Dietary Materia Medica

孟诜Jinzhang Book Company (Jinzhang Shuju) · ChinaJul 2024

4.2

Word count: 39K words
Chapters: 4

Summary

Dietary Materia Medica (Shiliao Bencao), a monograph on materia medica from Tang-dynasty China, is the earliest extant work devoted to dietary therapy in the world. It gathers the achievements of ancient dietary therapy and has contributed greatly to the development of medicine in China and worldwide. Its author, Meng Shen (621–713), was a native of Ruzhou, Henan, and is hailed as the founding father of dietary therapy worldwide. The origin of the book's title is disputed. Fan Xingzhun holds that the work was originally Meng Shen's Buping Fang (Prescriptions for Supplementary Nourishment), which Zhang Ding expanded and renamed; others hold that it was compiled and expanded from the dietary treatment chapter of Qianjin Yaofang (Essential Prescriptions Worth a Thousand in Gold). The title is recorded in the Treatise on Literature of the Old Book of Tang.

Editor's review

Dietary Materia Medica is a monograph on materia medica from Tang-dynasty China and the earliest extant book devoted to dietary therapy; its significance lies in discussing everyday food and herbal nourishment within a single framework. Meng Shen, its author, long observed the experience of dietary treatment, and the book gathers the achievements of ancient dietary therapy. Its discussions center on the nature and flavor of foods, their suitability and contraindications, and their nourishing effects; the language is plain and close to daily life. Its value today lies not only in looking up which food treats which illness, but in understanding how the ancients viewed diet through the lens of nature, flavor, and channel tropism, and how they brought eating into a system of nourishment. The book serves well as a foundational reader in dietary materia medica; read alongside later works on dietary therapy, it reveals both continuity and change in ideas of dietary nourishment. Note that names of foods, processing methods, and ways of eating differ between past and present, and some statements reflect the limits of their era; readers should approach it with the perspective of materia medica history and Chinese dietary therapy, and should not follow individual entries as prescriptions or try them on their own.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in the history of Chinese dietary therapy and the origins of materia medica
Enthusiasts of Chinese wellness traditions who wish to understand ancient approaches to dietary treatment
Researchers in nutrition and food culture who need reference to classical texts
Practitioners with a foundation in Chinese medicine who wish to broaden their knowledge of dietary materia medica

Not a good fit for

Those hoping to pick foods from the book to cure illness without a foundation in Chinese medical diagnosis
Readers seeking modern nutritional data and quantified dietary guidelines
Beginners expecting a complete collated edition with line-by-line plain-language explanations

Reading tips

Begin with the preface or publisher's note to understand the book's background and textual history before turning to the main text.
Read selectively by food category, noting for each entry the nature and flavor, suitability and contraindications, and how these differ from present-day understanding.
Read alongside the dietary treatment chapter of Qianjin Yaofang to observe how ideas of dietary therapy were carried forward and expanded.
When encountering names that differ between past and present or questionable statements, consult materia medica dictionaries or ask a professional rather than trying them rashly.

About the publisher

Jinzhang Book Company (Jinzhang Shuju) China · Founded in 1901

Jinzhang Book Company (Jinzhang Shuju) was a private publishing and distribution house in Shanghai during the late Qing and early Republican periods, issuing traditional works by lithographic printing. Judging from the 1,194 titles in the collection, its publishing focused on classical poetry, Eastern philosophy, historical reading, traditional Chinese medical texts, and canonical works, along with books on literary appreciation. Representative titles include the poetry and prose collections of Du Fu and Ouyang Xiu; historical works such as the Book of Han and Zizhi Tongjian; classical texts such as the Book of Documents and Mencius; and specialized and literary classics such as Treatise on Cold Damage and Li Sao. Its author resources cover major figures across the ages, including Du Fu, Ban Gu, Sima Guang, Zhang Zhongjing, Qu Yuan, Ouyang Xiu, and Tang Shenwei, reflecting the house's characteristic reliance on traditional scholarship and medical literature while serving general readers. Public information on its early history and operational details is limited, so no conjecture is offered here.

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FAQ

Is Dietary Materia Medica suitable for ordinary families to consult in daily life?

It can serve as a reader for understanding ancient ideas of dietary therapy, but it is not recommended as a practical household manual to follow directly. Its entries reflect their era; food names and methods of use differ from today's, and some statements require scrutiny in light of modern knowledge. Daily household dietary care should still rest on reliable professional advice.

How does this book relate to modern nutrition science?

The two belong to different systems. Dietary Materia Medica discusses foods in terms of nature and flavor, suitability and contraindications, and nourishing effects in Chinese medicine, whereas modern nutrition science focuses on nutrients and quantified intake. Reading this book helps one understand traditional approaches to dietary nourishment, but one should not map modern nutritional standards onto it entry by entry, nor treat it as a substitute for modern dietary guidance.

What knowledge of Chinese medicine is needed before reading?

It is best to first understand basic concepts of Chinese medical theory—nature and flavor, channel tropism, supplementation and reduction—and to be familiar with the basic categories of common foods and medicinals. With this grounding, it is easier to understand why the ancients classified things as they did. Complete beginners can also start with introductory material before turning to the main text.

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About the author

孟诜 Author

Meng Shen was a Chinese author in the fields of diet and materia medica. Publicly available information about his life is limited: his birth and death years, native place, and educational background are not clearly recorded. Three of his works are held in the collection, including Food Therapy Materia Medica and its annotated translation, as well as The Five Flavors of Food (4 volumes). These works show that Meng Shen focused on combining knowledge of materia medica with everyday diet, exploring how food can nourish the body and connecting flavor with health. His writings span medicine, health, and culture, offering practical dietary entries while reflecting ancient Chinese understanding of the relationship between food and wellbeing, and they have had some influence on later works on food therapy.