When the legs grow heavy

Heavy, tired legs, steps that feel heavier at the end of the day, knees that tire quickly, a clammy feeling in the lower body, discomfort that grows in damp weather… In TCM, these signs may be associated with Dampness that sinks and settles in the lower body, often mixed with mild Heat, while the Blood no longer nourishes the tendons enough. According to tradition, the Liver governs the tendons and the Blood nourishes them: when Dampness weighs down and the Blood does not circulate well, the legs lose their ease.

Jian Bu Wan is a formula from the Chinese pharmacopoeia directed towards the lower body. Like Si Miao San, it combines atractylodes, which dries Dampness, with a root that guides the action towards the legs. It stands apart through the place it gives to the Blood: four of its eight herbs nourish it or help it circulate, and a touch of cinnamon twig warms the meridians.

Dry below, nourish and move the Blood

Achyranthes, the most abundant herb, steers the formula towards the legs. Atractylodes and tangerine peel dry Dampness and move the Qi; Chinese angelica tail, white peony and rehmannia nourish the Blood and help it circulate. Scutellaria tempers the Heat that Dampness can give rise to, and cinnamon twig, in a small amount, warms the meridians.

Helps transform Dampness: Atractylodes, bitter and warm, is among the strongest herbs in the tradition for drying Dampness; tangerine peel accompanies it by awakening the Spleen, where Dampness arises.

Supports Blood circulation: Chinese angelica tail, the part of the root that tradition reserves for circulation, and achyranthes get the Blood moving again towards the lower body.

Promotes a feeling of lightness: By drying the Dampness that weighs down and nourishing the tendons through the Blood, with white peony and rehmannia, the formula supports a return to lighter legs.