Xing Su San: Herbal Relief for Dry Lungs and Cough
Hongji Medical- Jan 31
- 5 min read
Xing Su San, or Apricot Kernel and Perilla Powder, is a classic Chinese herbal formula from Wenbing Tiaobian (Systematic Differentiation of Warm Diseases).
Designed to relieve cold-dryness, cool the lungs, and clear phlegm, it’s a trusted remedy for respiratory issues like cough, nasal congestion, and dry throat caused by external cold and dryness.
With a carefully balanced blend of herbs, this formula has been a cornerstone of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) for centuries and continues to offer effective relief in modern clinical practice.
What’s in Xing Su San?
Xing Su San combines 11 herbs to soothe the lungs and restore balance. The typical dosages and roles are:
Perilla Leaf: Pungent and warm, perilla dispels cold, opens the lungs, and clears external dryness, easing chills and congestion.
Apricot Kernel: Bitter and warm, apricot kernel moistens the lungs, reduces cough, and clears phlegm, supporting respiratory health.
Pinellia: Warm and drying, pinellia clears phlegm, reduces dampness, and relieves nausea or chest tightness.
Poria: Neutral and sweet, poria strengthens the spleen, drains dampness, and prevents phlegm buildup.
Peucedanum: Cooling and pungent, peucedanum clears wind, lowers qi, and helps dissolve phlegm.
Platycodon: Bitter and pungent, platycodon opens the lungs, clears phlegm, and soothes sore throats.
Tangerine Peel: Warm and aromatic, tangerine peel regulates qi, dries dampness, and supports digestion.
Bitter Orange: Bitter and cooling, bitter orange moves qi downward, reducing phlegm and chest congestion.
Licorice Root: Sweet and neutral, roasted licorice harmonizes the formula, clears lung heat, and relieves throat discomfort.
Ginger: Warm and pungent, ginger warms the lungs and aids digestion, enhancing the formula’s effects.
Jujube: Sweet and warm, jujube nourishes the spleen, moistens dryness, and balances the formula.
To prepare, boil these herbs in water and drink the decoction warm to maximize their soothing and healing properties.
How It Works
Xing Su San targets exogenous cold-dryness syndrome, a TCM condition where cold and dry environmental factors invade the body, disrupting lung function and causing phlegm buildup. This leads to symptoms like cough, nasal congestion, and dry throat. The formula works by:
Dispelling Cold and Dryness: Perilla leaf gently releases external pathogens, relieving chills and headaches.
Cooling and Moistening the Lungs: Apricot kernel and platycodon regulate lung qi, moisten dryness, and ease cough.
Clearing Phlegm: Pinellia, peucedanum, and bitter orange dissolve phlegm and reduce congestion.
Supporting the Spleen: Poria and jujube strengthen digestion to prevent further phlegm formation.
Harmonizing: Licorice, ginger, and tangerine peel ensure the herbs work together smoothly, balancing the formula’s warming and cooling effects.
This combination restores lung function, clears blockages, and promotes smooth qi flow, addressing both symptoms and root causes.
What Does It Treat?
Xing Su San is ideal for cold-dryness symptoms, including:
Chills without sweating
Mild headaches
Cough with thin, watery phlegm
Nasal congestion
Dry throat or mouth
Thin, white tongue coating
Rapid or tense pulse
These symptoms arise when cold and dryness attack the lungs, causing qi stagnation, poor fluid distribution, and phlegm accumulation. The formula gently disperses these pathogens while nourishing the lungs.
Treatment Principles
Based on TCM’s Suwen Zhizhen Yaoda Lun, cold-dryness is treated with “bitter and warm herbs, supplemented by sweet and pungent ones.” Xing Su San follows this by:
Releasing the Exterior: Perilla’s pungent warmth dispels cold-dryness from the body’s surface.
Regulating Lung Qi: Apricot kernel and platycodon clear phlegm and restore lung function.
Supporting Digestion: Poria and jujube strengthen the spleen to prevent dampness and phlegm.
Balancing Ying and Wei: Ginger and jujube harmonize the body’s protective and nutritive energies, aiding recovery.
This approach ensures gentle, effective relief without overheating or drying the body excessively.
Modern Applications
Modern research supports Xing Su San’s efficacy for respiratory and digestive conditions, particularly those linked to cold-dryness or phlegm. Its clinical uses include:
Influenza and Colds: Relieves chills, cough, and congestion from viral infections.
Chronic Bronchitis: Reduces phlegm, eases cough, and improves breathing in chronic cases.
