Fu Zi is a Chinese herb used to treat extreme internal cold. Wait…what? That’s right, in Chinese medicine, you can have such a thing as internal cold. To understand what that means, you need to know a couple of things about Yin and Yang.
You may have heard somewhere that Yang is like the sunny side of the hill—warm, light and active. In contrast, Yin is like the shady areas on that hill, which are dark, moist and still. In your body, Yang acts like a warming pilot light. It fuels metabolism, maintains your body temperature and fuels the activity of all your organ systems, such as digestion, circulation of blood, your endocrine system and even your brain. Yin, on the other hand, acts like your body’s nourishing coolant. It helps contain the yang to keep it in check so you don’t overheat, and is the substance of all your body’s organs and tissues. So, while your circulation is fueled by Yang, the substance of your blood is Yin. Simply put, Yang is your life force and drives your body processes, your actual organs, body fluids and tissue are Yin.
What does Yin and Yang have to do with Fu Zi? The main use of this herb in Chinese medicine is to treat people who have a critical depletion of Yang, a condition described as severe internal cold. This can happen after a serious illness, chronic condition or trauma that dramatically injures the body’s reserves. It occurs most often when the illness has caused a loss of body fluids, through diarrhea, bleeding, vomiting or profuse sweating. Symptoms of this kind of internal cold include chills, cold extremities, a weak pulse, fatigue, diarrhea with undigested food and general overall weakness. Though their will be signs of cold it can even manifest with feelings of heat in the upper body such as the head and face.
Remember, Yang is your body’s warming pilot light, and when Yang is in low reserve, feeling cold is one of the primary symptoms. However, Yang also powers your body’s organ systems, so a depletion of this kind also means that your digestion, lung function or your heart may be affected. This is where Fu Zi is an incredibly useful herb. Its main function is to very quickly warm and restore your body’s Yang. It disperses the cold, warms and tonifies Yang of the Heart, Kidney and Spleen, which simply means that it helps your body’s organ systems become fully functional again. Fu Zi is a cardioactive herb, which means that it promotes circulation; and its effects are more systemic than most other warming herbs. Fu Zi also treats pain that is caused by the cold—the kind of pain that becomes significantly worse in the cold and damp weather.
The herb Fu Zi is the prepared accessory roots, or offshoot roots, of the aconite plant. It’s important to know that Fu Zi has toxic properties if it is not prepared properly. The preparation of herbs in general for use in Chinese medicine is crucial to make them safe and effective, a practice called Pao Zhi. In addition to Pao Zhi preparation, herbs like Fu Zi underscores the need for you to work with a practitioner who has been fully trained in Chinese herbal medicine and has years of experience. The Fu Zi I use in my clinic is always prepared and tested for toxicity before it’s added to any herbal formula. If you’d like to know more about how a Chinese herbal formula may help you, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
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Dr. Jeda Boughton is a Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Registered Acupuncturist in Vancouver. She is also a Registered Herbologist and the founder of BodaHealth.
