Pinyin: Ji Zi Huang  Chinese: 鸡子黄
Pharmaceutical: Galli Gigeriae Vitellus
English: Egg Yolk

Tastes: Sweet, neutral
Meridians Entered: Heart and Kidney

Actions & Indications:

1. Nourishes Yin, tonifies the Blood and moistens Dryness
   Restlessness, insomnia, indigestion, scalds, hemoptysis, vomiting, dysentery, hematochezia, vaginal bleeding during pregnancy, furuncle, indigestion in infants
2. Extinguishes Wind
   Eczema, convulsions

Standard Dosage: Eaten or used as medium for external application.

Pinyin: E Jiao  Chinese: 阿胶
Pharmaceutical: Colla Corii Asini
English: Donkey-Hide Gelatin / Ass-Hide Glue

Tastes: Sweet, neutral
Meridians Entered: Lung, Liver, Kidney and Heart

Actions & Indications:

1. Tonifies the Blood
   Blood Deficiency with dizziness, sallow or pale complexion and palpitations
2. Nourishes the Blood and stops bleeding
   Any kind of bleeding, especially consumptive disorders with hemoptysis, hemafecia, menorrhagia or metrorrhagia
3. Nourishes and moistens Yin
   Yin Deficiency with irritability and insomnia in the aftermath of a Warm febrile disease
4. Moistens the Lungs and Large Intestine
   Dry Lung coughs due to Yin Deficiency or consumption

Standard Dosage: 5-10g in decoction.
Cautions: It should be used with cautions for spleen and stomach deficiency, poor appetite, loose stool due to spleen deficiency because it is greasy and will produce indigestion.

Animal products are prohibited from use in the UK under the Medicines Act 1968 ch. 67 which restricts herbalists to the use of plant products only. It may be substituted with a variety of Blood and Yin tonics depending on the formula, or gelatin from other animal sources such as pigs or cows included as dietary advice, provided it is not supplied by the herbalist as part of the prescription.

Pinyin: Gui Ban  Chinese: 龟板
Pharmaceutical: Carapax et Plastrum Testudinis
English: Fresh-Water Turtle Plastron

Tastes: Sweet, salty, cold
Meridians Entered: Liver and Kidney

Actions & Indications:

1. Nourishes Yin and anchors Yang
   Yin Deficiency with Yang Rising with fever, night sweats, dizziness, tinnitus and steaming bone disorder
   Kidney and Liver Yin Deficiencies generating Internal Wind with facial spasms and tremors of the hands and feet
2. Benefits the Kidneys and strengthens the bones
   Kidney Yin Deficiency with soreness of the lower back, weakness in the legs, retarded skeletal development in children or failure of the fontanel to close
3. Nourishes the Blood, enriches Yin and stabilizes the Chong and Ren channels
   Red and white vaginal discharge or uterine bleeding
4. Cools the Blood and stops uterine bleeding
   Blood Heat causing excessive menstruation or uterine bleeding
5. Nourishes the Blood and tonifies the Heart
   Heart Yin and/or Blood Deficiencies with anxiety, insomnia and forgetfulness
6. Treats non-healing sores and ulcerations
   Non-healing sores and ulcerations

Standard Dosage: 10-15g in decoction.
Cautions: Animal products are prohibited from use in the UK under the Medicines Act 1968 ch. 67 which restricts herbalists to the use of plant products only. It is generally substituted with Mo Han Lian and Nu Zhen Zi or Xuan Shen.

Turtles may also act as viral reservoirs and have been proposed as the potential intermediate host for coronavirus between bats and humans (Liu et al., 2020).

Pinyin: Dan Cai  Chinese: 淡菜
Pharmaceutical: Mytilussiccus
English: Mussel

Tastes: Sweet, salt, warm
Meridians Entered: Liver and Kidney

Actions & Indications:

1. Tonify the Liver and Kidneys, replenishes Blood and Jing
   Weakness and thinness caused by consumptive disease
   Dizziness
   Leucorrhea
   Lower back pain
   Impotence
   Hematemesis
   Uterine bleeding
   Night sweating
2. Dissipate goiter and tumor
   Abdominal mass
   Goiter
   Tumours

Standard Dosage: 15-30g in decoction.

Pinyin: Tong Bian  Chinese: 童便
Pharmaceutical: Infantalis Urina
Taxonomy: Homo sapiens
English: Child's Urine

Tastes: Salty, cold
Meridians Entered: Heart, Lung, Bladder and Kidney

Actions & Indications:

1. Nourishes Yin and lowers Fire
   Steaming bone fever
   Hemoptysis due to consumptive disease
2. stop bleeding and dissipates Blood Stasis
   Nose bleed
   Hematemesis
   Traumatic injury
   Pain due to blood stasis
   Postpartum anemic fainting

Standard Dosage: Approx 150ml drunk fresh or in decoction.
Cautions: It has been suggested that this was used as a possible clean source of water in the past but today is rarely used, except amongst some yoga practitioners who drink their own. It could be easily substituted with Han Lian Cao or Sheng Di Huang that also nourish the Yin and stop bleeding.