The Complete Herbal / To which is now added, upwards of one hundred additional herbs, with a display of their medicinal and occult qualities physically applied to the cure of all disorders incident to mankind: to which are now first annexed, the English physician enlarged, and key to Physic.

by Nicholas Culpeper

If then the blood be more thick and viscous than ordinary, it cannot easily be separated without cutting and cleansing medicines.

This is for certain, that blood can neither be separated nor distributed without heat.

Yet amongst diureticks are some cold things, as the four greater cold seeds, Winter-cherries, and the like.

Although this seem a wonder, yet it may be, and doth stand with truth.

For cool diureticks, though they further not the separation of the blood one jot, yet they cleanse and purge the passages of the urine.

Diureticks then are of two sorts:

1. Such as conduce to the separation of the blood.

2. Such as open the urinal passages.

The former are biting (and are known by their taste) very hot and cutting, whence they penetrate to the reins, and cut the gross humours there.

Bitter things, although they be very hot, and cut gross humours, yet are they of a more dry and terrene substance than is convenient to provoke urine.