🌿 Folk Prescriptions

Nephrotic syndrome results from various causes damaging the kidneys. In TCM, it is mainly attributed to external pathogens, dietary imbalance, or excessive fatigue, leading to fluid retention and overflow into the skin, manifesting as swelling in the head, eyelids, limbs, chest, abdomen, or even the entire body.
Based on TCM principles such as “kidneys govern winter,” “yang begins at winter solstice,” and “follow seasonal rhythms to maintain harmony,” Professor Ba Yueming from the Nephrology Department of Hubei Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine explained that treating nephrotic syndrome during winter is ideal, with December 21st—the winter solstice—being the optimal starting time.
Why Treat Kidney Disease in Winter?
As people know “treating winter illnesses in summer,” similarly, treating kidney disease in winter allows maximum drug efficacy and optimal therapeutic outcomes.
Current treatment usually combines Western and TCM approaches. Initial treatment focuses on hormone therapy, while TCM primarily employs diuretics, lung-ventilation and exterior-releasing agents, heat-clearing and detoxifying herbs, yang-warming and qi-transforming remedies, spleen-strengthening and qi-tonifying formulas, yin-nourishing and water-draining agents, blood-activating and stasis-resolving drugs, purgatives, and tonics for deficiency. These aim to improve bodily condition, reduce toxicity, and enhance effectiveness. For refractory nephrotic syndrome, TCM plays a unique role, potentially transforming difficult cases into treatable ones and reducing side effects and incidence rates of Western medications.
After the coldest period—post-winter solstice—human yang energy gradually increases while yin declines. During this time, warming therapies benefit from yang-enhancing drugs that leverage rising yang energy to achieve rapid warming effects.
Winter treatment targets not only the root cause—kidney yang or yin deficiency—but also the seasonality of kidney disease itself, enhancing immunity and reducing recurrence.
Treatment Methods in Winter
Professor Ba outlined five primary methods:
1. Chinese Herbal Ion Introduction Therapy. A unique method combining herbs, acupoints, and electrical current. It enhances transdermal absorption, increases drug efficacy, avoids liver damage, and requires 15–30 minutes per session, once daily. A course lasts 7–15 sessions, with 3–7 days between courses.
2. Acupoint Plaster Therapy. Integrating internal disease treatment via external application and chronotherapy. Medicinal plasters are applied to specific acupoints, bypassing digestive absorption, reducing gastrointestinal discomfort from long-term medication, causing no pain, improving quality of life, enhancing renal function, and delaying kidney failure.
3. Herbal Therapy. Based on the strength of kidney qi, vitality of blood and qi, and changes in liver-kidney yin deficiency, individualized herbal prescriptions are formulated.
4. Dietary Therapy. Following TCM principle: “Tonify deficiency, warm cold.” Focus on yang-nourishing foods, especially those warming kidney yang. Foods like lamb, dog meat, chicken, duck, soft-shelled turtle, eel, and others nourish kidney yang. Additionally, millet, walnuts, leeks, shrimp, ox testicles, deer antlers, deer meat, mackerel, sea cucumber, clams, onions, coriander, glutinous rice, wheat, pumpkin, red dates, fennel, ginger, etc., all possess yang-warming and deficiency-tonifying properties and should be consumed regularly. Under TCM guidance, ingredients like angelica root, deer antler, purple river boat, ginseng, etc., can be used in medicinal diets.
5. Herbal Wine Therapy. Used during recovery and consolidation phases to boost immune function, enhance resistance to pathogens, prevent invasion by pathogens, and serve as post-illness tonics and auxiliary treatment.
Indicated Populations for Winter Treatment
Nephrotic syndrome is suitable for winter treatment. Other conditions include remission-phase kidney diseases, spleen-kidney deficiency states such as simple hematuria, acute/chronic nephritis, allergic purpura nephritis, hepatitis B-associated nephropathy, lupus nephritis, chronic renal failure, and sub-health individuals with symptoms like cold limbs, weakness, frequent nighttime urination, insomnia, dry mouth, dry throat, dizziness, tinnitus, etc. Winter treatment can yield excellent results.
Finally, Professor Ba emphasized that while winter treatment is effective, other health-preserving practices must not be overlooked. Combining winter therapy with lifestyle adjustments—such as moderation in sexual activity, avoiding wind-cold, proper diet, and regular exercise—enhances nutrient absorption and synergistic benefits.
Expert Profile
Ba Yueming, Chief Physician, Professor, and Master’s Supervisor at the Department of Nephrology, Hubei Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Member of the Committee on Nephrology, Chinese Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine. President of the Youth Branch of Hubei Province’s TCM Society. Expertise includes chronic nephritis, renal insufficiency, urinary tract stones, and urinary infections.