Xue Yu Tan (血余炭) — Carbonized Hair | TCM Herb Guide

At a Glance

• Herb: Xue Yu Tan
• Chinese name: 血余炭 (Xuè Yú Tàn)
• Latin name: Crinis Carbonisatus
• Nature: Neutral
• Taste: Bitter
• Meridian: Liver / Stomach / Kidney
• Category: Herbs that Stop Bleeding
• Introduction: Xue Yu Tan (血余炭), Crinis Carbonisatus, is human hair (血余, ‘remnant of blood’) that has been washed and carbonized. A classic hemostatic in TCM, it stops bleeding, promotes urination, and nourishes yin — reflecting the classical belief that hair is the ‘remnant of blood’ and carbonized hair returns to tonify the blood. Its carbon ash provides astringency, while amino acids and keratin degradation products in the char contribute to its hemostatic and tissue-repair properties.

Action

• Stops bleeding (astringes)
• Promotes urination
• Nourishes yin and blood mildly
• Resolves blood stasis (mild)

Clinical Application

• Various bleeding: hemoptysis, epistaxis, hematuria, hematochezia, uterine bleeding — combines with Bai Ji, San Qi, Ou Jie
• Hematuria with difficult urination — combines with Hua Shi, Bai Mao Gen
• Alopecia from blood deficiency (taken internally) — combines with He Shou Wu, Dang Gui
• Scalp conditions and hair loss (topical — original hair ash applied to scalp)
• Postpartum hemorrhage — combines with Zong Lu Tan, Yi Mu Cao

Precautions

• Dosage: 4.5–9 g in decoction; 1.5–3 g as powder
• Must use properly prepared and fully carbonized form — raw hair is not medicinal and has unpleasant odor
• Sourcing: traditionally from the patient’s own hair or family members — now commercially prepared
• Contraindicated in cold-stasis bleeding patterns when used alone
• Generally safe — minimal toxicity when properly prepared
• Strong smell during decoction — can be combined in capsules

Formula

• Hua Fa San (化发散): Xue Yu Tan alone — hemostatic powder applied to wounds or taken internally
• Xue Yu Tan + Hua Shi + Bai Mao Gen: standard hematuria combination
• Zhi Xue San (止血散): Xue Yu Tan, San Qi, Bai Ji — combined hemostatic powder for traumatic and internal bleeding

Combinations

• Carbonized Hair (血余炭) + Lotus Node (藕节) + Woolly Grass Rhizome (白茅根) → stop all heat-type bleeding; hematuria and hemoptysis
• Carbonized Hair (血余炭) + Pseudoginseng Root (三七) + Agrimony Herb (仙鹤草) → stop bleeding, dissolve stasis; internal bleeding with concurrent blood stasis

Pharmacological Effects

• Hemostatic
  • charcoal form promotes coagulation and clot formation
• Diuretic
  • promotes urine output — unique dual action for hematuria
• Mild blood-activating
  • dissolves stasis while stopping bleeding
• anti-inflammatory; antibacterial; unique property: stops bleeding AND promotes urination — especially suited for hematuria

Classic Description

• Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing (《神农本草经》): ‘Governs the five types of urinary obstruction, barrier and obstruction with no passage, promotes urination, treats seizures in children, tetanus in adults, and has self-renewing transformative power.’
• Ben Cao Gang Mu (《本草纲目》): ‘Hair is the surplus of blood; therefore it can treat blood diseases, supplement yin, treat fright epilepsy, and eliminate blood from the Heart orifice.’
• Ming Yi Bie Lu (《名医别录》): ‘Combined with egg yolk and cooked down to liquid, treats all febrile diseases with fright in children.’
• Ben Cao Bei Yao (《本草备要》): ‘Dissolves stasis and stops bleeding; supplements yin and promotes urination.’