Bu Fei Tang
Quick Facts
- What it is: A classical Chinese herbal formula, taken as a decoction or granules, traditionally used for a long-running weak cough with breathlessness and tiredness.
- Main uses: Long-running weak cough (traditional use), Shortness of breath on light effort (traditional use), Tiredness alongside breathing problems (traditional use)
- Best for: People working with a qualified practitioner on a chronic weak cough where serious causes have been ruled out
- Active ingredients: Ginsenosides (from ginseng), Astragalosides and polysaccharides (from astragalus), Schisandra lignans, Iridoid glycosides (from prepared rehmannia), Saponins (from aster root), Flavonoids (from mulberry root bark)
- Forms: Raw dried herbs for home decoction, Granules or concentrated powder, Pills and capsules, Ready-made liquid vials
- Time to effect: Traditionally one to two weeks; not confirmed by research.
- Side effects: Usually mild — sleeplessness, bloating, headache — but it interacts with blood thinners, diabetes drugs and immune-suppressing medicines.
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What is Bu Fei Tang?
Bu Fei Tang is a Chinese herbal formula. Its name means Tonify the Lungs Decoction. You drink it warm, like a tea.
It is used for a long-running weak cough. Other signs are shortness of breath, a quiet voice, sweating and tiredness. In traditional terms, this picture is called "Lung qi deficiency".
It is sold and prescribed as one preparation (a TCM formula). Even so, it is made from several herbs mixed in set amounts. The usual herbs are ginseng, astragalus, prepared rehmannia, schisandra, aster root and mulberry root bark.
The evidence in one line: the record of use inside Chinese medicine is long and respected. But no good human trials in English show what it does. Long traditional use is not proof of effect, and that gap applies to everything on this page.
How does Bu Fei Tang work?
Honestly, nobody has shown how it works in people.
In Chinese medicine, the formula is said to "tonify Lung qi". The idea is that it builds up a weak breathing system. The cough then settles and the breath steadies.
That is a traditional model of the body. It is not a description of measured biology.
Lab and animal studies of the single herbs hint at some action. Astragalus and ginseng extracts affect immune cells in the dish. Schisandra affects liver enzymes that break down medicines.
None of that has been shown to help a person with a cough.
What forms does Bu Fei Tang come in?
You will usually meet it in one of these forms.
Raw dried herbs. A practitioner weighs them out for you. You then simmer them at home into a decoction (a strong tea made by boiling).
Granules or powder, stirred into hot water.
Ready-made pills or capsules.
Pre-made liquid vials.
A practitioner will often change the herbs or the amounts to suit you. So two prescriptions with the same name may not be the same.
Where it comes from:
Bu Fei Tang turns up in Chinese medical writing from about the 14th to the 17th century. It is recorded in classical collections such as Yong Lei Qian Fang and the Ming-era Zheng Zhi Zhun Sheng.
It has stayed in use ever since. Chinese medicine colleges today teach it as the standard formula for a weak, long-term cough.
It belongs to one tradition, not many. That is why it sits on the traditional axis, as a long-standing staple of Chinese medicine.
Who should avoid Bu Fei Tang?
- Do not use if you take warfarin or any other blood-thinning medicine, unless your doctor has agreed and is checking your clotting blood tests.
- Do not use if you take ciclosporin, tacrolimus or any medicine that suppresses your immune system, including after an organ transplant.
- Do not use if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, because the safety of this formula for the baby has not been studied.
- Do not use if you have a fever, a productive cough with green or yellow phlegm, or a new chest infection — this formula is traditionally for weakness, not for an active infection.
- Do not use if you have uncontrolled hypertension (high blood pressure), because the ginseng in it may push your readings higher.
- Do not use if you have liver disease or take a medicine that needs regular liver blood tests, because schisandra changes how the liver clears drugs.
- Do not use if you are booked for surgery within two weeks: stop it and tell your surgeon, because of the bleeding and blood sugar effects.
- Do not give it to a child without a qualified practitioner prescribing and supervising it.
- Avoid it if you have had an allergic reaction to ginseng, astragalus or any other herb in the blend.
When should you see a doctor?
See a doctor straight away if you cough up blood, feel breathless while sitting still, have chest pain, or your lips or fingertips turn blue.
Book an appointment soon if a cough lasts more than three weeks, you are losing weight without trying, you have night sweats or a fever, or your voice has been hoarse for more than three weeks.
Stop the formula and speak to a doctor or pharmacist if you get a rash, yellowing of the skin or eyes, unusual bruising or bleeding, or if your blood sugar or blood pressure readings change after starting it.
Evidence grades and traditional-use labels are explained in our methodology. Nothing here is medical advice.
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