In our lives, there is an abundance of delicious foods, many of which come from plants and have both culinary and medicinal properties. One such food is fennel, which is warm in nature and has the effects of dispelling cold and relieving pain. It is suitable for consumption by pregnant women, who can benefit from its ability to promote gastrointestinal motility, aid digestion, and relieve constipation.

Can Pregnant Women Consume Fennel?

Fennel is warm in nature and has the effect of dispelling cold and relieving pain, effectively removing dampness and cold from the body without affecting the fetus. Pregnant women can consume fennel in moderation. However, it is important to note that fennel should only be used in cooking, and should not be ground into a powder and taken directly. As fennel has medicinal properties, direct ingestion may pose a risk to the fetus.

Functions of Fennel

1. Dispelling Cold and Relieving Pain

Fennel is effective in treating conditions caused by cold and dampness, as well as qi stagnation, such as uterine cold, lower back and stomach pain, abdominal distension, loose stools, and hernia. It is often used in combination with warming and qi-regulating herbs like cinnamon, agarwood, and wuyao. Additionally, fennel can be used to treat menstrual pain caused by exposure to cold, rain, or qi stagnation. By grinding 15 grams of fennel into a powder and taking it three days before menstruation, it can warm the meridians, dispel cold, and regulate qi flow, thus relieving pain.

2. Regulating Qi and Harmonizing the Stomach

Fennel can be used to treat conditions such as stomach cold with vomiting, loss of appetite, and stomach distension, often in combination with herbs like ginger and costus root. For patients with chronic gastritis or gastric and duodenal ulcers who experience cold stomach pain, preference for warmth, and aversion to cold, a mixture of 100 grams of fennel and 200 grams of ginger can be pounded and then fried until yellow. This powder can be taken with millet soup twice daily for treatment. Heating fennel and applying it in a cloth to the stomach or lower abdomen can also effectively relieve pain caused by gastric disorders or cold-induced abdominal pain and menstrual cramps.

Modern medical research has shown that the mechanism of fennel's effectiveness in treating gastrointestinal disorders lies in its rich content of anethole, a compound that stimulates gastrointestinal motility, helps to expel gas, and reduces pain. Therefore, fennel is often used as a safe and effective anti-bloating agent in clinical practice.

3. Warming the Kidneys and Reducing Urination

Fennel can also be used to treat conditions such as bedwetting due to kidney yang deficiency, nighttime urination or bedwetting caused by congenital weakness, sexual overindulgence, or advanced kidney failure, as well as weakness and cold pain in the lower back and knees. It can be used in combination with herbs like yizhiri, sangpiaoxiao, and fuzipi.

4. Nourishing and Warming the Stomach

In traditional Chinese medicine, fennel is often prescribed in larger quantities than its larger cousin when prescribing stomach-nourishing formulas. This is because the anethole contained in fennel can stimulate the nerves and blood vessels of the stomach, promoting the secretion of digestive juices, increasing gastrointestinal motility, and eliminating trapped gas. It has the effect of strengthening the stomach and regulating qi flow, making it suitable for people with a deficiency of spleen yang.

If you experience abdominal pain, which is common during winter, you can add a little fennel to your cooking or incorporate it into your rice porridge.