Da Bu Yin Wan: A Simple Guide to Cooling Heat and Nourishing Vitality
Health Lab- Feb 1
- 6 min read
Updated: May 1
Da Bu Yin Wan, a gem from the Danxi Xin Fa in traditional Chinese medicine, has been used for centuries to nourish the body’s vital essence (yin) and calm excessive internal heat.
This classic formula is prized for its ability to restore balance, ease symptoms like hot flashes and irritability, and support overall health. In this article, we’ll break down its ingredients, benefits, uses, and modern applications in an easy-to-understand way, along with dietary tips to enhance its effects.
What’s in Da Bu Yin Wan?
This formula combines four key ingredients to cool and nourish the body:
Rehmannia root (steamed with wine): Nourishes blood and vital essence.
Turtle shell (fried with butter): Strengthens kidneys and calms overactive energy.
Phellodendron bark (fried brown): Clears heat and reduces inflammation.
Anemarrhena root (soaked in wine, fried): Cools internal heat and moistens dryness.
How to prepare it: Traditionally, the herbs are ground into a fine powder, mixed with steamed pig spinal cord and honey, and shaped into 15-gram pills. Take one pill morning and evening with lightly salted water. Alternatively, boil the herbs into a tea, adjusting the dose as needed. Always follow a practitioner’s guidance.
How the Herbs Work Together
In Chinese medicine, herbs are grouped as “monarch, minister, assistant, and envoy” to describe their roles:
Monarch: Turtle shell leads by nourishing the kidneys, calming overactive energy, and relieving symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats.
Minister: Rehmannia root supports by deeply nourishing yin and blood, addressing the root of yin deficiency.
Assistant: Phellodendron bark clears excess heat and balances the formula, preventing the nourishing herbs from being too heavy or causing digestive issues.
Envoy: Anemarrhena root enhances heat-clearing and moistens dryness, boosting the formula’s ability to cool and hydrate the body.
This combination nourishes vital essence while cooling internal heat, creating a balanced and effective remedy.
What Does It Treat?
Da Bu Yin Wan is designed for “yin deficiency with excessive fire,” where the body lacks cooling essence and heat flares up. Common symptoms include:
A burning sensation in the bones or hot flashes.
Night sweats or involuntary emissions.
Coughing up blood.
Irritability or mood swings.
Pain or warmth in the knees and feet.
A red tongue with little coating.
A rapid, strong pulse.
These signs reflect a shortage of yin (the body’s cooling, nourishing fluids) and an excess of yang (active, warming energy), often seen in chronic illness or hormonal imbalances.
How It Works
The formula restores yin to hydrate and nourish the body, while cooling excess heat to ease irritability and hot flashes. By targeting both the deficiency (low yin) and the excess (high heat), it brings the body back into balance, strengthens the kidneys, and supports overall vitality.
Modern Uses
Da Bu Yin Wan remains relevant today for conditions linked to yin deficiency and excess heat. Research highlights its benefits, including nerve nourishment, immune support, fever reduction, and antibacterial effects. Common applications include:
Tuberculosis: Eases symptoms of lung, kidney, or bone tuberculosis by nourishing yin and reducing heat.
Hyperthyroidism: Helps regulate thyroid function and relieve symptoms like irritability and heat sensitivity.
Diabetes: Supports yin to manage thirst, fatigue, and heat-related symptoms.
Lupus erythematosus: Offers supportive relief for inflammation and systemic symptoms.
Menopausal symptoms: Reduces hot flashes, night sweats, and irritability.
Boosting the Formula with Diet
Pairing Da Bu Yin Wan with yin-nourishing foods can enhance its effects. Try these recipes:
Yam, Lily, and Lotus Seed PorridgeIngredients: 30g Chinese yam, 30g lily bulb, 30g lotus seeds, 100g glutinous rice, rock sugar to taste.Preparation: Wash ingredients, simmer with water into porridge, and sweeten with rock sugar.Benefits: Nourishes yin, moistens dryness, and calms the mind.
Wolfberry and Chrysanthemum TeaIngredients: 10g goji berries, 5g chrysanthemum flowers.Preparation: Steep in boiling water and drink as tea.Benefits: Nourishes the liver and kidneys while clearing heat.
Tremella and Lotus Seed SoupIngredients: 10g tremella (white fungus), 30g lotus seeds, rock sugar to taste.Preparation: Soak tremella, simmer with lotus seeds in water, and sweeten with rock sugar.Benefits: Hydrates the lungs and nourishes the stomach.
Other dietary tips:
Eat hydrating foods like pears, mung beans, or sesame seeds.
Avoid spicy, greasy, or overly warming foods like chili or fried dishes.
Stay hydrated with warm water or herbal teas to support yin.
Things to Keep in Mind
While Da Bu Yin Wan is effective, use it carefully:
Avoid if you have a weak stomach, poor appetite, loose stools, or heat-related conditions not caused by yin deficiency.
