A gentleman I encountered in the outpatient clinic left a particularly deep impression on me. In summer, while others wish they could stay in air-conditioned rooms all day, he sweats profusely even with light activity. Yet, when exposed to air conditioning, he feels so cold he has to wrap himself in a jacket, and even inhaling cool air can trigger a long bout of coughing. Before his visit, many doctors, following conventional reasoning, prescribed formulas to tonify Yang deficiency or blood deficiency, or to regulate the spleen and kidneys. The result? He drank a lot of Chinese medicine, spent quite a bit of money, but his symptoms didn't improve at all.

Why is this the case? Actually, when encountering such spontaneous sweating combined with a fear of cold, don't always focus on the spleen and kidneys. It's mostly because the lung qi is too deficient! Traditional Chinese Medicine believes that the lungs command all the vessels. Lung qi has the function of consolidating and restraining body fluids; it is responsible for transporting qi and blood throughout the body and maintaining a normal body temperature.

If lung qi is insufficient, the supply of qi and blood is inadequate, naturally leading to cold hands and feet and a particular sensitivity to cold. Moreover, the lung-defense qi acts like the body's gatekeeper against external pathogens. When the gatekeeper's strength is insufficient, body fluids cannot be retained and escape uncontrollably, resulting in frequent sweating due to deficiency.

For such a situation, we can consider this classic renowned formula—Yupingfeng San (Jade Screen Powder). In the formula, Huangqi (Astragalus) specifically supplements lung qi, Baizhu (Atractylodes) strengthens the spleen to enrich lung qi, and Fangfeng (Saposhnikovia) acts like a loyal guard, keeping wind pathogens outside the body. The combination of these three herbs is like putting on a protective coat that shields the body from wind and cold. After one course of treatment, the patient’s condition showed significant improvement.

The content of this article is for informational purposes only. Individual constitution and medical conditions vary, and medication approaches may differ. If you experience any physical discomfort, please seek treatment under the guidance of a professional physician’s diagnosis!