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Hao Qin Qing Dan Tang

Traditionally used for: Short summer illnesses judged by a trained herbalist. Fevers that rise and fall; Nausea with a bitter taste.

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What is Hao Qin Qing Dan Tang? Hao Qin Qing Dan Tang is a herb mix from Chinese medicine. It is brewed as a tea from about nine herbs and minerals. It is listed here as one item: a single drug entry (a TCM formula). It is given for fevers that come and go, a bitter taste in the mouth, and nausea. Old texts tie these signs to heat in the gallbladder. It is also used for a tight chest and thick, sticky phlegm (mucus). Long use in a tradition is not proof that a remedy works. We found no sound human trials of this mix. Its place in the tradition is strong, but the evidence grade is low. How does Hao Qin Qing Dan Tang work? No one has shown how this tea works in the body. The old texts say it clears "damp heat" from the gallbladder and stomach. That is a way of naming a set of symptoms, not a body process we can measure. Lab and animal work shows that some of these herbs can lower signs of swelling in tissue. Qing Hao holds artemisinin, a drug used against malaria. That does not mean the whole tea acts the same way in a person. Some of what people feel may also come from rest, warm fluids, and time. What forms does Hao Qin Qing Dan Tang come in? It is most often boiled at home as a tea from cut, dried herbs. Some shops sell it as granules you stir into hot water. A few sell pills or capsules made from a dried extract. Strength varies a lot between makers. There is no standard dose that all products share. Where it comes from: The recipe appears in a Chinese text of 1904, the Revised Popular Guide to the Discussion of Cold Damage. It is credited to Yu Genchu, with later editors. It has been a staple of Chinese herbal practice since then, mainly for summer and damp-heat fevers.

Helps

What does Hao Qin Qing Dan Tang help with? Fevers that come and go, with chills: This is the classic use. Herbalists pick it when a fever rises and falls each day and the person feels hot, then cold. We found no human trial that tests this use, so treat it as tradition only. Nausea and vomiting with a bitter taste in the mouth: Zhu Ru and Ban Xia are the parts said to settle the stomach. Lab work on these herbs is limited and mixed. No good human trial backs this use. Fullness or pain under the ribs: Old texts link this feeling to heat in the gallbladder. Pain under the right ribs can also mean gallstones or a liver problem. Get it checked before you treat it with herbs. Thick yellow phlegm (mucus) with a cough: The tea is used when a cough brings up thick, sticky phlegm. Support for this is from tradition and from lab work on single herbs. It has not been tested as a whole mix in people. Poor appetite during a summer illness: Chen Pi and Zhi Ke are added for a heavy, blocked feeling in the belly. This use rests on long practice, not on trials. Gallbladder swelling (cholecystitis) — traditional use only: Some Chinese clinics use this mix alongside standard care for gallbladder swelling. We could not find a trial we trust that tests it. Gallbladder swelling can turn serious fast and needs a doctor, not herbs alone.

Hao Qin Qing Dan Tang

Quick Facts

  • What it is: A Chinese herbal tea of about nine herbs and minerals, used for fevers that come and go with nausea and a bitter mouth.
  • Main uses: Fevers that rise and fall, Nausea with a bitter taste, Thick yellow phlegm (mucus), Fullness under the ribs
  • Best for: Short summer illnesses judged by a trained herbalist
  • Active ingredients: Artemisinin from Qing Hao, Baicalin and baicalein from Huang Qin, Licorice compounds from Gan Cao, Talc (Hua Shi), Indigo (Qing Dai), Prepared pinellia root
  • Forms: Dried herbs to boil, Granules, Extract pills or capsules
  • Time to effect: Tradition expects a change within a few days; stop if nothing shifts by day three.
  • Side effects: Belly upset is common; rare but serious risks include low potassium, liver injury and odd heartbeats.
  • Pregnancy & breastfeeding: Avoid in pregnancy and while breastfeeding.

Educational information, not medical advice — ask your doctor or midwife.

What is Hao Qin Qing Dan Tang?

Hao Qin Qing Dan Tang is a herb mix from Chinese medicine. It is brewed as a tea from about nine herbs and minerals. It is listed here as one item: a single drug entry (a TCM formula).

It is given for fevers that come and go, a bitter taste in the mouth, and nausea. Old texts tie these signs to heat in the gallbladder. It is also used for a tight chest and thick, sticky phlegm (mucus).

Long use in a tradition is not proof that a remedy works. We found no sound human trials of this mix. Its place in the tradition is strong, but the evidence grade is low.

How does Hao Qin Qing Dan Tang work?

No one has shown how this tea works in the body. The old texts say it clears "damp heat" from the gallbladder and stomach. That is a way of naming a set of symptoms, not a body process we can measure.

Lab and animal work shows that some of these herbs can lower signs of swelling in tissue. Qing Hao holds artemisinin, a drug used against malaria. That does not mean the whole tea acts the same way in a person.

Some of what people feel may also come from rest, warm fluids, and time.

What forms does Hao Qin Qing Dan Tang come in?

It is most often boiled at home as a tea from cut, dried herbs. Some shops sell it as granules you stir into hot water. A few sell pills or capsules made from a dried extract.

Strength varies a lot between makers. There is no standard dose that all products share.

Where it comes from:

The recipe appears in a Chinese text of 1904, the Revised Popular Guide to the Discussion of Cold Damage. It is credited to Yu Genchu, with later editors. It has been a staple of Chinese herbal practice since then, mainly for summer and damp-heat fevers.

Who should avoid Hao Qin Qing Dan Tang?

  • Do not use if you are pregnant or trying to become pregnant: this is an absolute rule, not a caution.
  • Do not use if you are breastfeeding.
  • Do not use if you are giving it to a child, unless a doctor who knows the child says to.
  • Do not use if you have high blood pressure, heart failure, or a heart-rhythm problem, because the licorice in it can make these worse.
  • Do not use if you have low potassium (a salt your heart needs) or take a water pill (a diuretic).
  • Do not use if you have liver disease, hepatitis (swelling of the liver), or a past liver injury from a herb or drug.
  • Do not use if you have kidney disease.
  • Do not use if you take warfarin or another blood thinner.
  • Do not use if you take digoxin, a steroid tablet, or a drug your doctor told you to keep away from grapefruit.
  • Do not use if you have a stomach ulcer (a sore in the stomach lining) or long-term diarrhoea.
  • Do not use if the product does not say the pinellia (Ban Xia) has been prepared, since raw pinellia root is toxic.
  • Never take this alongside licorice sweets, licorice tea, or another licorice-containing herb mix.

When should you see a doctor?

See a doctor now if your fever stays above 39C, lasts more than three days, or comes back after it settled. Get urgent help for yellow skin or eyes, dark urine, or bad pain under your right ribs. Also get help for a fast or uneven heartbeat, deep muscle weakness, heavy swelling in the legs, a stiff neck, confusion, trouble breathing, or a rash with swelling of the lips or tongue. Tell your doctor and pharmacist every herb you take, so they can check it against your medicines.

Evidence grades and traditional-use labels are explained in our methodology. Nothing here is medical advice.

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