Angelica and Astragalus Black-Bone Chicken Soup，From *Proven Tea, Decoction, and Soup Recipes for Common Ailments*,Nourishes and replenishes blood; supplements iron. For iron-deficiency anemia caused by deficiency of both qi and blood.
because it runs warm overall, this decoction is best avoided in yin-deficient, fire-prone constitutions; in the absence of frank deficiency, or where an excess or heat pattern prevails, indiscriminate warming tonic use is inadvisable; the blood-moving action suggests caution in early pregnancy, in heavy or prolonged menses, and in those with a bleeding tendency; warming tonics readily stir heat and burden the spleen; caution is advised where dampness-heat or food stagnation accumulates in the middle
Commentary
Angelica root occupies the sovereign position; of warm nature and sweet, pungent flavor, entering the Liver, Heart, Spleen, it tonifies blood, promotes blood circulation, regulates menstruation, and moistens the intestines and becomes the guiding principle of the whole formula. The ministerial support — astragalus (nature slightly warm, flavor sweet, channeled into the Spleen, Lung, tonifies qi, raises yang, secures the exterior and promotes the discharge of pus), and black-boned chicken (of neutral nature and sweet flavor, entering the Liver, Kidney, nourishes the liver and kidneys and supplements qi and blood) — reinforces the sovereign’s main effect and coordinates the drug strength. The combined effect is tailored to the qi-blood pattern.