Kidney tonification requires balance: Understanding the "seeking yang within yin" theory of boiling water and its role in kidney health.

**Supplementation should be balanced-tonifying the kidneys requires "seeking yang within yin"**

The kidneys are the foundation of innate essence and the root of yin and yang. The essence and qi in the kidneys are the material basis and driving force for various bodily functions. Therefore, kidney deficiency will affect a person's health and longevity.

Men over 40 are like a half-full pot of water. When you boil it, it's full, but it dwindles as it cools. You boil it again, it cools again, and it dwindles again. Aphrodisiacs are generally very effective initially, but long-term use will further deplete kidney essence. Traditional Chinese medicine typically addresses this issue with two methods: one is effective but slow, seeking yang within yin, treating the root cause; the other is fast but harmful, focusing solely on yang-boosting. A more scientific approach is to seek yang within yin, nourishing the kidneys and consolidating essence-that is, assisting yang within yin and assisting yin within yang, to avoid a vicious cycle caused by simply boosting yang. This is like a boiler boiling water. Water is added and boiled at the top, and water is constantly added from the bottom, so the water level always remains at the bottom, and the top always remains boiling, yet the total volume is relatively full. This explanation of the yin-yang balance of the kidneys can be figuratively called the "boiling water theory."

Do you understand the function of the kidneys?

Traditional Chinese medicine believes that the kidney is one of the five vital organs, internally and externally related to the bladder. Its functions include storing essence and reproduction, controlling human development and growth, and serving as the cradle of the body's primordial life-giving substances. Essence is a fundamental substance constituting the human body and the material basis for all bodily functions. Essence can be divided into congenital essence and acquired essence. Congenital essence is inherited from the parents and is the primordial substance constituting the embryo; it is the basic substance for human reproduction and propagation. Acquired essence refers to the essence obtained from food after birth, transformed by the spleen and stomach; it is the subtle substance that nourishes the internal organs and tissues, maintaining human life activities. Both congenital and acquired essence rely on the kidney for storage and excretion. For congenital essence to continuously exert its vitality, it must be constantly nourished and replenished by acquired essence to maintain its vitality. Simultaneously, acquired essence depends on the biochemical processes of congenital essence to generate endless vitality. Hence the saying, "The congenital generates the acquired, and the acquired nourishes the congenital," the two being interdependent and sharing a common destiny. Therefore, when the acquired essence is abundant, the innate essence will naturally be abundant, and the body's activity and reproductive functions will also be very vigorous. When the innate essence is sufficient, the acquired essence will have a source for generation and transformation.

Traditional Chinese medicine texts contain numerous records of treatments for impotence caused by kidney deficiency, but these prescriptions primarily focus on tonifying yang, frequently using ingredients like ginseng, deer antler, deer penis, cinnamon, cistanche, dog kidney, and seahorse-all considered warming and tonifying herbs. Modern doctors, following these ancient formulas, have developed numerous medications and health products specifically targeting kidney yang. Users often experience symptoms such as burning sensations in the mouth and nose, general heat, dizziness, headaches, insomnia, loss of appetite, and temporary sexual stamina followed by a rapid decline. Western medicine, on the other hand, treats impotence mainly through injections of hormones like testosterone. Long-term reliance on external hormones suppresses the body's own sex hormone secretion, leading to testicular atrophy and decreased sexual function, ultimately resulting in a decline in sexual function.

Having practiced medicine for decades, I have used aphrodisiac Chinese medicine and hormone-based Western medicine on some patients, but the results were unsatisfactory. Based on extensive clinical experience and through studying ancient prescriptions, empirical formulas, and folk remedies, I have come to a realization: ancient prescriptions served the people of that time; they were certainly suitable for their physical conditions. However, with the changing times, people's physical conditions have undergone tremendous changes. If we still follow ancient prescriptions, we will become out of touch with reality, or even go astray. In my clinical practice, I have found that most patients with erectile dysfunction do not suffer from kidney yang deficiency, but rather from kidney yin deficiency. I have tried treating them with yin-nourishing and kidney-tonifying formulas, and patients generally report increased energy, improved appetite and sleep, and a subsequent recovery of sexual function.

