Ejiao is a gelatin block made by boiling donkey skin, also known as donkey skin gelatin. In ancient times, it was named after being produced in Dong'e County. In ancient times, the gelatin boiled with water from the "Dong'e Well" actually included two types: donkey skin gelatin and ox skin gelatin, both called Ejiao. However, today they are distinguished by name: Ejiao specifically refers to donkey skin gelatin, while ox skin gelatin is called Huangming gelatin. For medicinal use, it needs to be crushed or stir-fried with clam powder to make Ejiao pearls.
I. Efficacy of Donkey-Hide Gelatin:
Donkey-hide gelatin has a sweet taste and a neutral nature. It acts on the lung, liver, and kidney meridians. Its effects includeNourishing blood and stopping bleeding, nourishing yin and moistening the lungsIts characteristic lies in the dual effect of both replenishing blood and stopping bleeding, earning it the reputation as the essential medicine for blood replenishment and hemostasis.
Commonly used forBlood deficiency with sallow complexion, dizziness and palpitations, muscle atrophy and weakness, restlessness and insomnia, internal stirring of deficiency wind, dry cough due to lung dryness, cough with blood in labor, vomiting blood and hematuria, bloody stool and metrorrhagia, fetal leakage during pregnancytreatment of conditions such as
Summary of Famous Works by Renowned Authors:
The Classic of Materia Medica: "It primarily treats internal collapse in the heart and abdomen, extreme fatigue with chills resembling malaria, pain in the waist and abdomen, soreness and pain in the limbs, bleeding in women, and stabilizes the fetus."
Bie Lu: "It governs lower abdominal pain in men, emaciation due to consumptive disease, insufficiency of yin qi, sore feet that cannot stand for long periods, and nourishes liver qi."
Method and Image of Medicinal Use: "Stops bleeding and calms the fetus, while also relieving cough and dysentery."
Rihuazi Materia Medica: "Treats all types of wind, nosebleeds, vomiting blood, intestinal wind, bloody dysentery, and abnormal uterine bleeding with vaginal discharge."
Compendium of Materia Medica: "Treats hematemesis, epistaxis, hematuria, bloody urine, intestinal wind with diarrhea. Women's blood pain, blood depletion, irregular menstruation, infertility, uterine bleeding, leukorrhea, and various diseases before and after childbirth. All wind diseases in men and women, joint pain, edema due to water qi, consumptive disease with cough and dyspnea, lung atrophy with purulent and bloody sputum, as well as abscesses, swellings, and toxins. Harmonizes blood and nourishes yin, dispels wind and moistens dryness, transforms phlegm and clears the lungs, promotes urination, and regulates the large intestine."
Compendium of Materia Medica Supplement: "Treat internal injury and lower back pain, strengthen tendons, enhance essence, and consolidate the kidneys."
Changsha Materia Medica: Enters the Jueyin Liver Meridian. Nourishes yin and invigorates wood, replenishes blood and moistens the liver, relieves pain in the womb, stops abnormal uterine bleeding, effectively clears Jueyin wind-dryness, and skillfully regulates the dispersion and discharge of Yi wood.
"Compendium of Materia Medica": "Clears the lungs and nourishes the liver, enriches the kidneys and boosts qi, harmonizes blood and replenishes yin, dispels wind and resolves phlegm, moistens dryness and relieves asthma, benefits the large and small intestines. Treats consumptive cough, lung abscess with pus discharge, vomiting blood and nosebleeds, bloody strangury and hemorrhoids, intestinal wind with diarrhea, soreness in the waist and bone pain, blood pain and blood depletion, irregular menstruation, uterine bleeding, vaginal discharge, fetal restlessness, abscesses, swellings, toxins, and all wind-related diseases."
II. Compatibility and Application of Donkey-Hide Gelatin:
1. For symptoms such as dizziness and palpitations due to blood deficiency. Donkey-hide gelatin can nourish blood and is suitable for various blood deficiency syndromes. It is often combined with qi-tonifying and blood-nourishing herbs such as Codonopsis pilosula, Astragalus membranaceus, Angelica sinensis, and Rehmannia glutinosa.
In the treatment of palpitations and irregular pulse due to qi deficiency and blood insufficiency, it is often combined with ginseng, ophiopogon root, rehmannia root, cinnamon twig, and licorice root, namelyZhigancao Decoction。
2. Used for various bleeding syndromes such as hematemesis, epistaxis, hematochezia, metrorrhagia, and fetal leakage bleeding. Ejiao not only nourishes blood but also excels at stopping bleeding, making it an essential medicine for bleeding accompanied by blood deficiency syndrome. For treating persistent hematemesis due to yin deficiency and blood heat, it can be combined with herbs such as Pollen Typhae and Rehmannia glutinosa.
If treating symptoms such as hematochezia or hematemesis due to spleen qi deficiency and cold, it is often combined with Terra Flava Usta, Aconiti Lateralis Radix Praeparata, Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma, and Rehmanniae Radix, namelyHuangtu Decoction。
For treating conditions such as metrorrhagia, excessive menstrual flow, bleeding during pregnancy, and persistent bleeding after urination in women, it is often combined with carbonized mugwort leaf, Chinese angelica, dried rehmannia root, white peony root, and licorice, namelyJiao Ai Tang。
If treating women with sunken meridians and dripping black ink-like discharge, it is often paired with dried ginger, namelyJiao Jiang TangTogether they achieve the effect of warming the meridians and stopping bleeding.
