Can I eat dishes cooked with cooking wine while taking Chinese herbal medicine?

Under normal circumstances, one should not eat dishes cooked with cooking wine while taking traditional Chinese medicine. The detailed explanation is as follows:

Cooking wine is a common seasoning containing nutrients such as vitamins, amino acids, sugars, and trace elements. It helps enhance flavor, improve the texture of food, and supplement essential amino acids for the body. After entering the body, cooking wine must be metabolized and detoxified by the liver. Similarly, traditional Chinese medicine also requires hepatic metabolism before circulating throughout the body. Consuming dishes prepared with cooking wine during treatment with Chinese herbal medicine may alter the quantity, types, and activity of drug-metabolizing enzymes in the liver. This can reduce the therapeutic effectiveness of the medication, increase the metabolic burden on the liver, interfere with the body's absorption, metabolism, and excretion of drugs, and potentially lead to adverse symptoms. Therefore, foods prepared with cooking wine should be avoided when taking traditional Chinese medicine.

It is recommended to use traditional Chinese medicine only under the guidance of a qualified healthcare provider and not to self-medicate. Additionally, during the course of taking herbal medicine, avoid consuming spicy or irritating foods to prevent unwanted side effects.