Fuling (Poria) – A Comprehensive Overview

Source

This product is the dried sclerotium of the fungus Poria cocos from the family Polyporaceae.

Origin

Mainly produced in Anhui, Yunnan, and Hubei provinces. Also found in Henan, Guizhou, and Sichuan provinces.

Harvesting and Processing

Harvested from July to September, the sclerotia are dug up, cleaned of soil, and then piled for “sweating”. After drying the surface, they are “sweated” again, repeating this process until they show wrinkles and most of the internal moisture is lost. They are then dried in the shade, referred to as “Fuling ge”; or the fresh Poria is cut into different parts and dried, known as “Fuling kuai” and “Fuling pian” respectively.

Identification of Characteristics

Fuling ge

It appears spherical, oval, flat, or irregular in shape, varying in size. The outer skin is thin and rough, brown to dark brown, with distinct wrinkled textures. It is heavy, firm, and has a granular fracture surface, some with cracks; the outer layer is light brown, while the inside is white, with some being light red, and some containing pine roots. It has a faint aroma and a bland taste, sticking to the teeth when chewed.

Fuling kuai

These are pieces of Poria cut after peeling, appearing as cubic blocks or thick slices, varying in size. They are white, light red, or light brown.

Fuling pian

These are irregular thick slices of Poria cut after peeling, varying in thickness. They are white, light red, or light brown.

Drinking slices of Bai Fuling

These are irregular pieces, 1-2 cm long; the surface is white to off-white, slightly rough or flat. They are hard in texture. They have a faint aroma and a bland taste.

Chi Fuling

Similar in shape to Bai Fuling, with a surface color ranging from light brown-red to brown.

Fushen

These are square-shaped pieces, with sides measuring 4-5 cm and a thickness of 0.5-0.7 cm. The surface is white to off-white, relatively flat, with a round pine root wood in the middle or on one side. They are hard, with a rough fracture surface.

Properties and Channels

Sweet, bland, neutral. Enters the Spleen, Heart, and Kidney channels.

Characteristics

This product is sweet and bland, promoting urination and draining dampness, with a neutral nature that does not lean towards either hot or cold, and also tonifies deficiency. It enters the Spleen, Kidney, and Heart channels. It drains dampness and promotes urination while also strengthening the Spleen and calming the mind, suitable for conditions of dampness, fluid retention, whether cold or heat, or Spleen deficiency.

Functions

Promotes urination and drains dampness, strengthens the Spleen, calms the mind.

Indications

1. Difficulty urinating, edema, phlegm retention.

2. Spleen deficiency, especially with loose stools or diarrhea.

3. Palpitations, insomnia.

Dosage and Administration

For internal use: decoct 10-15g; or incorporate into pills or powders. Traditionally, for calming the mind, it was often used with cinnabar, but this is now rarely done.

Precautions

This product is sweet and bland, promoting urination, so it should be used cautiously in cases of Yin deficiency without damp-heat, deficiency-cold with spermatorrhea, or Qi deficiency with sinking.

Pharmacology

This product has diuretic, immune-enhancing, gastrointestinal regulating, liver-protective, sedative, anti-tumor, and antibacterial effects.

Story

Once there was a wealthy man who had only one daughter named Xiaoling. He hired a strong young man named Xiaofu to manage household chores, and the wealthy man’s daughter secretly fell in love with him.

However, the wealthy man was very unhappy when he found out, believing that the two were not a match and could not marry. He prepared to send Xiaofu away and locked his daughter up, arranging for her to marry a rich young man. Upon learning of this, Xiaofu and Xiaoling escaped together to a small village.

Later, Xiaoling fell ill with rheumatism and often lay in bed. Xiaofu took care of her day and night, and they supported each other through hardships.

One day, Xiaofu went into the mountains to gather herbs for Xiaoling. Suddenly, he saw a wild rabbit and shot it with an arrow, hitting its hind leg. The rabbit ran away with its injury, and Xiaofu chased it to a cleared pine forest, where the rabbit suddenly disappeared.

He searched everywhere and found an orb-like object next to a pine tree with his arrow stuck in it. He pulled out the arrow and discovered that the brown-black orb had a crack revealing white material inside. He took this back home, cooked it, and fed it to Xiaoling.

The next day, Xiaoling felt much better, and Xiaofu was very happy, often digging up these things for her to eat. Xiaoling’s rheumatism gradually healed. This herb was discovered by Xiaoling and Xiaofu, and people named it “Fuling”.