House of Botanicals · Buda, Texas · Est. 2015

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Herb module

Du Huo

Pubescent Angelica RootAngelica pubescens

A slightly warming root traditionally chosen to ease cold, damp achiness in the lower back and legs.

Found inPain Release

Du Huo is the root of an angelica plant, and Traditional Chinese Medicine uses it to drive out Wind, Cold, and Dampness that have settled into the body and made it ache. It is especially associated with the lower half of the body: the low back, hips, knees, and legs. In Zoi's Pain Release™ formula it sits in the fifth position, adding warmth and helping the channels flow freely.

Best functions

  • Traditionally used to dispel Wind, Cold, and Dampness
  • Opens the channels and collaterals so Qi and Blood can move
  • Helps ease aches and discomfort
  • Especially focused on the lower back and legs
  • Brings gentle warmth to areas that feel cold and stiff

Fascinating facts

  • Du Huo is especially valued for the lower back and lower limbs, which is why practitioners reach for it when aches sit low in the body.
  • It enters the Kidney and Bladder channels, which Traditional Chinese Medicine links closely with the low back.
  • The species name pubescens means 'downy' or 'softly hairy', describing the fine hairs on parts of the plant.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine

Du Huo is slightly warm in nature, with a bitter and pungent flavor, and is a Wind-dispelling herb. It enters the Kidney and Bladder channels.

Go deeperDownload the fact sheet on the Pain Release page
Biomedical deep dive

Du Huo Pubescent Angelica Root

From the Zoi Medicinals fact sheets’ Biomedical Details, with lines from Noa’s herb notes marked “Noa’s notes”.

On the fact sheet

  • Du Huo (Angelica pubescens) is slightly warm and enters the KI and UB meridians; dispels Wind-ColdDampness, opens channels and collaterals, and alleviates pain, particularly in the lower back and lower extremities. Pain Release sheet

Key active constituents

The fact sheets don’t name constituents for this herb.

Pharmacology and mechanisms

  • Along with Dan Shen, Qin Jiao, willow bark, Bai Shao and Gui Zhi, Du Huo impacts pain by modulating NF-κB (a master switch for inflammation).
  • Calming NF-κB lowers many inflammatory messengers (cytokines, prostaglandins, nitric oxide) involved in pain signaling and chronic inflammation.

What the research says

  • The NF-κB link for Du Huo comes from a review of Angelica pubescens' effects and active compounds (Chen et al., Chinese Medicine 2020).

Safety, interactions and cautions

  • Every Zoi fact sheet: do not use if pregnant or breastfeeding unless directed by your health care practitioner.
  • The Pain Release fact sheet cautions that the formula contains multiple blood-moving herbs, so use caution with anticoagulant or antiplatelet medicines (warfarin, aspirin, clopidogrel), as effects may be stronger.
  • Use caution in Yin deficiency with Heat signs. Noa’s notes

In these Zoi formulas

  • Pain Release (#5 on the fact sheet)

These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not meant to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.