CHAPTER VI 

 THE LIVER AND GALL BLADDER 



CHINESE THEORIES REGARDING THE LIVER 

 AND GALL BLADDER 



The sketch reproduced here is one 

 of many similar sketches that ap- 

 peared about three centuries ago in a 

 revised edition of the Encyclopedia 

 of Herbal Science, published by the 

 Chinese Imperial College in Peking, 

 China. It shows how the various 

 nerves in different parts of the body 

 are affected by the gall bladder and 

 liver. 



Although thousands of years have 

 elapsed since the original of the ac- 

 companying sketch was made by 

 eminent herbalists in China, yet great 

 numbers of sufferers from liver and 

 gall bladder trouble in the U. S. as 

 well as in the Orient are daily obtain- 

 ing great benefit from this ancient 

 Chinese knowledge by using the Chi- 

 nese herbal remedies. 



Because the liquid in the gall blad- 

 der and the juices secreted by the 

 liver are greenish, thus resembling 

 the vegetation element in color, Shin 

 Nong concluded that the gall bladder and liver belonged to the vegeta- 

 tion element and that herbs of green color and sour taste should be used 

 as correctives for disorders of these organs. Upon experimenting, he 



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