Herbal Clinic

Herbal Clinic The herbal clinic is a fully stocked online herb store. Our dispensary assistants have an in-depth knowledge of herbs.

The herbal clinic is a fully stocked online herb store which is open to the public and staffed by trained herbalists. We stock a very wide selection of the highest quality herbs. We source cultivated organic or wildcrafted herbs whenever possible and we support local farmers.

Two people with the same bloating can need very different formulas. Here's why.Classical Chinese herbal medicine treats ...
05/11/2026

Two people with the same bloating can need very different formulas. Here's why.

Classical Chinese herbal medicine treats digestive problems by pattern, not by symptom. Once a practitioner identifies whether the pattern is Spleen qi deficiency, dampness, cold, heat, food stagnation, or something mixed, the right formula often selects itself.

Our new guide groups nine classical digestive formulas (Si Jun Zi Tang, Liu Jun Zi Tang, Xiang Sha Liu Jun Zi Tang, Ping Wei San, Er Chen Tang, Li Zhong Wan, Xiao Jian Zhong Tang, Ban Xia Xie Xin Tang, Ma Zi Ren Wan) by the pattern each one targets, so you can see where each formula fits before going deeper.

Read the full guide at herbalclinic.ca/guide-to-classical-chinese-digestive-formulas

What if chronic vaginal discharge isn't a stuck problem, but a tired one?Wan Dai Tang is a 200-year-old Chinese formula ...
05/08/2026

What if chronic vaginal discharge isn't a stuck problem, but a tired one?

Wan Dai Tang is a 200-year-old Chinese formula built for damp leucorrhea from a weak Spleen and a constrained Liver. Qing dynasty physician Fu Qing-zhu created it. Unlike most damp formulas, it tonifies first, drains gently second.

Three things to know:
• Most damp formulas drain. This one rebuilds the Spleen so dampness stops being produced.
• It pairs Spleen tonics (Bai Zhu, Shan Yao, Ren Shen) with a small Liver-softening pair (Bai Shao, Chai Hu) borrowed from Xiao Yao San.
• Best fit: chronic, low-grade, white discharge with fatigue, loose stools, no smell, no burning. Not for damp-heat, infection, or itching.

Read the full guide at herbalclinic.ca/wan-dai-tang-for-vaginal-discharge

When fluid feels stuck, dizziness, palpitations, that sloshy feeling under the ribs, classical Chinese medicine has a 1,...
05/07/2026

When fluid feels stuck, dizziness, palpitations, that sloshy feeling under the ribs, classical Chinese medicine has a 1,800-year-old answer.

Ling Gui Zhu Gan Tang first appeared in the Shang Han Lun around 220 CE. Four herbs, one job: warm the digestive engine and move stuck water out of the body.

The four pieces:
Fu Ling (Poria), drains dampness gently
Gui Zhi (cinnamon twig), warms the chest
Bai Zhu (white atractylodes), strengthens the spleen
Zhi Gan Cao (honey-fried licorice), harmonizes

Practitioners reach for it when the spleen yang runs cold and thin watery fluid creeps up into the chest or head, the classical Tan Yin pattern.

Read the full guide at herbalclinic.ca/ling-gui-zhu-gan-tang-for-fluid-retention-2

Heavy head, sloshing stomach, soft palpitations after meals?In Chinese medicine that picture has a name: tan yin, or thi...
05/06/2026

Heavy head, sloshing stomach, soft palpitations after meals?

In Chinese medicine that picture has a name: tan yin, or thin watery dampness from a cold, sluggish digestion. The classical answer is Ling Gui Zhu Gan Tang, a four-herb formula first written down by Zhang Zhongjing nearly two thousand years ago.

How it works:
🌿 Fu Ling (Poria) gently drains excess fluid through the urinary system
🌿 Gui Zhi (Cinnamon Twig) warms and moves yang energy outward
🌿 Bai Zhu (White Atractylodes) strengthens the digestive centre
🌿 Zhi Gan Cao (Honey-Fried Licorice) softens and harmonizes the rest

Together they restore the warmth and movement that should have been there in the first place.

Read the full guide: herbalclinic.ca/ling-gui-zhu-gan-tang-for-fluid-retention

Six herbs. One of the most used digestive formulas in Chinese medicine.Liu Jun Zi Tang, the Six Gentlemen Formula, build...
05/05/2026

Six herbs. One of the most used digestive formulas in Chinese medicine.

Liu Jun Zi Tang, the Six Gentlemen Formula, builds on Si Jun Zi Tang by adding two herbs that clear phlegm and dampness. The result is a formula that addresses digestive weakness and phlegm accumulation at the same time.

The six herbs: Korean red ginseng, white atractylodes, poria, licorice root, chen pi peel, and pinellia tuber. Each plays a specific role, and the formula only works as intended when all six are present.

In TCM, this formula suits the pattern of Spleen Qi deficiency with phlegm-dampness: poor appetite, fatigue, nausea, and that heavy feeling that settles in the stomach after eating.

Read the full guide at herbalclinic.ca/liu-jun-zi-tang-six-gentlemen-formula/

Withania somnifera's anxiolytic effect isn't sedation.It operates through GABA-A receptor modulation via the alkaloid fr...
05/04/2026

Withania somnifera's anxiolytic effect isn't sedation.

It operates through GABA-A receptor modulation via the alkaloid fraction, specifically somniferine and withanine. Separate mechanism from its HPA axis effects.

