{ "slug": "qing-wei-san", "names": { "pinyin": "Qing Wei San", "chinese": "清胃散", "english": "Clear the Stomach Powder", "alternate": [ "Clear Stomach Powder", "Qing Wei Wan" ] }, "category": "clear-heat", "source": { "text": "Lan Shi Mi Cang (Secrets from the Orchid Chamber)", "author": "Li Dong-yuan", "dynasty": "Yuan", "year": "1336" }, "summary": "The classic formula for Stomach fire in the gums. For red, swollen gums that bleed when brushed, a throbbing toothache that prefers cold, bad breath, and a thirst for cold drinks. Five herbs, used for a short course while the fire is put out.", "picture": "The Stomach channel runs straight through the upper gums. When the Stomach is on fire the gums are the chimney, so this formula cools the stove and sends the heat out through the mouth.", "patterns": [ { "slug": "stomach-fire", "role": "primary", "_links": { "self": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/pattern/stomach-fire", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/pattern/stomach-fire" } } ], "indications": [ "Red, swollen, bleeding gums", "Toothache that throbs and prefers cold", "Bad breath", "Mouth ulcers", "Facial swelling or a hot cheek with toothache", "Thirst for cold drinks", "Fever with a hot face", "Dry mouth with a yellow coat" ], "signs": { "tongue": "Red with a yellow coat.", "pulse": "Slippery, large, and rapid." }, "ingredients": [ { "pinyin": "Huang Lian", "grams": "6", "role": "chief", "job": "Coptis, the bitterest cold herb in the pharmacy, drains Stomach fire.", "herb_slug": "rhizome-of-chinese-goldthread-2", "english": "Rhizome of Chinese Goldthread", "chinese": "黄连", "latin": "Rhizoma Coptidis", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/rhizome-of-chinese-goldthread-2", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/rhizome-of-chinese-goldthread-2" } }, { "pinyin": "Sheng Ma", "grams": "9", "role": "deputy", "job": "Cimicifuga lifts the clearing herbs into the gums and vents heat out of the Stomach channel.", "herb_slug": "largetrifoliolious-bugbane-rhizome", "english": "Largetrifoliolious Bugbane Rhizome", "chinese": "升麻", "latin": "Rhizoma Cimicifugae", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/largetrifoliolious-bugbane-rhizome", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/largetrifoliolious-bugbane-rhizome" } }, { "pinyin": "Sheng Di Huang", "grams": "12", "role": "deputy", "job": "Raw rehmannia cools the blood and protects the fluids the fire is burning.", "herb_slug": "fresh-rehmannia-root", "english": "Fresh Rehmannia Root", "chinese": "生地黄", "latin": "Radix Rehmanniae", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/fresh-rehmannia-root", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/fresh-rehmannia-root" } }, { "pinyin": "Mu Dan Pi", "grams": "9", "role": "assistant", "job": "Tree peony bark cools the blood and stops the gums bleeding.", "herb_slug": "tree-peony-bark", "english": "Tree Peony Bark", "chinese": "牡丹皮", "latin": "Cortex Moutan", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/tree-peony-bark", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/tree-peony-bark" } }, { "pinyin": "Dang Gui", "grams": "6", "role": "assistant", "job": "Angelica moves the blood so swelling and pain settle, and keeps the cold herbs from freezing it.", "herb_slug": "root-of-chinese-angelica", "english": "Root of Chinese Angelica", "chinese": "当归", "latin": "Radix Angelicae Sinensis", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/root-of-chinese-angelica", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/root-of-chinese-angelica" } } ], "actions": [ "Drains Stomach fire", "Cools the blood and nourishes yin", "Vents heat from the Stomach channel in the face and gums" ], "how_it_works": "Coptis puts out the fire. Cimicifuga carries the rest of the formula upward into the gums, which is why this formula reaches the mouth where a plain heat-clearing formula would not. Raw rehmannia and peony bark cool the blood so the bleeding stops, and a small dose of angelica keeps the blood moving so the swelling drains.", "modifications": [ { "for": "Constipation with the fire", "add": [ "Da Huang" ], "note": "Rhubarb drains the heat down and out." }, { "for": "Strong thirst and a very hot face", "add": [ "Shi Gao" ], "note": "Gypsum for strong Stomach heat." }, { "for": "Gums that bleed heavily", "add": [ "Huai Hua", "Bai Mao Gen" ], "note": "Cooling herbs that stop bleeding." } ], "cautions": [ "Cold and bitter. Take it for days or a couple of weeks, not months. Stop when the gums are pink and the tongue coat is thin.", "Not for toothache from wind-cold (worse with cold, better with warmth) or from a yin-deficient dry picture with a peeled tongue. The second one needs Yu Nu Jian or Zhi Bai Di Huang Wan.", "Not for someone with a weak Spleen, loose stools, or a cold constitution.", "A tooth with pus or an abscess needs the infection dealt with. The formula helps the gum, not a dead tooth.", "Pregnancy: use only under a qualified practitioner." ], "forms": [ "teapills", "granules", "decoction" ], "typical_dose": { "teapills": "8 pills, three times a day, the usual label dose", "decoction": "One bag a day in two doses, with the amounts above", "course": "One to two weeks while the fire is cleared. Change the diet at the same time or the fire comes back." }, "cousins": [ { "slug": "yu-nu-jian", "difference": "Also for toothache and bleeding gums, but on a dry, yin-deficient base: a red peeled tongue, tiredness, a thirst that sips. Qing Wei San is for full fire with a thick yellow coat." }, { "slug": "zhi-bai-di-huang-wan", "difference": "For the slow, quiet version: gums that recede over years with night sweats and a dry mouth. No swelling, no bad breath." }, { "slug": "huang-lian-jie-du-tang", "difference": "Coptis plus three more bitter cold herbs, for fire in every organ at once. Harsher and shorter." } ], "commerce": { "store": "supplementsapothecary.com", "store_name": "Supplements Apothecary", "store_slug": "qing-wei-san", "store_url": "https://www.supplementsapothecary.com/supplement/qing-wei-san", "status": "planned", "label_check": "The box reads Qing Wei San or Qing Wei Wan with the characters 清胃散. Five herbs: Coptis, Cimicifuga, raw Rehmannia, Moutan, and Angelica. Sold as teapills and granules." }, "conditions": [ "receding-gums", "toothache", "mouth-sores", "oral-ulcers", "constipation" ], "sources": [ { "title": "Bensky, Scheid, Ellis and Barolet, Chinese Herbal Medicine: Formulas and Strategies, 2nd edition", "note": "Composition, actions, indications, cautions, and modifications." }, { "title": "Li Dong-yuan, Lan Shi Mi Cang, 1336", "note": "Source text." } ], "meta": { "status": "published", "last_updated": "2026-10-12", "reviewed_by": null }, "_links": { "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/formula/qing-wei-san", "self": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/formula/qing-wei-san", "index": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/formulas" } }