A modern "yang-xin an-shen" (nourish the heart and calm the spirit) formula standardized in the 1977 Pharmacopoeia, the most widely sold TCM "insomnia + heart-flutter" formula in mainland China.
Cultural reference - how this formula has been discussed in Chinese medical tradition. Not medical advice.
Background & origin
Standardized in the 1977 Pharmacopoeia of the PRC, it has become one of the most widely sold TCM "insomnia + heart-flutter" formulas in mainland China, essentially a modern standardized version of the classical Suan Zao Ren Tang idea. In Japan, the related prescription appears as 安神補心湯 (あんしんほしんとう / Anshin-hoshin-tō) by Tsumura (ツムラ) and Kracie (クラシエ) for "insomnia + heart-yin deficiency" indications. In Korea, it is sold as 안신보심환 in the Kyungdong (경동) hanbang line. The formula is a clear example of a modern Chinese "calm-spirit" formula that has been re-expressed in dedicated Japanese and Korean product lines.
In tradition
In TCM framing, traditionally used in the context of "heart-yin deficiency with disturbed spirit", difficulty falling asleep, light or easily disturbed sleep, occasional palpitations, mild anxiety, dizziness, tinnitus, and a red tongue with little coating. The formula is a textbook example of the "nourish yin + anchor yang" approach to sleep, appropriate when the underlying issue is deficiency rather than excess. In Japan, the related prescription appears as 安神補心湯 (Anshin-hoshin-tō) by Tsumura and Kracie, and in Korea as 안신보심환 (Anshin-boshim-hwan) in the Kyungdong hanbang line.
Formula composition
Monarch1
- Salvia miltiorrhiza root (Dān Shēn / 丹参)
Minister3
- Schisandra fruit, steamed (Wǔ Wèi Zǐ / 五味子)
- Acorus rhizome (Shí Chāng Pú / 石菖蒲)
- Albizia bark (Hé Huān Pí / 合欢皮)
Assistant6
- Dodder seed (Tú Sī Zǐ / 菟丝子)
- Eclipta herb (Mò Hàn Lián / 墨旱莲)
- Fleeceflower stem (Shǒu Wū Téng / 首乌藤)
- Rehmannia root (Dì Huáng / 地黄)
- Concha margaritifera usta (Zhēn Zhū Mǔ / 珍珠母)
- Fruiting teasel root (Nǚ Zhēn Zǐ / 女贞子)
International availability
Japan (Kampo)
- KracieクラシエOTC安神補心丸Anshin-hoshin-gan
Korea (Hanbang)
- Kyungdong경동OTC안신보심환Ansin-bosim-hwan
Taiwan & Hong Kong
- 順天堂OTC安神補心丸An Shen Bu Xin Wan
Cautions & context
- Not a substitute for evaluation of chronic insomnia, persistent sleep difficulties can have many causes and should be assessed by a clinician.
- People taking sedative or hypnotic medications (benzodiazepines, z-drugs, antidepressants) should consult a clinician before use, the formula contains several calming herbs.
- Not recommended during pregnancy without qualified guidance, the formula contains several blood- and yin-nourishing herbs.
- Not appropriate for "excess-type" insomnia with marked irritability and a forceful pulse, the formula is described as nourishing, not strongly calming.
Related formulas
Other formulas from this text· "Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China"
Other formulas by this contributor· Pharmacopoeia Commission of the PRC
Related concerns
Concern · sleep
Sleep
Difficulty falling asleep, light sleep, dream-disturbed sleep, and the "tired but cannot switch off" pattern that follows overwork or worry.
Concern · stress
Stress & Mood
Everyday tension, low mood, irritability, the sense of being "wound up but tired". The cluster of complaints that brings many Chinese adults to the family 中成药 drawer before they ever see a doctor.
Editorial note
Compiled from "Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China" (1977).
Last reviewed: July 18, 2026
Three layers of evidence
Classical source
≈ 0 years · "Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China" (1977)
Pharmacopoeia indication
"Nourish the heart and calm the spirit. Used for heart-blood insufficiency with internal deficiency fire: palpitations and insomnia, dizziness, and tinnitus."
Modern research status
A 2024 multiple-treatment meta-analysis (PMID 38878648) of 146 RCTs (13,754 participants) covering Chinese patent medicines combined with antidepressants for depression explicitly included Anshenbuxinwan; the broader meta-analysis found combination therapy superior to antidepressants alone overall, but Anshenbuxinwan specifically did not appear statistically superior on HAMD reduction — the evidence is therefore class-level positive but formula-specific inconclusive, and no dedicated systematic review for Anshenbuxinwan alone was identified. [4]
References
References reviewed on July 18, 2026 · PubMed search on 2026-07-18
- 01PharmacopoeiaChinese Pharmacopoeia Commission, 《中华人民共和国药典》 2020 edition, vol. 1 (Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó Yàodiǎn, Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China, 2020 ed., vol. 1), China Medical Science Press, 2020, the official national monograph for Ān Shén Bǔ Xīn Wán (丸 / 颗粒 / 片 / 胶囊), "functional indication" reads "nourish the heart and calm the spirit. Used for heart-blood insufficiency with internal deficiency fire: palpitations and insomnia, dizziness, and tinnitus", the formula being a modern 中成药 standardized in the 1977 Pharmacopoeia and re-confirmed in each subsequent edition through 2020.
- 02TextbookGao Xuemin (高学敏) et al. (eds.), 《中药学》 (Zhōngyào Xué / Science of Chinese Materia Medica), 1st edition, People's Medical Publishing House, 2002, the standard national textbook of Chinese-medicine higher education in mainland China, with Ān Shén Bǔ Xīn Wán analysed in the "安神剂 / calm-spirit formulas" chapter as a representative modern formula for the "nourish heart + calm spirit" approach, with explicit discussion of Suān Zǎo Rén (酸枣仁) as principal and the yin-nourishing, spirit-anchoring theoretical framework.
- 03TextbookZhonghua Bencao Editorial Committee (中华本草编委会), 《中华本草》 (Zhōnghuá Běncǎo / Chinese Materia Medica Compendium), Shanghai Scientific and Technical Publishers, 1999, the most comprehensive modern TCM-materia-medica compendium in mainland China (30 volumes, 8980 monographs), with a dedicated monograph on the modern Ān Shén Bǔ Xīn Wán formula and cross-references to each of its 10 component herbs, providing the standard scholarly reference for the formula composition and its "heart-yin deficiency with deficiency-fire" indication.
- 04