolves phlegm and moistens the Lungs, washes away heat and clears the Heart. Therefore, it can resolve depression and nodules, treat cough, hyperpnea, hematemesis, hemoptysis, lung abscess, lung萎 (Lung Wei), and throat obstruction (Hou Bi).
Zhe Beimu, also known as Xiang Beimu, is hard in texture and bitter in taste; it is used to eliminate wind-phlegm from external contraction. Chuan Beimu transforms deficiency-phlegm. Tu Beimu is large in shape and bitter in taste; it treats surgical conditions involving phlegm-toxin. Their applications differ, but the heart must be removed in both cases.
[Processing] Harvest the rhizomes in August. The rhizome consists of cloves that are yellowish-white and shaped like clustered shells, hence the name Beimu. Sun-dry them. First, roast them in willow wood ash until yellow. Break open and remove the heart, which is about the size of a rice grain located inside near the mouth/nose area. Then, stir-fry with glutinous rice until the rice turns yellow. Discard the rice and use the herb.
[Harm] Shigao (Gypsum Fibrosum) is a crucial herb for resolving excess heat, dispelling summer-heat, scattering pathogenic heat, stopping thirst, and removing irritability. However, it severely damages the Stomach Qi. Warm-heat diseases often involve the Yangming channel. If the patient has headache and generalized bone pain without thirst or desire to drink, the pathogen is still in the Taiyang channel and has not transmitted to Yangming; Shigao should not be used. After seven or eight days, if the pathogen has consolidated internally with dry feces, presenting with alternating chills and fever, purgation is indicated, not Shigao. For summer-heat combined with dampness causing diarrhea, do not use it in patients with weak Spleen and Stomach. For malaria where the pathogen is not in Yangming, there is no thirst, so it is also unsuitable. For postpartum chills and fever due to Blood deficiency or incomplete expulsion of lochia; for tidal fever due to Spleen-Stomach deficiency-cold and insufficiency of Yin-Essence rather than external contraction; do not mistakenly use it. In Shaoyin disease with Yin excess repelling Yang, internal cold with external heat, green stool, and black tongue indicating cold syndrome, administering Shigao erroneously is incurable. Careful examination is required. Yellow-colored Gypsum causes strangury (Lin syndrome).
[Benefits] Its cold nature clears heat and descends fire; its pungency induces sweating and releases the muscle layer; its sweetness moderates the Spleen, generates fluids, and stops thirst. It clears heat from the Lungs and Stomach, making it an essential material for treating macules and papules (Ban Zhen).
Calcined Gypsum (Wei Shigao). Heating reduces its cold nature so it does not overly injure the Stomach.
[Processing] There are two types: soft and hard. Soft Gypsum occurs in large blocks within rocks, layered like flattened rice cakes, with each layer several inches thick. It comes in red and white colors. Red varieties are not for internal use; translucent white ones are superior. Grind into fine powder and levigate with Licorice Decoction. Because it damages the Stomach due to its cold nature, calcining it reduces this injury. However, if the dosage is too small, efficacy is hard to achieve. Mixing it with rock sugar prevents damage to the Spleen and Stomach.