儿护养。皆失于姑息。富家过爱。遂多夭横。贫家不及。反得寿长。儿受三分冷。吃七分饱此为护养之要。儿心胸
要冷。背腹要温。哭是歌。不哭不偻 也。儿有胸无心。病多从口成。乳后勿与食。食后勿与乳。儿乳养钦者。必致疳
病。药补是不如食补也。儿头以凉为要。足以温为要。体易虚易实。勿服多寒。勿服多热。儿敏解人意。是真阳发泄。
恐难养。儿瘦先捡乳饵。一碗粥胜一斤参。儿肌肤鲜明者。有留饮。宜渗泄方。青暗者。有寒毒。宜温散方。儿额有筋
而颈细。身体乏力者。属疳病也宜赤风蛤 之。风者百病之长。食者百治之原。饮食不能者。不可治。儿妄笑者。为心
虚。笑少者。为心实。儿谷肠多虫。乳肠少虫。有病者胎毒也。儿谷气胜于元气者体肥而多病。元气胜于谷气者。体瘦
而少病。诸病解后。脾胃必衰弱。强食则发热而腹满。是食复也。病患贪食者。当减也。若恶者反要强。何以论之。曰。
食即恶之基。恶者真元不支故也。寒热必有真假。真者勿慢治。假者勿拘泥。病候有真假。真者隐伏。多在里。假者发
见。多在表。儿吃热勿吃寒。吃软勿吃硬吃少勿
吃多。医有常变。有宽急。勿以常为变。勿以变为常。勿以宽为急。勿以急为宽。方有君臣。有佐使。勿以君为臣。勿
以臣为君。勿以佐为使。勿以使为佐。方有多有单。多者补泽所用也单者攻击所用也。致偏废者。有偏见也。剂有寒因
热用。有热因寒用。有寒因寒用。有热因热用。寒因热用。热因寒用。此为从治所用也寒因寒用热因热用。此为反治所
用也。医有反治。有从治。体实者。反治所宜体虚者。从治所宜反治者为常治。从治者为变治。问曰。医有逐机。有持
重。何也。答曰。逐机者。逐病侯而转方也。持重者重病因而不转方也。若识逐机者。假令一日转百方。不为以误也。
若识持重者。假令百岁用一方。亦不为以误也。凡诊病者。当以一级重决之也。若以轻决之者。必取败缺也。医之为
伎。剂也易处。病也难诊。若置其诊。而欲拟其剂者。未可与论也。儿病始吐蛔者。为热。病当瘥。终吐蛔者为寒。病
不可治。问曰。病热。用寒方益盛。用热方反安者。何也。答曰。夏月体热。然反灌热汤。后身自凉也。假令如火烧疮。
急忍痛而灸后痛顿减。此皆从治之类也。问曰。医有从治。有反治。何谓也答曰。热用寒。寒用热。此为反治。热用热
寒用寒。此为从治病轻者反治所宜也。病重者。从治所宜也。儿暴泻昏沉。脉微弦而四肢冷。若惊惕者。冬月易治夏月
难治。病始为实。终为虚。暴虚者易治。渐虚者难治。儿病多兼蛔。以脾虫故也。始吐蛔者佳。终吐蛔者不佳。儿未期
月而生者。至脚弱。以筋骨有所缺也。医伎。非剂而在七。以剂说治者。未可与论也。诊病要在气息。气息安静者生。
短息者死。癖块。有磨法无泻法。若妄攻者。真元必伤。不可治。儿腹有块者。不问食癖虫块。俱为恶侯。须急论治。
诊病以银海为要。虚实必显。以精萃所奏故也。病五实者死五虚者亦死。病多反复者。不可治也。
Pediatric care is often compromised by excessive indulgence. Wealthy families, loving their children too much, often lead to premature death or sudden calamity; whereas poor families, providing less attentive care, often result in longer lifespans. The key to pediatric care lies in allowing the child to endure a slight chill (three parts cold) and eating until seven-tenths full. The child's chest and heart area should be kept cool, while the back and abdomen should be kept warm. Crying is like singing; lack of crying may lead to kyphosis (hunchback). Children have a physical heart but their Shen (Spirit/Mind) is not yet fully established; diseases often enter through the mouth. Do not feed solid food immediately after breastfeeding, nor breastfeed immediately after feeding solids. Long-term reliance on breast milk will inevitably lead to Gan disease (malnutrition syndrome). Medicinal tonification is inferior to dietary tonification. The child's head should be kept cool, and feet kept warm. A child's constitution is prone to both deficiency and excess; avoid administering excessive cold-natured or hot-natured medicines. A child who is smart, sensitive, and understands human intent exhibits an outward leakage of True Yang, which suggests they may be difficult to nurture. If a child is emaciated, first inspect their breastfeeding and diet. A bowl of rice porridge is superior to one jin (approx. 500g) of Ginseng. If a child's skin and complexion are bright and lustrous, it indicates retained fluid (Liuyin); use a formula for leaching out dampness. If the complexion is blue-dark, it indicates cold toxicity; use a formula for warming and dispersing. If a child has visible veins on the forehead, a thin neck, and bodily weakness, it belongs to Gan disease; treat with Chi Feng Ge (Red Wind Clam). Wind pathogens are the leaders of all diseases; diet is the origin of all treatments. If a patient cannot eat or drink, the disease is incurable. Unprovoked laughter indicates Heart Qi deficiency; infrequent laughter indicates Heart Qi excess. Children have more intestinal parasites than those in the nursing stage; illness arises from fetal toxins. When Gu Qi (postnatal grain qi) exceeds Yuan Qi (innate true qi), the body is fat but prone to disease; when Yuan Qi exceeds Gu Qi, the body is thin but rarely sick. After various diseases resolve, the Spleen and Stomach must be weak. Forcing food intake causes fever and abdominal fullness, known as "Shi Fu" (recurrence due to diet). Patients craving food should reduce intake; if they loathe food but force themselves to eat, why? Food becomes the basis of aversion because the True Yuan cannot support it. Cold and