While modern people enjoy ample nutrition, the stressful work environment and fast-paced lifestyle lead to depletion of kidney yin, resulting in kidney yin deficiency in many men. This contrasts sharply with the kidney yang deficiency prevalent in ancient times due to widespread food insecurity and weak constitution. With historical development and societal progress, people's lives have improved significantly, leading to substantial changes in physical constitution and disease patterns. Kidney yin deficiency is now the primary tendency for kidney deficiency in modern people. However, many men's health supplements still follow outdated practices, indiscriminately incorporating pungent and drying ingredients like ginseng, deer antler, turtle, and other animal products, inevitably causing heatiness, high blood pressure, and mouth ulcers. The timing of a man's physical decline and his lifespan depend on the strength of his kidney qi. Kidney deficiency affects men's health, but kidney tonification must be done properly, with appropriate medication selection. Improper use will not only be ineffective but may even have adverse effects. Kidney tonification should be done scientifically using traditional Chinese medicine theory, selecting tonics that are mild in nature but meet the needs of modern men, embodying the characteristics of "gentle tonification, seeking yang within yin, gradual progress, and long-lasting effects".

Three years ago, I saw a patient in the hospital suffering from erectile dysfunction. This man, in his fifties, recounted that his sexual function had declined slightly two years prior, prompting him to seek treatment in Shijiazhuang, Beijing, and Shanghai. He had taken mostly aphrodisiacs, which caused him to experience symptoms like excessive heat, frequent urination, and prostatitis. The more he took the medication, the worse his health became, and his sexual function deteriorated further, leaving him almost in despair. He then sought my help. After examining his pulse and listening to his account of his treatment, I told him that his previous treatments had been counterproductive. He already had kidney yin deficiency; taking aphrodisiacs was like adding fuel to the fire, scorching his kidney yin. The more kidney yin was consumed, the less healthy he became; how could he possibly be? The more he tried to tonify his kidneys, the weaker they became. I started by nourishing his kidney yin and prescribed him traditional Chinese medicine to nourish his yin and tonify his kidneys. After the first month of taking the medicine, he felt a little better. After the second and third months of taking the medicine, his penis lengthened a bit, but he still couldn't get an erection. After the fourth and fifth months of taking the medicine, his penis became hard and he could get an erection for a short time. In the sixth month, he felt his testicles getting bigger and his penis returning to its pre-illness state. He was able to have sex with his wife twice. In the seventh and eighth months, his sexual function was fully restored, and he was able to have sex 2 to 3 times a week instead of once a week.

A 56-year-old Japanese friend, the chief engineer of a Sino-foreign joint venture, sought treatment at a urology clinic for decreased sexual function. In his own words, his penis always pointed to the "6 o'clock" position. He had sought treatment for his condition in Japan and around the world, taking numerous Western medications. After coming to China, he tried commercially available aphrodisiacs, but these were ineffective and even caused him to develop high blood pressure and intermittent heart palpitations. He was depressed, listless, and lacked energy at work. He worked in China year-round, only occasionally returning to Japan to visit family. His sex life was still unsatisfactory, leading his wife to suspect him of having extramarital affairs, thus causing his impotence. In reality, he was suffering in silence, unable to defend himself. After examining his pulse, I told him that his impotence was caused by kidney yin deficiency due to a fast-paced work life, stressful lifestyle, and excessive fatigue. Because he didn't understand traditional Chinese medicine and mistakenly took aphrodisiacs, he inevitably experienced side effects such as excessive internal heat, frequent urination, and high blood pressure. I prescribed him traditional Chinese medicine to nourish yin and tonify the kidneys. Initially, he was skeptical, but after half a month of treatment, he felt significantly better. His strength returned, and his sleep and appetite improved. After a month, his sexual function began to recover; his penis regained its ability to achieve an erection every morning, his heart palpitations disappeared, and his blood pressure stabilized. After three or four months of treatment, he returned to Japan to visit relatives and called from overseas to say that he and his wife were very satisfied with their sex life, and he had reached "9 o'clock" (a euphemism for ejaculation).