There are many ways to eliminate dampness, such as drying dampness, eliminating dampness, overcoming dampness, infiltrating dampness and promoting diuresis, but what do these Chinese medicine concepts mean? How do we do this?

At the beginning, I want to talk about three concepts to help you understand:

1. What is moisture?

Damp-evil (qi) is heavy, turbid and sticky, which is easy to block qi movement and hurt yang. There are two kinds of wetness: external wetness and internal wetness. External humidity is often caused by seasonal or long-term living in wetlands or wading in the rain. However, internal dampness is mostly related to eating too much cold and spleen and kidney yang deficiency.

2. Dampness is easily intertwined with wind, cold, summer heat, heat, warmth and poison, and its manifestations are complex, so dampness can be divided into cold dampness, damp heat and so on.

3. Trifocal distribution

This is why we should treat it according to syndrome differentiation by eliminating dampness, drying dampness, benefiting water, infiltrating dampness and overcoming dampness.

The difference between five methods of eliminating dampness.

Dryness and dampness act on the middle-upper jiao, and the medicine is fragrant and spicy, so that dampness and evil are dispersed in the exterior. Eliminating dampness acts on middle coke (some drugs also act on upper and lower coke), and the drugs are bitter in temperature or cold. Eliminating dampness acts on the lower jiao, and the medicine is bitter and cold, so that the dampness evil can be discharged from the stool. Wet infiltration acts on the lower jiao, which makes the medicine sweeter and lighter, and also makes the damp evil excrete the stool, but the effect is peaceful. Dampness-fighting acts on joints, muscles and bones of limbs.

In addition, people often ask me, what are the methods of dehumidification and transportation? Dehumidification is synonymous with eliminating dampness, and transporting dampness refers to food that can strengthen the spleen and eliminate dampness. Let's explain these five methods of eliminating dampness one by one, as well as common Chinese herbal medicine recommendations.

First, what is dehumidification?

Eliminating dampness is mainly aimed at spleen and stomach lesions in middle energizer, followed by lesions in upper energizer. Damp-removing drugs are pungent, warm and fragrant, and are suitable for cold-dampness, summer-dampness and damp-heat diseases.

Include eliminating dampness, clearing away heat and dampness, and removing toxic materials and dampness. Eliminating dampness means eliminating dampness, which means self-absorption. Spleen-invigorating and dampness-eliminating are like white lentils, aromatic and dampness-eliminating are like cardamom, heat-clearing and dampness-eliminating are like coptis chinensis, and warming yang and dampness-eliminating are like processed ginger.

Second, what is infiltration?

Osmosis is a kind of light osmotic diuretic, with flat nature and light taste. Drugs with the function of infiltrating dampness evil can make indoor dampness evil be discharged from urine, which is beneficial to diuresis and dampness elimination, such as Poria, Talcum, Plantago asiatica, Alisma orientalis, Yunnan wheat and Polygonum aviculare.

Osmosis refers to the dispersion of water and dampness through osmosis, which does not necessarily have diuretic effect. Strengthening the spleen and moistening dryness, such as coix seed, promoting diuresis and moistening dryness, such as polyporus umbellatus, clearing heat and moistening dryness, such as Kochia scoparia. Coix seed and Kochia scoparia have no diuretic effect, and Polyporus umbellatus has weak diuretic effect.

Third, what is dryness and dampness?

Heat-clearing and dampness-eliminating drugs treat damp-heat diseases, such as eczema, allergic diseases, Sophora flavescens, Cortex Phellodendri, Rhizoma Coptidis, Scutellariae Radix, etc.

The constitution of cold and dampness is often dry and damp, and the internal resistance of cold and dampness can be manifested as chills, nausea and vomiting, abdominal distension and diarrhea, white and greasy tongue coating, fatigue and fatigue. Pericarpium Citri Tangerinae, Rhizoma Atractylodis and Cortex Magnolia Officinalis can be selected.

Fourth, what is diuretic?

Promoting diuresis is to promote diuresis, which is weak and causes dampness to be discharged from the stool. There are some methods, such as light infiltration and diuresis, warming yang and diuresis, nourishing yin and diuresis, clearing away heat and diuresis, warming kidney and diuresis, etc., which are suitable for dampness evil in middle jiao and lower jiao.

Strengthening the spleen and promoting diuresis, such as Atractylodes macrocephala, lightly infiltrating and promoting diuresis, such as Poria, clearing heat and promoting diuresis, such as Artemisia capillaris, all have weak diuretic effect.

Commonly used drugs are Alisma orientalis, Plantago asiatica, Plantago asiatica, Talcum, Akebia Akebia, Tetrapanacis, Wax gourd peel, Artemisia capillaris, kidney bean, Juncus Juncus, Kochia scoparia, Stephania tetrandra and Stigma Maydis.

5. What is dampness?

Damp-removing drugs are pungent and warm, often dry and violent. It can be used for arthralgia due to wind-cold-dampness, which blocks muscles, joints, bones and collaterals. There are often heavy limbs, such as joint swelling and pain, skin numbness, muscle spasm and so on. It can dispel dampness and dispel wind, which is called overcoming dampness.

The diuretics can dispel wind and stop arthralgia, but those who suffer from rheumatism for a long time due to the obstruction of meridians are often used together with the drugs for promoting blood circulation and nourishing blood, which is the principle of "treating wind first and controlling blood independently".