Fen Fang Ji
Alternate Pinyin name: Han Fang Ji: Fen Fang Ji is the classical name given to this herb in the Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing (from the second century AD) as well as the standard name given for this herb in the contemporary Chinese Herbal Pharmacopoeia by the People’s Republic of China (2000); However, Han Fang Ji is the common name used by most contemporary doctors and herbalists in China today.
English Name: stephania root, four-stamen stephania root
Pharmaceutical Name: Radix Stephaniae Tetandrae
Medica Category: Wind Damp Dispelling Herbs – Pain Relieving Herbs
Properties: Fen Fang Ji enters the Urinary Bladder, Lung, and Kidney channels; it is acrid and bitter in nature and cold in temperature.
What is Fen Fang Ji?:
The Chinese Herb Fang Feng Ji is one of the 50 fundamental herbs of Chinese medicine. It is the dried roots of the plant Stephania tetandra, a perennial climber found throughout Southern and Eastern China.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Therapeutic Actions of Fen Fang Ji:
Fen Fang Ji dispels wind and dampness from the channels and collaterals to relieve bi zheng (painful obstruction syndrome) caused by damp-heat accumulation.
Fen Fang Ji promotes diuresis and regulates the water cycle to treat disorders causes by damp-heat water accumulation (e.g. edema, ascites, dysuria…).
**safety note: Fen Fang Ji has a diuretic effect and concurrent use with diuretic drugs (such as chlorothiazide, hydrochlorothiazide, furosemide (Lasix), bumetanide (Bumex), and torsemide (Demadex)) may lead to increased elimination of water and/or electrolytes.