Poria (Fu Ling) 
Poria (Fu Ling) is one of the commonly used herbs in clinical Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). Its properties are mild, and it is often combined with various other herbs to form many classic TCM formulas.
Source
It is the dried sclerotium of the fungus Poria cocos (Schw.) Wolf.
Production Areas
It is distributed in Hebei, Henan, Shandong, Anhui, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Hunan, Hubei, Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan, and Shanxi. The main production areas are Anhui, Yunnan, and Hubei.
Properties and Channels
It has a sweet, bland flavor, is neutral in nature, and enters the Spleen, Heart, and Kidney meridians.
Characteristics
This herb is sweet and bland, promotes urination and drains dampness, is neutral and not biased, and also tonifies deficiency, entering the Spleen, Kidney, and Heart channels. It both drains dampness and promotes urination, and strengthens the Spleen and calms the Heart, suitable for all conditions of dampness and fluid retention, regardless of cold or heat, or accompanying Spleen deficiency.
Functions
Promotes urination, drains dampness, strengthens the Spleen, and calms the spirit.
Indications
1. Difficulty urinating, edema, phlegm retention.
2. Spleen deficiency syndrome, especially with loose stools or diarrhea.
3. Palpitations, insomnia.
Processing
Take the Poria, soak it, wash it clean, slightly steam it after moistening, promptly peel off the outer skin, and cut it into pieces or thick slices, then dry in the sun.
Precautions
This herb is sweet and bland, thus should be used cautiously in cases of Yin deficiency without damp-heat, deficiency-cold with slippery sperm, or Qi deficiency with sinking.
Editor: Science and Education Department
