What medication should be taken for damp-heat in the spleen and stomach?
Nov 10, 2025
Source: Cainiu Health
Dr. Sun Lianqing
Introduction
Commonly used traditional Chinese patent medicines for damp-heat in the spleen and stomach include Huanglian Shangqing Pills, Shenling Baizhu Powder (combined with heat-clearing herbs), Huoxiang Zhengqi Water, Er Miao Pills, and Qingwei Huanglian Pills. The core effects of Huanglian Shangqing Pills are clearing heat, relieving constipation, dispersing wind, and alleviating pain. These pills effectively clear damp-heat from the spleen and stomach, alleviate symptoms such as dry and bitter mouth, gastric burning sensation, and dry stools caused by damp-heat. With a relatively cold nature, they directly exert heat-clearing and dampness-resolving actions.
Chinese patent medicines commonly used for damp-heat in the spleen and stomach include Huanglian Shangqing Pills, Shenling Baizhu Powder (combined with heat-clearing herbs), Huoxiang Zhengqi Water, Er Miao Pills, and Qingwei Huanglian Pills. Detailed analysis is as follows:
1. Huanglian Shangqing Pills: The core functions are clearing heat, relieving constipation, dispelling wind, and alleviating pain. These pills effectively clear damp-heat from the spleen and stomach, helping to relieve symptoms such as dry and bitter mouth, gastric burning sensation, and dry stools caused by damp-heat. With a relatively cold nature, they directly clear heat and eliminate dampness.
2. Shenling Baizhu Powder: Primarily strengthens the spleen and boosts qi. When combined with heat-clearing and dampness-resolving ingredients, it becomes suitable for treating damp-heat in the spleen and stomach. It enhances the digestive and transforming functions of the spleen and stomach, reduces internal dampness accumulation, assists in clearing damp-heat, and improves symptoms such as poor appetite, loose and sticky stools, and heaviness in the body.
3. Huoxiang Zhengqi Water: Functions to release the exterior, resolve dampness, regulate qi, and harmonize the middle jiao. Suitable for individuals with spleen-stomach damp-heat accompanied by external contraction of summer-heat and dampness. It helps alleviate nausea, vomiting, abdominal distension, diarrhea, and thick greasy tongue coating, resolving dampness while regulating the flow of qi in the spleen and stomach.
4. Er Miao Pills: Composed primarily of Phellodendron bark (Huangbai) and Atractylodes (Cangzhu), these pills excel at clearing heat and drying dampness. They are effective for skin itching, joint swelling and pain caused by damp-heat in the spleen and stomach, as well as bitter taste and bad breath due to stomach damp-heat, providing significant drying and heat-clearing effects.
5. Qingwei Huanglian Pills: Specifically clears stomach fire, detoxifies, and reduces swelling. They target damp-heat in the spleen, stomach, and stomach region, improving symptoms where stomach heat predominates, such as burning epigastric pain, acid regurgitation, swollen and painful gums, and dry stools.
Selection of Chinese patent medicines should be based on syndrome differentiation according to symptom severity; blind use of cold-natured medicines should be avoided to prevent spleen and stomach damage. During treatment, spicy, greasy, and sweet foods should be avoided, as they may exacerbate damp-heat conditions.
