Clear Heat

Clear Heat refers to the therapeutic action of eliminating pathological heat from the body through cooling and purging methods. This action addresses excess heat conditions by using herbs with cold or cool properties to restore thermal balance and resolve heat-related pathology. Clear Heat encompasses multiple subcategories including clearing heat and purging fire, clearing heat and cooling blood, and clearing heat and resolving toxins.

Clinical Application

Indicated for excess heat patterns presenting with high fever, irritability, thirst, red tongue with yellow coating, and rapid pulse. Applied in heat stroke, acute infectious diseases, inflammatory conditions, and febrile disorders. Essential for treating heat in specific organ systems including heart fire, liver fire, lung heat, and stomach fire. Used in blood heat conditions with bleeding, skin eruptions, and vascular inflammation.

Key Herbs

Shi Gao

Clears intense heat and drains stomach fire, particularly effective for high fever and excessive thirst

Zhi Mu

Clears heat and nourishes yin, addresses heat with underlying yin deficiency

Huang Qin

Clears upper jiao heat and lung fire, resolves hot phlegm and calms restlessness

Huang Lian

Clears heart and stomach fire, resolves damp-heat and toxic heat conditions

Long Dan Cao

Drains liver and gallbladder damp-heat, clears lower jiao heat patterns

Sheng Di Huang

Clears heat and cools blood, nourishes yin while addressing blood heat

Jin Yin Hua

Clears heat and resolves toxins, particularly effective for external wind-heat and skin infections

Related Actions

Resolve Toxins

Heat often generates or combines with toxins, requiring simultaneous clearing of pathological heat and toxic accumulation

Nourish Yin

Intense heat damages yin fluids, necessitating yin supplementation to prevent chronic deficiency after heat clearing

Cool Blood

Heat in the blood level requires specific blood-cooling herbs to address vascular inflammation and bleeding disorders

Formulas for Clear Heat in Our Catalog

517 formulas in our catalog

Loading products...

Search all formulas for Clear Heat in Formula Finder →

More Actions

Frequently Asked Questions

Discontinue when fever resolves, tongue coating changes from yellow to white or becomes peeled, and pulse shifts from rapid to normal or slow, indicating transition from excess heat to potential yin deficiency.

Clearing heat addresses general thermal excess with moderate cooling methods, while purging fire treats intense heat accumulation in specific organs requiring stronger, more targeted cooling and purging herbs like Da Huang or Mang Xiao.

Weak, thready, or slow pulse with pale tongue or peeled coating indicate underlying yang qi deficiency or damaged yin, requiring gentle heat clearing combined with supplementation rather than aggressive cooling methods.

Professional Reference Disclaimer

This page is provided by Acu-Market (Medical Technology Products, Inc.) as an educational reference for licensed acupuncturists and traditional Chinese medicine practitioners. It is not medical advice and is not intended for use by the general public.

The clinical information on this page is a general summary compiled from traditional Chinese medicine sources and is provided for reference only. It is not exhaustive, may contain errors or omissions, and may not reflect the most current clinical research or guidance. Acu-Market makes no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, completeness, reliability, suitability, or availability of this information.

Practitioners are solely responsible for their own clinical decisions. Nothing on this page substitutes for independent professional judgment, formal TCM training, current authoritative reference texts, or direct evaluation of an individual patient. Pattern differentiation, formula selection, herb combinations, dosing, contraindications, drug-herb interactions, and patient-specific safety considerations must be independently verified by the prescribing practitioner before any clinical application. Use of this information is at the practitioner’s own risk.

This page does not create any practitioner-patient, provider-client, or consultative relationship between Acu-Market and any reader. Acu-Market is a supplier of professional acupuncture and herbal products. It does not provide medical advice, diagnose conditions, prescribe treatment, or render clinical services of any kind.

Statements on this page have not been evaluated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The herbal products referenced are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Use of herbal medicine in clinical practice is regulated by state and federal law, and practitioners are responsible for compliance with all applicable regulations in their jurisdiction.

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, Acu-Market and Medical Technology Products, Inc. disclaim all liability for any direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, or special damages arising from any use of, reliance on, or inability to use the information on this page, including but not limited to clinical outcomes, adverse events, regulatory action, or economic loss.