Bronchial Asthma: Calms airway inflammation and supports lung function.
Emphysema: Alleviates shortness of breath and persistent cough.
Digestive Issues: Treats gastritis or indigestion with phlegm-related symptoms, such as bloating or nausea, often tied to wind-cold or wind-heat.
The formula’s ability to regulate lung qi and clear phlegm makes it a versatile remedy for upper respiratory and related conditions.
Precautions
Warm-Dryness Conditions: Avoid in cases of lung damage from heat or dryness (e.g., dry cough with yellow phlegm), as the formula’s warming herbs may worsen symptoms.
Heat Transformation: Do not use if cold-dryness has turned into heat (e.g., fever, red tongue), as it could aggravate inflammation.
Professional Guidance: Consult a TCM practitioner to ensure proper use and dosage, especially for chronic conditions.
Conclusion
Xing Su San is a beautifully crafted Chinese herbal formula that relieves cold-dryness, cools the lungs, and clears phlegm. With herbs like perilla, apricot kernel, and licorice, it effectively treats cough, nasal congestion, and dry throat caused by external cold and dryness.
Its gentle, balanced approach, supported by modern clinical use, makes it a reliable remedy for colds, bronchitis, asthma, and more. When used under professional guidance, Xing Su San offers natural relief, restoring clear breathing and comfort while honoring the wisdom of traditional Chinese medicine.
Chinese Name | 杏蘇散 |
Phonetic | Xing Su San |
English Name | Apricot Kernel and Perilla Powder |
Classification | Dryness-moistening formulas |
Source | 《Systematic Differentiation of Warm Diseases》Wen Bing Tiao Bian《溫病條辨》 |
Combination | Perillae Folium (Zi Su Ye) 9g, Pinelliae Rhizoma (Ban Xia) 9g, Poria (Fu Ling) 9g, Peucedani Radix (Qian Hu) 9g, Platycodonis Radix (Jie Geng) 6g, Aurantii Fructus (Zhi Qiao) 6g, Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma (Gan Cao) 3g, Zingiberis Rhizoma Recens (Sheng Jiang) 3 slices, Jujubae Fructus (Da Zao) 3 pieces, Armeniacae Semen Amarum (Xing Ren) 9g, Citri Reticulatae Pericarpium (Ju Pi) 6g |
Method | Prepare the ingredients as a decoction to be ingested while warm. |
Action | Relieves cool-dryness by light diffusion, regulates lung function, and dissolves phlegm. |
Indication | Xing Su San is indicated for patterns of externally-contracted cool-dryness. The symptoms are aversion to cold, mild headache, coughing with scanty sputum, stuffy nose, and a dry throat. The tongue coating is white, and the pulse is wiry. |
Pathogenesis | This pattern is caused by cool-dryness attacking the exterior with failure of the lung qi to diffuse and internal obstruction of phlegm-dampness. The mild headache and chills without sweating indicate that cool-dryness has attacked the skin and hair. Headaches caused by cool-dryness are less severe than headaches due to cold damage syndrome. Cool-dryness may invade the lung and cause failure of the lung to diffuse and govern descent as well as failure of lung qi to distribute fluids. As a result, water accumulates and turns into phlegm causing symptoms such as coughing with thin sputum. Cool-dryness damages the lung to cause dysfunction of lung qi characterized by a stuffy nose and a dry throat. A white tongue coating and a wiry pulse prove the pattern of cool-dryness with sputum-dampness. The composition of this formula is based on the principle described within Basic Questions: “Dry pathogenic qi is treated internally with bitter and warm medicinals, and sweet and acrid medicinals are used adjunctively”. This disorder should be treated primarily via relieving cool-dryness by light diffusion and supported by regulating the function of the lung to dissolve phlegm. |
Application | 1. Essential pattern differentiation Xing Su San is a characteristic formula commonly used to relieve cool-dryness by light diffusion, and a popular formula used to treat cough due to wind-cold. This clinical pattern is marked by aversion to cold, absence of perspiration, coughing with thin sputum, dry throat, white coating, wiry pulse. 2. Modern applications This formula may be used in the following biomedically defined disorders when the patient shows signs of externally-contracted cool-dryness or a mild pattern of externally-contracted wind-cold, failure of lung qi to diffuse, and internal obstruction of phlegm-dampness: upper respiratory tract infection, chronic bronchitis and emphysema. 3. Cautions and contraindications This formula is not applicable for patients diagnosed with the cool-dryness that has transformed into warm-dryness or wind-heat. |