If treating deficiency and cold in the Chong and Ren meridians with blood stasis obstruction, presenting symptoms such as persistent spotting with dark clots and dribbling flow, or irregular menstruation, urgency and fullness in the lower abdomen, fever in the evening, heat in the palms, dry lips and mouth, red tongue and rapid pulse, or uterine cold in women with prolonged infertility, it is often combined with Evodia rutaecarpa, Ophiopogon japonicus, Angelica sinensis, Paeonia lactiflora, and Moutan cortex, namelyWenjing DecoctionTogether, they achieve the effect of warming the meridians, dispelling cold, nourishing blood, and removing stasis. They have a wide range of clinical applications and demonstrate significant therapeutic efficacy.
For treating lung damage with cough and blood, it is often combined with ginseng, asparagus root, and bletilla tuber, namelyEjiao Powder。
If treating bleeding accompanied by blood deficiency syndrome, it can be taken alone or combined with Siwu Decoction to enhance the therapeutic effectEjiao Siwu Decoction。
Sheng Hui Fang: "To treat hematuria during pregnancy, it can be used alone by stir-frying until yellow, grinding into powder, and taking it."
3. For yin deficiency with restlessness, insomnia, and other syndromes. Ejiao is effective at nourishing blood and enriching yin. To treat febrile diseases damaging yin, with restlessness and insomnia, it is often combined with Huanglian, Baishao, Jizihuang, etc., namelyCoptis and Donkey-Hide Gelatin DecoctionTogether they achieve the effect of nourishing blood and clearing heat.
In the late stage of warm febrile disease, when true yin is on the verge of exhaustion, leading to yin deficiency and wind stirring, with symptoms such as convulsions of the hands and feet, it is often combined with turtle shell and egg yolk, which are herbs that nourish yin and extinguish wind, namelyLarge and Small Dingfeng Zhu。
4. For deficiency-type fatigue with cough or yin deficiency with dry cough syndrome. Ejiao has the function of nourishing yin and moistening the lungs, and is particularly effective in treating pulmonary tuberculosis with cough and blood in sputum. For lung deficiency with intense fire, wheezing, cough, dry throat, scanty phlegm, or phlegm with blood streaks, it is often combined with Aristolochia debilis, Arctium lappa, and Prunus armeniaca, namelyBufeiejiao Decoction。
If treating dryness evil injuring the lung, dry cough without phlegm, vexation and thirst, dry nose and throat, etc., it is often combined with raw gypsum, mulberry leaf, apricot kernel, ophiopogon, etc., namelyClearing Dryness and Rescuing the Lung Decoction。
For the treatment of hemoptysis in pulmonary tuberculosis, especially in cases of severe and persistent hemoptysis, donkey-hide gelatin can be used alone. It can be ground into powder and taken with warm water or dissolved before consumption, showing good therapeutic effects.
For the treatment of chronic pharyngitis, Huanglian Ejiao Tang with the addition of Rougui can be used, which has shown good efficacy and can be taken as a reference.
Huang Yuanyu said, "Ejiao calms wind and moistens dryness, nourishes blood and enriches yin. In prescriptions such as Zhuling, Shuyu, Huangtu, Wenjing, Baitouweng, Zhigancao, Biejiajian, Huanglian Ejiao, and Dahuang Gansui, it is used to nourish the wind-dryness of Yi wood."
5. For dietary therapy and health preservation. Ejiao is rich in nutrients and suitable for dietary therapy. However, its nature is greasy and can easily affect the spleen and stomach's transportation and transformation, so necessary processing is required. It is often combined with tonic substances such as red dates, black sesame seeds, longan meat, and walnut meat, along with auxiliary ingredients like brown sugar and yellow wine, and boiled into a paste, which isEjiao Paste。
III. Usage and Dosage of Ejiao:
Ejiao can be used in decoctions and is also suitable for making pills and powders. The usual dosage in decoctions ranges from a few grams to over ten grams; for pills and powders, use an appropriate amount.
Due to its sticky nature and relatively high cost, it is not suitable to be decocted together with other herbs, thereforeWhen used in decoctions, it should be melted and mixed in, or taken with yellow wine.。
For hemostasis, it should be stir-fried with cattail pollen; for moistening the lungs, it should be stir-fried with clam powder (known as Ejiao Zhu).
Huang Yuanyu said: "Stir-fry with clam powder, then grind for use."
Wang Ang said: "It is made by boiling black donkey skin with water from the A Well. The genuine product is black with a greenish tint and does not soften in summer. It is stir-fried until it forms pearls, or stir-fried with flour, stir-fried with clam powder to remove phlegm, and stir-fried with cattail pollen to stop bleeding. It is used by dissolving in wine, water, or mixed with child's urine."
IV. Application Notes for Ejiao:
Ejiao has a sticky and greasy nature, which can easily hinder digestion, thereforeSpleen and stomach weakness, poor appetite, or indigestion, as well as vomiting and diarrhea are contraindicated。
"Ben Cao Jing Shu": "It is sticky and greasy in nature, so those with weak stomachs causing vomiting should not take it; those with spleen and stomach deficiency and indigestion should also avoid it."
Nowadays, it is common for people to take donkey-hide gelatin as a tonic without proper consideration, especially among women. This practice often contradicts the principles of spleen and stomach theory. Instead of nourishing qi and blood, it first harms the spleen and stomach, which is putting the cart before the horse and should not be overlooked.
