Many people often feel cold and chilly, with icy hands and feet that become even more noticeable in winter. Drinking hot water doesn’t seem to warm up their limbs, and even bundled up in a thick coat, they feel a chill seeping into their bones. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, it’s said that “yang deficiency leads to cold.” People with yang deficiency do indeed tend to feel colder more noticeably, often lack energy, feel weak all over, and are more prone to catching colds during seasonal changes. But if you want to truly warm up your body, the first step is definitely not to rush out and buy yang-tonifying medicine!

Why shouldn’t you randomly tonify? Because not all cases of feeling cold are due to insufficient yang qi. Take those in their twenties and thirties, for example: they have plenty of energy at work, don’t feel excessively tired, and their immunity is decent. Yet, as soon as winter comes, their hands and feet still turn icy cold. This actually isn’t a lack of yang qi at all—it’s that the yang qi is blocked halfway!

Nowadays, people are under a lot of pressure—either working overtime until they're exhausted or bottling up their troubles inside. Over time, this can easily lead to liver qi stagnation. The yang qi that should normally flow smoothly to the hands and feet gets blocked by this stagnant qi, naturally causing the hands and feet to feel cold. This type of coldness is particularly easy to distinguish: the coldness doesn't extend past the elbows or knees; above the knees and elbows, it’s still warm. If you stick out your tongue, you’ll notice the sides are noticeably swollen and puffy—these are signs that yang qi is blocked.

If you take random yang-tonifying medicines at this point, it’s like forcefully pumping water into a clogged pipe under pressure. Not only will it fail to warm you up, but it’s also easy to develop internal heat, leading to mouth ulcers, a dry and sore throat, or even acne on the face. It’s a waste of money and only brings more suffering.

For this situation, don’t blindly follow trends and buy yang-tonifying medicines. Instead, you can refer to a formula called Sini Powder (Four Counterflow Powder). It contains just four herbs: Bupleurum (Chaihu), Immature Bitter Orange (Zhishi), White Peony Root (Shaoyao), and Honey-Fried Licorice Root (Zhigancao). Even though none of these herbs are yang-tonifying, their strength lies in unblocking the stagnant qi. Once the qi is flowing smoothly, yang qi can travel along the pathways throughout the whole body, and the hands and feet will gradually warm up.

This article is for knowledge and educational purposes only. Traditional Chinese medicine emphasizes pattern differentiation and treatment tailored to the individual. Since each person’s condition is different, their approach to regulation will also vary. If you experience physical discomfort, it is best to seek treatment under the guidance of a professional physician based on pattern differentiation!