Fu Ling
StarWolfiporia extensa (Poria cocos (Schw.) Wolf)
Traditionally used for
- Dizziness
- Cough & breathing
- Digestion
- Urinary & fluids
- Sleep
- Mood & calm
- Energy & fatigue
☯ TCM Properties
Promotes Urination and Drains Dampness; Strengthens the Spleen; Resolves Phlegm; Calms the Heart and Quiets the Spirit
Traditional Chinese Uses
Among the most frequently prescribed substances in Chinese herbal medicine, Fu Ling (Poria) ranks just behind licorice root in overall clinical use. This gentle, neutral-natured fungus works by eliminating excess dampness and fluid from the body, fortifying the digestive system, and quieting an unsettled mind. Practitioners turn to it for conditions such as edema, abdominal bloating, loose stools, dizziness arising from fluid accumulation, and low-grade anxiety or difficulty sleeping.
Western Herbalism Properties
Pharmacological Effects
- Diuretic: 25% alcoholic extract (0.5 g/kg i.p. for 5 days) was diuretic in rabbits, comparable to salyrgan; oral alcoholic extract diuretic in rats, but oral decoction inactive in rabbits.
- Sedative: Decoction i.p. reduced spontaneous activity in mice, antagonized caffeine excitation and potentiated pentobarbital anesthesia.
- Digestive system: Relaxed isolated rabbit intestine, inhibited pylorus-ligation ulcers and gastric secretion in rats, and protected against CCl4 hepatotoxicity.
- Anti-tumor promotion: Topical methanolic extract reduced DMBA/TPA skin tumors in mice; several triterpene acids inhibited TPA ear edema with activity similar to hydrocortisone.
- Other: Extracts increased contractility and rate of isolated frog heart; decoction inhibited S. aureus, M. tuberculosis and Proteus vulgaris in vitro; alcoholic extract killed leptospirae.
Source: Zhu YP. Chinese Materia Medica: Chemistry, Pharmacology and Applications. Harwood Academic, 1998, p. 311.
Used In Formulas (144)
Relationships
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Botanical Description
Wolfiporia extensa, synonymous with Wolfiporia cocos and the older Poria cocos, is a saprotrophic and weakly parasitic wood-decay fungus in the family Polyporaceae, growing on the roots and stumps of conifers, especially old pine trees, across China, Japan, Korea and parts of North America. The medicinal portion is not a typical above-ground mushroom but a massive, irregular, subterranean sclerotium, 5 to 30 cm or more across, that develops attached to and around the host roots. The sclerotium is roughly spherical to ellipsoid or amorphous, with a thin, wrinkled, dark brown to blackish skin and a dense, firm, white to faintly pinkish interior consisting of compacted hyphae and starchy reserve material. The fertile fruiting body, rarely seen, forms as a thin, white to cream-coloured, resupinate poroid layer on the surface of the sclerotium or adjacent wood. The dried sclerotium provides Fu Ling, one of the most widely used substances in Chinese medicine, valued for its bland flavour and ability to drain dampness without harming the upright Qi.
Active Constituents
Pachymic acid
Lanostane-type triterpene acidConcentration: Approx. 0.1-0.8% of the sclerotium (a principal marker)
A signature triterpene of Poria, essentially unique to this fungus, with anti-inflammatory, anti-tumour and insulin-sensitising activity. It is a chief quality marker and contributes to the diuretic and Spleen-supporting actions.
Dehydropachymic acid
Lanostane-type triterpene acidConcentration: Trace to ~0.3% of the sclerotium
A closely related triterpene with anti-inflammatory and hypoglycaemic effects, part of the triterpene acid fraction used to standardise Poria.
Poricoic acid A
Secolanostane (3,4-seco-triterpene) acidConcentration: Trace amounts in the sclerotium and epidermis
A seco-triterpene with notable renoprotective and antifibrotic activity (modulating TGF-beta/Smad signalling) that has attracted research interest for chronic kidney disease, echoing the herb's water-draining, Spleen-strengthening role.
Tumulosic acid (and dehydrotumulosic acid)
Lanostane-type triterpene acidConcentration: Trace to ~0.2% of the sclerotium
Triterpene acids that reduce postprandial blood glucose in animal models and contribute anti-inflammatory activity to the total triterpene fraction.
Pachyman / beta-pachyman (Poria polysaccharide)
(1->3)-beta-D-glucan polysaccharideConcentration: The dominant mass fraction (often >80% of the dry sclerotium as insoluble glucan)
The principal polysaccharide, a largely water-insoluble (1->3)-beta-glucan with (1->6) branches. Chemical modification (e.g. carboxymethylation to pachymaran/carboxymethyl-pachyman) unlocks immunomodulatory and anti-tumour activity; the native glucan underlies the bulk of the sclerotium.
Ergosterol
Fungal sterol (provitamin D2)Concentration: Trace amounts
A characteristic fungal sterol used as an authentication marker with mild anti-inflammatory activity.
