Is Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui really 40-proof liquor, and can it not treat heatstroke?

Simply put, the alcohol content of Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui is 40% - 50%. Although the alcohol content in 40-proof liquor is similar to that of Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui, the total amount of alcohol a patient actually takes in when using Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui is not high, so this claim is not reliable.

What is Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui?

Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui is prepared from 10 traditional Chinese medicines, including Cangzhu (Atractylodes rhizome), Chenpi (dried tangerine peel), Houpo (magnolia bark), Baizhi (Angelica dahurica root), Fuling (Poria cocos), Dafupi (Areca peel), Banxia (Pinellia tuber), Gancao (licorice), Huoxiang (Agastache rugosa), and Zisu (perilla), along with the solvent ethanol.

Is Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui equivalent to 40° liquor?

The alcohol content of Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui is 40% - 50%, because ethanol (alcohol) is needed during its preparation to extract substances such as huoxiang oil and perilla leaf oil.

Although the alcohol content in 40-proof liquor is similar to that of Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui, the total amount of alcohol a patient actually takes in when using Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui is not high. If a patient takes 1 vial each time, 2 times a day, then the amount of alcohol per dose is at most 5 ml, and the maximum daily alcohol intake is 10 ml.

Therefore, the claim that confuses the alcohol content in medicine with the proof of alcoholic beverages is inaccurate.

Is Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui reliable for treating heatstroke?

Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui can relieve the exterior and transform dampness, and regulate qi and harmonize the middle. It is used for exterior wind-cold, internal damage from damp stagnation, headache and heavy-headedness, chest and diaphragm stuffiness, abdominal distension and pain, vomiting and diarrhea, and various symptoms of gastrointestinal cold. It is a commonly kept first-aid medicine for summer.

Among these, "exterior wind-cold" refers to the body being chilled or affected by cold from the outside, with symptoms such as aversion to cold and clear nasal discharge. A condition more serious than being chilled is being affected by cold.

This symptom is mostly caused by the relatively large temperature changes in summer between morning and evening, failure to defend in time, or indoor air-conditioning temperatures being too low.

"Internal damage from damp stagnation" means weak spleen and stomach function, mostly because there is more rainy weather in summer.

When dampness invades the human spleen and stomach, or when one eats unclean food or raw and cold food (such as seafood), it can affect the transportation and transformation function of the spleen and stomach and cause disease.

"Summer damage from summerheat and dampness" refers to a condition with obvious seasonality, usually occurring after the summer solstice and before the beginning of autumn.

It has characteristics such as fever, rising and dispersing, and being accompanied by damp pathogens. In all these situations, Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui can be taken for treatment and relief.

Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui mainly treats "yin summerheat" (that is, yin-type heatstroke), such as heatstroke from being exposed to air-conditioning wind or cooling off under a tree, with symptoms such as headache, aversion to cold, and diarrhea.

However, for severe heatstroke, or "yang summerheat" (yang-type heatstroke) caused by prolonged exposure to the sun, accompanied by symptoms of high fever, coma, or even collapse, the first treatment method is to replenish water in time.

In this situation, taking Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui will instead worsen the condition. So to be precise, Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui mainly treats summer cold, not acute heatstroke.

Does the alcohol in Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui affect pregnant women?

Because there is still no clear clinical data on whether Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui affects fetal development, the claim that a pregnant woman will miscarry after drinking Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui has no basis.

Drinking a large amount of alcohol during pregnancy can lead to fetal alcohol syndrome, causing health problems in infants such as facial deformities, central nervous system damage, growth and developmental delay, para-ventricular heart defects, and movement disorders.

In China, the "Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents" (2011 edition), in its health guidelines for early, middle, and late pregnancy and for lactating women, clearly proposes abstaining from alcohol and staying away from alcohol. Therefore, although the total amount taken in when using Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui normally is small, pregnant women should still use it with caution and use Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui under a doctor's guidance, while pregnant women allergic to alcohol must be prohibited from using it.