Traditional Chinese Medicine Health Preservation for Pregnancy and Fetal Care
Fetus, fully named embryo, refers to the stage within the first month of pregnancy as “embryo,” sometimes written with the “female” radical. “Fetus” is defined in *Shuowen Jiezi* as “the stage of nursing for three months.” The developing organism inside the mother’s womb before birth is called the fetus.
Fetal health preservation refers to measures taken during the period from conception to delivery to promote healthy fetal development, encompassing physical and mental health practices for both mother and fetus. Its content resembles the traditional Chinese concepts of “nourishing the fetus,” “protecting the fetus,” and “fetal education.”
The term “nourishing the fetus” first appears in Zhang Zhongjing’s *Jin Kui Yao Lue·Treatment of Women’s Pregnancy Disorders*, stating: “For pregnant women, nourishing the fetus, Bai Zhu San is prescribed.” Subsequently, it mentions: “When a woman injures her fetus, with abdominal distension during pregnancy, inability to urinate, heaviness below the waist, resembling water retention. At seven months of pregnancy, the sun energy should be nourished but isn’t—this indicates excess heart qi.”