Medicines that primarily function to eliminate dampness from the body are called dampness-removing medicines. According to their functional pathways, they can be divided into the following two categories.

Aromatic herbs resolving dampness: The spleen prefers dryness and dislikes dampness. When dampness obstructs the middle energizer, it most easily suppresses spleen yang, leading to dysfunction of the spleen and stomach, manifesting as symptoms such as epigastric and abdominal fullness, nausea and vomiting, sweet taste in the mouth with excessive saliva, poor appetite, fatigue, and loose stools. These medicines have a fragrant aroma that can awaken the spleen, are pungent and warm in nature, and are effective in drying dampness, making them most suitable for conditions of dampness obstructing spleen yang and dysfunction of transportation and transformation. This book lists commonly used clinical medicines such as Atractylodes Rhizome, Magnolia Bark, Patchouli, and Fortune Eupatorium.

Damp-draining diuretics: Dysfunction of the lungs, spleen, and kidneys leads to disturbances in water metabolism, causing water and dampness to accumulate in the body and making it difficult to expel, resulting in conditions such as edema, phlegm-fluid retention, strangury, eczema, and jaundice. These medicines are sweet and bland in nature, effective in clearing and promoting diuresis, enabling the expulsion of water and dampness through urination, thus achieving the goal of eliminating dampness.

However, aromatic herbs resolving dampness tend to be warm and drying, while damp-draining diuretics tend to be bland and draining, both of which can easily deplete yin fluids. Therefore, care should be taken to protect yin fluids when using these medicines to achieve the effect of "promoting diuresis without damaging yin."