Herbs That Cool The Blood

Herbs That Cool the Blood are generally used for:

  • Patterns of heat in the blood from febrile disease entering the blood level – blood moves recklessly and causes rashes, nosebleed, vomiting, spitting, or coughing of blood, blood in stool or urine
  • Also treats ying level of a febrile disease – night fevers, delirium, deep scarlet tongue

Section Herbal Summary:

  • Xi Jiao is most effective in clearing fire from heart and cooling the blood – for high fever and delirium, coma, and convulsions, bleeding due to heat at yin or blood level of disease. Use Shui Niu Jiao as a substitute
  • Sheng Di Huang and Xuan Shen – cool blood and nourish the yin and generate fluid; sheng di huang is more effective in cases involving the reckless movement of hot blood, while xuan shen is used in cases involving heat toxin, such as throat pain and scrofula
  • Yin Chai Hu – cools blood; very effective in reducing symptoms of heat from deficiency associated with steaming bone disorder; fever associated with chronic nutritional impairment
  • Di Gu Pi – cools blood and clears heat from ying level in warm-febrile diseases; used to treat steaming bone disorder that presents with sweating; effective in draining upward-flaring fire
  • Mu Dan Pi – cools blood; steaming bone disorder without sweating; drains upward flaring fire
  • Bai Wei – cools blood and treats blood-deficient type steaming bone disorder; nourishes yin

Chinese Herbsort icon Functions and Usage
Bai Wei (Swallowwort Root)
  • Clears heat and Cools Blood. Particularly useful for yin deficient fever, summertime fever in children, post partum fever, and within the recovery stage of a febrile disease
  • Cools Blood and Promotes Urine. Xue Lin, especially before or after giving birth.
  • Relieves toxicity. Toxic sores, swollen and painful throat, snake bite.
Di Gu Pi (Wolfberry Root Cortex)
  • Drains Yin deficiency fire. Night sweats, steaming bone disorder, irritablity, thirst.
  • Clears Lung Heat. Cough, wheezing.
  • Clears Heat, Cools Blood. Nosebleed, vomiting blood, xue lin.
  • Drain floating kidney fire. Toothache due to deficient fire.
Mu Dan Pi (Tree Peony Root Cortex)
  • Clears Heat (excess and deficient), Cools Blood. Nose bleed, bloody sputum or vomit, subcutaneous bleeding, frequent and profuse menses due to heat in the Blood.
  • Clear Deficient Fire. Yin deficiency patterns such as steaming bone disorder after a warm-febrile disease particularly those without sweating.
  • Clears Liver Blood Stasis. Amenorrhea, abdominal masses, bruises.
  • Clears Rising Liver Fire. Headache, eye pain, flank pain, flushing, dysmenorrhea.
  • Drains Pus, Reduces Swelling. Used topically for non-draining sores. Used internally for intestinal abscess.
Sheng Di Huang (Rehmannia)
  • Clears Heat, Cools Blood. High fever, thirst, scarlet tongue, hemorrhage due to heat in the Blood.
  • Nourishes Yin, Generates Fluids. Yin Deficiency with heat signs with injury to body fluids. Dry mouth, low-grade fever, constipation, throat pain from yin deficiency.
  • Cools Ascending Heart Fire (HT, LV). Mouth and tongue sores, irritability, insomnia, malar flush.
  • Wasting thirst disorder.
Xi Jiao (Rhinoceros Horn)
  • Clears Heat, Relieves Fire Toxicity, Cools Blood, Arrests Tremors. Erythema, nosebleed, vomiting blood, delirium, convulsions, manic behavior, loss of consciousness.
Xuan Shen (Ningpo Figwort Root)
  • Clears Heat, Cools Blood. Bleeding, fever, dry mouth, purplish tongue.
  • Nourishes Yin. Particularly for the sequel of warm febrile disease with constipation, irritability.
  • Drains Fire, Relieves Toxicity. Swollen, red eyes, sore throat.
  • Softens Harness (salty), Dissipates phlegm fire nodules. Swollen, sore throat, neck lumps.
Yin Chai Hu (Stellaria Root)
  • Clears Deficient Heat. Steaming bone disorder, deficient yin fever.
  • Clears Heat. Fever, thirst, irritability, childhood nutritional impairment due to heat accumulation.
  • Cools Blood, Stops Bleeding. Coughing up blood, nosebleed, xue lin, uterine bleeding.
Zi Cao (Groomwell Root)
  • Clears Heat, Cools the Blood, Relieves Fire Toxicity while Venting Rashes. Encourages rashes to surface, often for fire toxin with very dark purple rashes.
  • Topically. Clears damp heat, damp heat skin lesion, vaginal itching, burns.
  • Moisten Intestines, Unblock Bowels. Heat in the blood with constipation.