Follow a doctor’s dosage instructions to prevent overuse.
Consult a practitioner to ensure it matches your condition.
Conclusion
Da Bu Yin Wan is a time-tested Chinese herbal formula that nourishes the body’s vital essence and cools excess heat. Its four herbs work together to relieve hot flashes, irritability, and fatigue, making it ideal for conditions like tuberculosis, hyperthyroidism, or menopausal symptoms. Modern research supports its immune-boosting and anti-inflammatory benefits. Pair it with yin-nourishing foods like tremella soup or goji tea for better results, and always use under professional guidance for safe, effective care.
Chinese Name | 大補陰丸 |
Phonetic | Da Bu Yin Wan |
English Name | Major Yin-Supplementing Pill |
Classification | Tonic formulas |
Source | 《Teachings of [Zhu] Dan-xi》Dan Xi Xin Fa《丹溪心法》 |
Combination | Rehmanniae Radix Praeparata (steamed with wine) (Shu Di Huang jiu chao) 6 liang (180g), Testudinis Plastrum (Gui Ban zhi prepared) 6 liang (180g), Phellodendri Chinensis Cortex(Huang Bai chao; fried) 4 liang (120g), Anemarrhenae Rhizoma (Zhi Mu jiu jin chao; soaked in wine fried) 4 liang (120g) |
Method | Grind the medicinals and combine them with steamed pig spinal marrow. Shape the mixture into pills using honey. Take seventy pills (6-9g) with salt water before meals. The current preparation method is to grind the four medicinals mentioned above into fine powder and add it to a certain amount of steamed pig spinal marrow. Then form the mixture into paste and add honey to form pills that weigh fifteen grams. One pill is orally administered in the morning and one in the evening with slightly salt water. It can also be prepared as a decoction by adjusting the medicinal quantities based on the original ratios. |
Action | Enriches yin and subdues fire. |
Indication | Da Bu Yin Wan is used to treat patterns of yin deficiency with deficiency fire marked by steaming bone fever, night sweat, seminal emission, cough, hemoptysis, vexation, irascibility, pain and redness of the feet and knees, a red tongue with scanty coating, and a rapid, powerful pulse at the chi position. |
Pathogenesis | This pattern is caused by liver-kidney deficiency, true yin deficiency, and exuberance of ministerial fire. The kidney is the viscus of water and fire. When the true yin is deficient, the ministerial fire is excessive and generates deficiency-fire. The symptoms include steaming bone fever, night sweat, seminal emission, pain and redness of feet and knees. Deficiency-fire even scorches the lung in this pattern causing cough and hemoptysis. Deficiency-fire harasses the heart spirit and causes vexation and irascibility. The therapeutic method is to powerfully supplement true yin and help subdue fire. |
Application | 1. Essential pattern differentiation Da Bu Yin Wan is the most common formula used to enrich yin and subdue fire. This formula should not be used in cases of spleen-stomach weakness, poor appetite, loose stool, and excessive fire and heat patterns. This clinical pattern is marked by steaming bone fever, red tongue with scanty coating, and a rapid, powerful pulse at the chi position. 2. Modern applications This formula may be used in the following biomedically defined disorders when the patient shows signs of yin deficiency with deficiency-fire flaming up: hyperthyroidism, nephrotuberculosis, osseous tuberculosis, and diabetes. |
Additonal formulae | Hu Qian Wan (Hidden Tiger Pill 虎潛丸) [Source]《Teachings of [Zhu] Dan-xi》Dan Xi Xin Fa《丹溪心法》 [Ingredients] Huang bai (wine-fried) 0.5 jin (240g), gui ban (wine-fried) 4 liang (120g), zhi mu (wine-fried) 2 liang (60g), shu di huang 2 liang (60g), chen pi 2 liang (60g), bai shao 2 liang (60g), suo yang 1.5 liang (45g), hu gu (prepared, or use gou gu instead) 1 liang (30g), gan jiang 0.5 liang (15g) (dang gui, niu xi and yang rou are added in the 《Medical Formulas Collected and Analyzed》) [Preparation and Administration] Grind the ingredients into powder and form into pills using honey. 1 pill (9g) is taken with lightly salted water or warm water twice a day. It can also be prepared as a decoction. [Actions] Enriches yin, subdues fire, strengthenes the sinews and bones. [Applicable Patterns] Wei (atrophy and/or flaccidity, 痿) due to liver-kidney deficiency and yin deficiency with internal heat. Symptoms include: soreness of the waist and knees, weak sinews and bones, thin legs and feet, fatigue when walking, dizziness, tinnitus, seminal emission, enuresis, a red tongue with scanty coating, and a weak, thready pulse. |
Remark | Reeves' Terrapin (Chinemys reevesii / Mauremys reevesii) is listed as "Endangered" in the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. Also, it is listed in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Appendix III. Its trade is regional control and subject to permits or certificates of origin. |
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