{ "slug": "ban-xia-hou-po-tang", "names": { "pinyin": "Ban Xia Hou Po Tang", "chinese": "半夏厚朴汤", "english": "Pinellia and Magnolia Bark Decoction", "alternate": [ "Ban Xia Hou Po Wan", "Pinellia and Magnolia Combination" ] }, "category": "regulate-qi", "source": { "text": "Jin Gui Yao Lue (Essentials from the Golden Cabinet)", "author": "Zhang Zhong-jing", "dynasty": "Han", "year": "c. 220" }, "summary": "The formula for plum-pit throat: the feeling of a lump in the throat that you can neither swallow nor cough up, with chest tightness and sometimes nausea or a cough. Stuck qi and phlegm have knotted together, usually from stress. Five herbs that untie the knot.", "picture": "The old texts called it a plum pit stuck in the throat. It is not a thing. It is a knot of stress and phlegm, and the formula pulls the knot apart from both ends.", "patterns": [ { "slug": "liver-qi-stagnation", "role": "with throat lump", "_links": { "self": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/pattern/liver-qi-stagnation", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/pattern/liver-qi-stagnation" } }, { "slug": "phlegm-damp", "role": "with qi stagnation", "_links": { "self": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/pattern/phlegm-damp", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/pattern/phlegm-damp" } } ], "indications": [ "A lump-in-the-throat feeling that will not swallow or cough away", "Chest and rib tightness", "Nausea or a queasy stomach", "A cough with sticky phlegm that follows stress", "Anxiety with throat tightness", "Hoarseness from a tight throat with no infection" ], "signs": { "tongue": "White, possibly greasy, coat.", "pulse": "Wiry and slippery." }, "ingredients": [ { "pinyin": "Ban Xia", "grams": "12", "role": "chief", "job": "Processed pinellia transforms phlegm and sends rising qi down.", "herb_slug": "tuber-of-pinellia", "english": "Raw Pinellia Tuber", "chinese": "半夏", "latin": "Rhizoma Pinelliae", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/tuber-of-pinellia", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/tuber-of-pinellia" } }, { "pinyin": "Hou Po", "grams": "9", "role": "deputy", "job": "Magnolia bark moves qi downward and opens the chest.", "unlinked": true, "herb_slug": "", "english": "", "chinese": "", "latin": "" }, { "pinyin": "Fu Ling", "grams": "12", "role": "assistant", "job": "Poria drains the damp that makes the phlegm.", "herb_slug": "indian-bread", "english": "Poria", "chinese": "茯苓", "latin": "Poria", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/indian-bread", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/indian-bread" } }, { "pinyin": "Sheng Jiang", "grams": "15", "role": "assistant", "job": "Fresh ginger disperses, warms, and settles nausea.", "herb_slug": "fresh-ginger", "english": "Fresh Ginger", "chinese": "生姜", "latin": "Rhizoma Zingiberis Recens", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/fresh-ginger", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/fresh-ginger" } }, { "pinyin": "Zi Su Ye", "grams": "6", "role": "envoy", "job": "Perilla leaf spreads the stuck qi and lifts the mood.", "herb_slug": "perilla-leaf-2", "english": "Perilla Leaf (Zi Su Ye)", "chinese": "紫苏叶", "latin": "Folium Perillae", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/perilla-leaf-2", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/perilla-leaf-2" } } ], "actions": [ "Moves qi and disperses knots", "Transforms phlegm and sends rebellious qi down" ], "how_it_works": "Pinellia and poria deal with the phlegm. Magnolia bark and perilla deal with the stuck qi. Ginger warms and keeps the stomach settled. The formula is drying and moving, which is exactly right for a damp knot and exactly wrong for a dry throat.", "modifications": [ { "for": "Heat with a sore red throat", "add": [ "Huang Qin", "Zhi Zi" ], "note": "Cooling herbs." }, { "for": "Strong stress and rib pain", "add": [ "Chai Hu", "Xiang Fu" ], "note": "Or combine with Xiao Yao San." } ], "cautions": [ "Drying. Not for a dry, red, yin-deficient throat with a peeled tongue; that needs moistening.", "A lump in the throat that is actually there, that can be felt from outside, or that comes with trouble swallowing food, needs examining. The formula is for the sensation, not a mass.", "Pinellia must be processed.", "Pregnancy: use only under a qualified practitioner." ], "forms": [ "teapills", "granules", "decoction" ], "typical_dose": { "teapills": "8 pills, three times a day, the usual label dose", "course": "Two to four weeks." }, "cousins": [ { "slug": "xiao-yao-san", "difference": "For the stress without the phlegm and throat knot." }, { "slug": "er-chen-tang", "difference": "For phlegm without the stuck qi: a wet cough and nausea with no throat lump." } ], "commerce": { "store": "supplementsapothecary.com", "store_name": "Supplements Apothecary", "store_slug": "ban-xia-hou-po-tang", "store_url": "https://www.supplementsapothecary.com/supplement/ban-xia-hou-po-tang", "status": "planned", "label_check": "The box reads Ban Xia Hou Po Tang or Wan with the characters 半夏厚朴. Five ingredients: processed Pinellia, Magnolia bark, Poria, Ginger, and Perilla leaf." }, "conditions": [ "anxiety", "stress", "sore-throat", "nausea", "phlegm-accumulation", "cough" ], "sources": [ { "title": "Bensky, Scheid, Ellis and Barolet, Chinese Herbal Medicine: Formulas and Strategies, 2nd edition", "note": "Composition, actions, indications, and cautions." } ], "meta": { "status": "published", "last_updated": "2026-10-12", "reviewed_by": null }, "_links": { "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/formula/ban-xia-hou-po-tang", "self": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/formula/ban-xia-hou-po-tang", "index": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/formulas" } }