Educational information, not medical advice — ask your doctor or midwife.
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Yang Yin Qing Fei Tang is a Chinese herbal formula. It is used for a dry, hot, sore throat and a dry cough. The name means Nourish the Yin and Clear the Lungs Decoction.
In old Chinese terms, it suits a throat and lungs seen as "dry and hot". It is not meant for a cough seen as cold and full of phlegm.
We treat it here as one remedy, not as eight separate herbs. The herbs are always taken together as one mix. Its eight herbs are listed further down this page.
The evidence line is short and honest. This formula has a long record in Chinese medicine. But we found no good human trials showing that it beats a dummy pill (placebo).
Long use tells you what people have done for years. It is not proof that the formula works. We say this once here, not in every section.
No one has shown clearly how this formula works in the body. The old Chinese account and the lab account are two different things.
In Chinese medicine it is said to "nourish yin" in the lungs and throat. That means it restores moisture and cools heat. It is also said to calm swelling and ease a cough.
That is a picture drawn inside an older system of ideas. It is not a measured effect in the body.
In lab and animal work, several of the single herbs calm swelling. Some also seem to coat and soothe a sore throat. Licorice and ophiopogon have been studied most.
Those findings come from cells and animals. They do not tell you what happens when a person drinks the tea.
It comes in several forms:
Raw herb packets. You boil these at home into a decoction (a strong tea). This is the oldest form.
Strong granules or powder. You stir these into hot water.
Pills or tablets made from a dried extract.
Ready-made bottles of liquid, sold for a sore throat or a cough.
Strength varies a lot between makers. The ratio of herbs is not the same in every product.
Buy from a supplier that tests for heavy metals. Check that they do not add hidden drugs.
The formula first appears in a Chinese book from 1838. It is called Chong Lou Yu Yao (Jade Key to the Secluded Chamber).
The book dates from the Qing dynasty and deals with throat disease. It is credited to Zheng Mei-Jian.
It was written for bai hou, or "white throat". That is the illness we now call diphtheria, a serious throat infection caused by bacteria.
Today, diphtheria is treated in hospital with antitoxin and antibiotics. This formula is not a substitute for that care.
Modern Chinese practice uses it much more loosely. It is given for a dry sore throat, a hoarse voice, a dry cough and throat irritation.
It is a well-known, long-standing prescription inside Chinese medicine. It is not used outside that tradition.
Some reactions to Yang Yin Qing Fei Tang need urgent care. Call your local emergency number or go to an emergency department straight away — do not wait to see whether it passes.
Get medical help straight away if you have trouble breathing or swallowing, drooling, a muffled voice, a swollen neck, a grey or white coating on the throat, or a stiff neck with a high fever. These can mean a dangerous throat infection or a blocked airway.
See a doctor soon if your sore throat lasts more than a week, your voice stays hoarse for more than three weeks, you cough up blood, you lose weight without trying, or you keep getting fevers.
Stop the formula and speak to a doctor if you notice puffy ankles or face, a persistent headache, muscle weakness or cramps, or a fluttering or irregular heartbeat. Those can be signs that the licorice has pushed your potassium down or your blood pressure up.
Evidence grades and traditional-use labels are explained in our methodology. Nothing here is medical advice.
Reviewed by the HealisticMD editorial team How we grade evidence →
The published evidence for Yang Yin Qing Fei Tang is weak or absent. That usually means no controlled trial has tested it, not that a trial found it ineffective — the two are different, and we grade only what has been published.
What it is typically used for, usual dose, cautions, and the study behind it where real trial data exists.
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