heat conditions have true and false aspects. True conditions should not be treated lightly; false manifestations should not be rigidly adhered to. Symptoms also have true and false aspects: true ones are hidden and mostly interior; false ones appear and are mostly exterior. Children should avoid overly hot or hard foods, and overeating. Physicians follow constant principles and variable changes, with approaches ranging from lenient to urgent. Do not mistake constants for variables, or variables for constants; do not mistake leniency for urgency, or urgency for leniency. Formulas contain Sovereign (Jun), Minister (Chen), Assistant (Zuo), and Envoy (Shi) herbs. Do not confuse Sovereign with Minister, or Assistant with Envoy. Formulas can be complex (multiple herbs) or simple (single herb). Complex formulas are used for nourishing and moistening; simple formulas are used for attacking pathogens. Bias leads to neglect. Dosage strategies include treating cold with heat, heat with cold, cold with cold, and heat with heat. Treating cold with heat and heat with cold constitutes Cong Zhi (Following Treatment); treating cold with cold and heat with heat constitutes Fan Zhi (Opposite Treatment). Physicians employ Fan Zhi and Cong Zhi. Excess constitutions suit Fan Zhi; deficiency constitutions suit Cong Zhi. Fan Zhi is the standard treatment; Cong Zhi is the variable treatment. Question: What is meant by "Zhui Ji" (chasing the opportunity) and "Chi Zhong" (holding steady)? Answer: "Zhui Ji" means changing formulas according to symptom evolution; "Chi Zhong" means prioritizing the root cause and maintaining the formula. One who understands "Zhui Ji" may change a hundred formulas a day without error; one who understands "Chi Zhong" may use one formula for a hundred years without error. In diagnosing, one must decide with gravity. Light-minded decisions lead to failure. Medicine is an art; formulas are easy to handle, but diseases are hard to diagnose. Those who skip diagnosis to prescribe formulas are unworthy of discussion. If a child vomits roundworms at the beginning of illness, it is a Heat pattern, and recovery is expected; vomiting roundworms at the end indicates a Cold pattern, which is incurable. Question: Why does a Heat condition worsen with Cold formulas but improve with Hot formulas? Answer: In summer, the body is naturally hot; paradoxically, pouring hot soup may cool the body later. Similarly, moxibustion on a burn reduces pain despite the heat. These are examples of Cong Zhi. Question: What distinguishes Cong Zhi and Fan Zhi? Answer: Using Cold for Heat and Hot for Cold is Fan Zhi; using Hot for Heat and Cold for Cold is Cong Zhi. Mild illnesses suit Fan Zhi; severe illnesses suit Cong Zhi. Sudden diarrhea with coma, faint wiry pulse, cold limbs, and fright indicates easier treatment in winter and harder in summer. Illnesses start as Excess and end as Deficiency. Sudden deficiency is easier to treat; gradual deficiency is harder. Pediatric illnesses often involve roundworms due to Spleen worms. Vomiting roundworms early is auspicious; late vomiting is inauspicious. Premature infants may have weak legs due to deficient tendons and bones. Medical skill lies not just in formulas but in deeper principles; discussing only formulas is insufficient. Diagnosis relies on breathing: quiet breathing indicates life, short breath indicates death. Accumulations (Pi Ku) require grinding methods, not purging. Reckless attack damages True Yuan, making cure impossible. Abdominal masses, whether food stagnation or parasite clumps, are ominous signs requiring urgent treatment. Diagnosing via the eyes (Yin Hai) is crucial as Deficiency and Excess become apparent there due to the convergence of essence. Five Excess patterns lead to death; Five Deficiency patterns also lead to death. Recurrent illnesses are incurable.