When Heat thickens Phlegm

A feeling of encumbrance in the chest, a throat you often need to clear, a sticky mouth, inner heat, a chest that feels full… In TCM, these signs may be associated with Phlegm-Heat lodged in the Lung. The starting point is often stagnant Qi: according to tradition, when blocked it heats up, and this Heat thickens the body’s Fluids into Phlegm. A tired Spleen also supplies the Dampness from which Phlegm forms.

Qing Qi Hua Tan Wan appears in 1584, under the Ming dynasty, in the Yi Fang Kao (《医方考》) by Wu Kun (吴昆), one of the first works to explain in detail why each formula works. A century later, Wang Ang (汪昂) takes it up in the Yi Fang Ji Jie (《医方集解》) and draws from it the principle behind its name, the “Pill that Clears the Qi and Transforms Phlegm”: to transform Phlegm, you must first clear the Qi. Our adapted version does not contain pinellia (Ban Xia).

Clearing the Qi to transform Phlegm

Our version brings together six of the eight herbs in Wu Kun’s formula, in equal parts as in the original. Skullcap and trichosanthes seeds clear Heat; apricot kernels, bitter orange and tangerine peel set the Qi moving again and help it descend; poria supports the Spleen, where Phlegm originates according to tradition.

Clears Heat: Skullcap, bitter and cold, clears Lung Heat; trichosanthes seeds, sweet and slippery, support it by helping Phlegm-Heat descend.

Helps transform Phlegm: As the saying goes, the Spleen produces Phlegm and the Lung stores it. Poria supports the Spleen at the source, while tangerine peel helps transform what has already formed.

Supports the flow of Qi: Apricot kernels make Lung Qi descend and bitter orange frees the chest: when Qi flows, Heat subsides, and Phlegm is transformed along with it.