Classic formula · Dispel dampness
Yin Chen Hao Tang
茵陈蒿汤 Artemisia Yinchenhao Decoction
Three herbs for damp-heat jaundice: bright yellow eyes and skin, dark tea-colored urine, nausea, a full belly, thirst, and constipation, with a yellow greasy coat. Capillaris is the jaundice herb, and this is the formula built around it.
Damp heat has blocked the Liver's drains, and the yellow backs up into the skin. The formula opens two drains, the bladder and the bowel, and the yellow runs out.
Also sold as: Yin Chen Hao Wan · Capillaris Combination
Who Yin Chen Hao Tang is for
This formula is chosen for 2 patterns. Match your own picture before you match the name.
Signs it is classically given for
- Bright yellow eyes and skin, the warm kind of jaundice
- Dark, tea-colored urine
- Nausea, no appetite, a full belly
- Thirst, constipation
- Hepatitis or gallbladder inflammation with heat, when prescribed
- Itching with the yellow
- Tongue
- Red with a yellow greasy coat.
- Pulse
- Slippery and rapid, or deep and forceful.
What is in Yin Chen Hao Tang
Amounts are the classic decoction range in grams. Patent pills use the same herbs in the same proportion, so read the box for these names.
| Herb | Amount | Role | Job in the formula |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yin Chen Hao Capillary Wormwood (Yin Chen Hao) | 18 g | Chief | Capillaris clears damp heat from the Liver and Gallbladder and treats jaundice. |
| Zhi Zi Gardenia Fruit | 9 g | Deputy | Gardenia clears heat and drains it through the urine. |
| Da Huang Raw Rhubarb Root Use caution | 6 g | Assistant | Rhubarb drains the heat through the bowel. |
How Yin Chen Hao Tang works
Capillaris cools and unblocks the Liver. Gardenia opens the bladder; rhubarb opens the bowel. Two exits for the damp heat, which is why the urine clears and the yellow fades. Simple, old, and still the base of every jaundice formula.
Actions in classic terms
- Clears heat and resolves dampness
- Reduces jaundice
Common changes to Yin Chen Hao Tang
A practitioner rarely gives the bare formula. These are the classic additions for a specific picture.
Cautions with Yin Chen Hao Tang
- For the warm, bright yellow kind of jaundice only. Dull, dark, cold jaundice with a pale tongue needs warming, not this.
- Jaundice always needs its cause found. The formula helps the drainage; it does not diagnose.
- Rhubarb loosens the bowels. Reduce it if stools go loose.
- Not for use in pregnancy.
Forms and typical dose
Sold as granules, decoction, teapills.
- Decoction
- One bag a day in two doses, with the amounts above
- Course
- One to three weeks, with the cause under care.
Follow the label of the brand you buy. Pill sizes differ between makers.
Buying Yin Chen Hao Tang
The box reads Yin Chen Hao Tang or Wan with the characters 茵陈蒿. Three ingredients: Capillaris, Gardenia, and Rhubarb.
Brand comparisons for formulas live on Supplements Apothecary, the buying side of this library.
Formulas often confused with Yin Chen Hao Tang
- Long Dan Xie Gan Tang 龙胆泻肝汤 Broader: Liver fire and damp heat along the whole channel, with ten herbs.
- Wu Ling San 五苓散 With capillaris added it becomes the formula for jaundice with heavy water retention.
Conditions where Yin Chen Hao Tang comes up
Sources
- Bensky, Scheid, Ellis and Barolet, Chinese Herbal Medicine: Formulas and Strategies, 2nd edition Composition, actions, indications, and cautions.
Important Note
Formula pages describe classic use so you can read a label, ask a better question, and find the right monographs. They are education, not a prescription. A formula that fits the wrong pattern can make things worse, so match the picture first.