Prescribing notes worth having front-of-mind:

Cortisol normalization requires 4-8 weeks at 300-600 mg KSM-66/day. Sleep improvement can appear in 2 weeks.

Thyroid interaction: Withania upregulates T3/T4 synthesis. Monitor thyroid panel at 8-12 weeks in patients on levothyroxine or with Hashimoto's thyroiditis.

Extract selection matters: root-only preparations (KSM-66) have higher alkaloid content for HPA and anxiolytic applications. Root + leaf extracts (Sensoril) shift toward anti-inflammatory and anti-proliferative use.

The burnout pattern, depleted HPA with concurrent anxiety and disrupted sleep, is where this herb is most precisely indicated.

Spasmodic abdominal cramps that feel better with heat and pressure often point to one specific TCM pattern: Spleen-Stoma...
05/04/2026

Spasmodic abdominal cramps that feel better with heat and pressure often point to one specific TCM pattern: Spleen-Stomach deficiency cold.

Xiao Jian Zhong Tang has addressed it for over 2,000 years.

Key things to know:
- It targets cold-deficiency cramping. If warmth helps, this formula may match.
- White peony and licorice form the antispasmodic core. Paeoniflorin from white peony root relaxes smooth muscle directly.
- Cinnamon, ginger and jujube provide the warming base. Honey builds qi and blood while moderating the pain.
- It relieves and rebuilds at the same time. Not just symptomatic relief.

Full guide at herbalclinic.ca/xiao-jian-zhong-tang-for-abdominal-cramping/

Cold digestion and constant fatigue have a name in Chinese medicine: Spleen Yang deficiency.When the digestive fire runs...
05/01/2026

Cold digestion and constant fatigue have a name in Chinese medicine: Spleen Yang deficiency.

When the digestive fire runs too low to warm and transform food, you end up with loose stools, poor appetite, and low energy after meals. Li Zhong Wan is the classical formula for this pattern, built from four herbs that have been working together for nearly 2,000 years.

What makes it work:

Dried Ginger drives cold out of the digestive centre directly.
Ginseng rebuilds depleted digestive energy.
White Atractylodes clears dampness and strengthens the spleen.
Licorice harmonizes the formula and supports recovery.

Best taken warm and consistently. Most people notice the shift within two to four weeks.

Read the full guide at herbalclinic.ca/li-zhong-wan-for-digestive-weakness-and-fatigue

Persistent phlegm that lingers after a cold? This classical Chinese formula may be exactly what's been missing.Er Chen T...
04/30/2026

Persistent phlegm that lingers after a cold? This classical Chinese formula may be exactly what's been missing.

Er Chen Tang (Two-Cured Decoction) has been used in Chinese medicine since 1107 CE. It's built around two aged ingredients: Ban Xia (pinellia) and Chen Pi (aged tangerine peel).

What it does:
- Dries dampness and resolves phlegm in the lungs and stomach
- Calms nausea by redirecting rebellious Stomach Qi downward
- Treats the root cause: a Spleen that's stopped transforming fluids properly

In TCM, phlegm isn't just mucus. It forms when the Spleen is overwhelmed. Er Chen Tang strengthens the Spleen and stops phlegm at the source. It's also the foundation for many other classical formulas, including Wen Dan Tang and Xiang Sha Liu Jun Zi Tang.

Read the full guide at herbalclinic.ca/er-chen-tang-for-phlegm-and-nausea/

Bloated after every meal? Tired after eating? That's a pattern TCM has a name for.Xiang Sha Liu Jun Zi Tang is a classic...
04/29/2026

Bloated after every meal? Tired after eating? That's a pattern TCM has a name for.

Xiang Sha Liu Jun Zi Tang is a classical Chinese digestive formula built for Spleen Qi deficiency with dampness and Qi stagnation. It combines 8 herbs to do three things at once:

Tonify the Spleen (ginseng, atractylodes, poria)
Resolve dampness and stop nausea (Ban Xia, Chen Pi)
Move stuck Qi and relieve distension (Mu Xiang, Sha Ren)

Most digestive tonics address weakness. This one also addresses the stagnation that comes with it, which is why it's prescribed so widely in TCM clinical practice.

Full guide at herbalclinic.ca/xiang-sha-liu-jun-zi-tang-for-digestion

Bloated after meals? Feeling heavy and sluggish? This classic formula has addressed that exact pattern for nearly 1,000 ...
04/28/2026

Bloated after meals? Feeling heavy and sluggish? This classic formula has addressed that exact pattern for nearly 1,000 years.

Ping Wei San (Calm the Stomach Powder) is a foundational TCM digestive formula targeting what practitioners call Damp Obstruction of the Spleen. Here is what that means in plain terms:

- Dampness builds up in the digestive centre when the Spleen is overburdened
- Food and fluids stagnate instead of moving freely
- Result: bloating, fullness, fatigue, and that thick coating on the tongue

The formula uses 6 herbs to address this: Bai Zhu dries the dampness, Hou Po moves Qi downward, Chen Pi regulates flow, Sheng Jiang warms the Stomach, and licorice and jujube harmonize and tonify.

Available in tincture form at herbalclinic.ca/ping-wei-san-for-bloating-and-dampness/

Read the full guide at herbalclinic.ca/ping-wei-san-for-bloating-and-dampness/

Address

Toronto, ON

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Herbal Clinic posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Featured

Share

Category