Qīng Hāo (青蒿) — Sweet Wormwood

On this page

1. Overview
2. Properties
3. Actions and indications
4. Key formulas
5. Modern research and the Nobel Prize
6. Cautions
7. Treatment at my clinic

1. Overview

Qīng Hāo (青蒿) — Artemisia annua, known in English as sweet wormwood or sweet Annie — is one of the most clinically and historically significant herbs in the entire Chinese pharmacopoeia. It belongs to the category of Herbs that clear deficiency Heat. Used in Chinese medicine for over 1,600 years for malaria-like fevers, summer-heat illness and the persistent low-grade afternoon fever of Yin deficiency, it became globally famous in 2015 when its active constituent — artemisinin — earned Tu Youyou the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

I prescribe Qīng Hāo as part of bespoke herbal formulas from pharmaceutical-grade granules sourced from Sun Ten in Taiwan. Online consultations are available.

2. Properties

3. Actions and indications

Principal actions

1. Clears Heat from deficiency and cools the Blood
2. Clears Summer-Heat
3. Cools fevers from malarial disorders
4. Releases Heat trapped in the Yin level (the alternating chills-and-fever pattern)

Indications

1. Yin deficiency with low-grade afternoon and evening fever, night sweats, and a thin rapid pulse
2. Summer-Heat with fever, headache, dizziness and stuffy chest
3. Malaria and malaria-like disorders with alternating chills and fever
4. Bleeding from Heat in the Blood
5. Steaming-bone fever (gu zheng) in chronic wasting conditions
6. Heat-induced skin rashes and itching

4. Key formulas containing Qīng Hāo

• Qing Hao Bie Jia Tang (Artemisia annua and Soft-Shelled Turtle Shell Decoction) — the principal formula for late-stage Yin deficiency with deficiency Heat at the end of a febrile illness
• Hao Qin Qing Dan Tang — Damp-Heat in the Shao Yang level with alternating chills and fever
• Qing Gu San — steaming-bone fever in chronic Yin deficiency

See the full Chinese herbal medicine formula directory for detailed information on classical formulas.

5. Modern research and the Nobel Prize

Qīng Hāo is the most globally famous example of traditional Chinese medicine yielding a major modern pharmaceutical discovery. In the 1960s, malaria was killing hundreds of thousands of people annually in Southeast Asia, and existing antimalarial drugs were losing effectiveness as Plasmodium falciparum developed resistance. Mao Zedong launched a secret research programme — Project 523 — to screen traditional Chinese herbs for antimalarial activity.

The Chinese pharmacologist Tu Youyou led one of the project's teams. Initial attempts to extract activity from Qing Hao using conventional hot-water decoction gave inconsistent results. Tu re-read Ge Hong's 4th-century classical text Zhǒu Hòu Bèi Jí Fāng (Handbook of Prescriptions for Emergencies), which described preparing Qing Hao by cold-water steeping rather than boiling. This single detail preserved the heat-sensitive active compound, which her team subsequently isolated and named artemisinin.

Artemisinin and its derivatives are now the global first-line treatment for Plasmodium falciparum malaria, used in artemisinin-combination therapy (ACT). The drug has saved millions of lives and is on the WHO List of Essential Medicines. Tu Youyou was awarded the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for the discovery — the first Nobel awarded for a discovery rooted in classical Chinese herbal medicine, and Tu was the first Chinese woman to receive a Nobel Prize.

Active constituents include artemisinin and its derivatives (artesunate, artemether, dihydroartemisinin), as well as sesquiterpene lactones, flavonoids and essential oils. Modern research also demonstrates anti-inflammatory, anti-viral, immunomodulating and anti-tumour effects of artemisinin compounds, with ongoing trials in autoimmune disease and certain cancers.

6. Cautions

Avoid in patients with weak Spleen and Stomach Qi (the herb is cold). Avoid in pregnancy — the isolated artemisinin compound carries a documented embryotoxic risk in animal studies, particularly in the first trimester. Add Qing Hao to decoctions at the end of cooking (the active compound is heat-sensitive). Always consult a qualified Chinese herbalist registered with the Register of Chinese Herbal Medicine (RCHM); never self-prescribe.

7. Treatment at my clinic

I prescribe Qīng Hāo within tailored formulas for the persistent low-grade afternoon fever and night sweats of long COVID and post-viral fatigue, summer-heat patterns, and Yin-deficiency Heat in perimenopausal patients. I see patients at my clinic in Wokingham, Berkshire. Online consultations are available.

Return to the Chinese herb directory or read about the history of traditional Chinese medicine.