⚠ Drug Interactions
Diuretics (e.g. furosemide, thiazides)
Poria has a mild diuretic effect attributed to its triterpene acids and potassium content, which could be additive with pharmaceutical diuretics.
Clinical note: Generally well tolerated; monitor fluid status and electrolytes if used with potent diuretics.
Antidiabetic agents (insulin, sulfonylureas)
Poria triterpenes (pachymic and dehydrotumulosic acids) reduce postprandial blood glucose in animal models, giving a theoretical additive hypoglycaemic effect.
Clinical note: No documented clinical hypoglycaemia; monitor glucose if used in large amounts with antidiabetic drugs.
Dosage
| Form | Amount | Frequency | Duration | Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| decoction | 10–15 g | Daily | — | — | 中国药典 2020 【用法与用量】10~15g。 【性味与归经】甘、淡，平。归心、肺、脾、肾经。 — Chinese Pharmacopoeia 2020, quoted verbatim; route and cautions preserved. Replaces a cleared category-filler value. |
Preparation Methods
White Poria (Bai Fu Ling), decoction
Parts: Inner white part of the sclerotium
Typical dose 9-15 g. The white inner portion is the standard form, cut into cubes or slices and decocted (often for a somewhat longer time because of its density) to strengthen the Spleen, drain dampness and promote urination. Its bland, neutral nature makes it suitable for prolonged use.
Red Poria (Chi Fu Ling)
Parts: Reddish outer layer of the sclerotium
The reddish layer just beneath the peel is used more specifically to clear damp-heat and promote urination, for example in damp-heat urinary difficulty.
Poria with hostwood core (Fu Shen)
Parts: Portion of sclerotium surrounding the pine-root core
The part enclosing the residual pine root is selected to calm the Heart and quiet the spirit for palpitations, anxiety and insomnia.
Poria peel (Fu Ling Pi)
Parts: Outer skin/peel of the sclerotium
The peel focuses on promoting urination and reducing superficial edema, and is a key component of skin-oriented water-regulating formulas such as Wu Pi San.
Dui Yao — Herb Pairs
The classical two-herb combinations this herb appears in, each with an action neither herb has alone.
Spleen qi is strengthened while dampness is leached out, treating edema, loose stools and phlegm-fluids from spleen deficiency.
Named pairing — Bensky et al., Chinese Herbal Medicine: Materia Medica (3rd ed.)
Dries and transforms phlegm while draining the dampness that generates it, harmonizing the stomach.
Damp-phlegm cough with copious white sputum, nausea.
Core pair of a classical formula — Er Chen Tang, Taiping Huimin Hejiju Fang
Warms yang and promotes the transformation of qi so that retained fluids and thin mucus are drained.
Thin mucus in the middle burner with dizziness and palpitations.
Core pair of a classical formula — Ling Gui Zhu Gan Tang, Shang Han Lun (Zhang Zhongjing)
Combine to strongly promote urination and leach out dampness, with the spleen-supporting action of one tempering the purely draining action of the other.
Edema, scanty urination, damp diarrhea.
Named pairing — Lü Jingshan, Shi Jinmo Dui Yao
Evidence Tier
Limited evidence · 1 studyRecorded studies by study design, strongest design at the top. This is a study-design tier only, not a GRADE rating: it does not weigh risk of bias, consistency or precision.
Systematic review / meta-analysis
0
Randomized controlled trial
0
Other clinical trial
0
Observational / case report
0
In vitro / animal
0
Other / unclassified
1
1 verified · 0 unverified
Verified: design read from PubMed for a DOI that resolves to the cited paper Unverified: taken from the study's recorded description
Clinical Studies
Phytochemistry and Pharmacological Activities of Wolfiporia cocos (F.A. Wolf) Ryvarden & Gilb
Systematically reviews the triterpene acids and beta-glucan polysaccharides of Poria and their diuretic, immunomodulatory, sedative, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-tumour and antihyperglycaemic activities, providing the modern pharmacological basis for its traditional water-draining and Spleen-strengthening uses.
⚠ Safety & Contraindications
Contraindications
Its use is prohibited in patients with spontaneous seminal emission due to deficiency-cold.
Source: Xi S, Gong Y. Essentials of Chinese Materia Medica and Medical Formulas. Academic Press/Elsevier, 2017, pp. 139–143.
Historical Texts
Shennong Bencao Jing (Divine Farmer's Materia Medica)
Eastern Han, c. 200 CEJin Gui Yao Lue / Shang Han Lun, Zhang Zhongjing
Eastern Han, c. 200 CEReferences
- Nie A, Chao Y, Zhang X, Jia W, Zhou Z, Zhu C. Phytochemistry and Pharmacological Activities of Wolfiporia cocos (F.A. Wolf) Ryvarden & Gilb . Frontiers in Pharmacology (2020) [DOI]
- Chinese Pharmacopoeia Commission. Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China, Vol. I - Fuling (Poria) . China Medical Science Press (2020) [DOI]
This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before using any herbal remedy, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking medications.
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