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BEIJING – Villagers in central China dug up a ton of dinosaur bones and boiled them in soup or ground them into powder for traditional medicine, believing they were from flying dragons and had healing powers.
Until last year, the fossils were being sold in Henan province as “dragon bones” at about 4 yuan (50 cents) per kilogram (2.2 pounds), scientist Dong Zhiming told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
Dong, a professor with the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said when the villagers found out the bones were from dinosaurs they donated 200 kilograms (440 pounds) to him and his colleagues for research.
“They had believed that the ‘dragon bones’ were from the dragons flying in the sky,” he said.
The calcium-rich bones were sometimes boiled with other ingredients and fed to children as a treatment for dizziness and leg cramps. Other times they were ground up and made into a paste that was applied directly to fractures and other injuries, he said.
The practice had been going on for at least two decades, he said.
Dong was among a team of scientists who recently excavated in Henan’s Ruyang County an 60-foot-long plant-eating dinosaur, which lived 85 million to 100 million years ago. Local officials held a news conference Tuesday, showing off the find to the public for the first time.
Another two dinosaur fossils were being excavated in the area, which is rich in fossilized dinosaur eggs, Dong said.
My acupuncturist has been giving me special formulas with Dragon Bone (Longgu) as a predominant ingredient. Nothing has stabilized me better. -A
From Ron Teeguarden’s Herbal website (http://www.yahwehsaliveandwell.com/singleherblist.html):
Dragon Bone is a Spirit Stabilizing substance. It calms the Liver and suppresses hyperactivity of Liver Yang. This results in a strong calming effect which can be described as both sedating and tranquilizing. Dragon bone has a profound calming effect on the heart, being one of the primary natural substances known for calming excitability and palpitation.
Dragon bone is an extremely useful therapeutic substance. Dragon bone, being a mineral, is rich in calcium and other trace minerals that can benefit the body in many ways. It is used to relieve irritability, chronic and acute anger, tension and dizziness caused by hyperactivity of Yang. Dragon Bone has wonderful benefits for those experiencing mental and emotional agitation, palpitations, insomnia and chronic or acute anxiety. In Chinese medicine, it is even used for epilepsy induced by terror and for manic behavior.
Dragon bone is not used by itself, but always in combination with other herbs. If the symptoms are the result of excessive yang activity, combining with Oyster Shell and Haliotis will be effective. If the problems are due to yin deficiency, Dragon Bone is combined with herbs like Zizyphus, Polygonum stem and Biota. If the problem is due to Blood deficiency, it is combined with prepared Rehmannia, White Peony and Tang Kuei. It is combined with Ginseng, Poria, Licorice, Astragalus and Polygala in cases of Heart Qi deficiency.
Dragon Bone can be used as a very effective astringent herb. It is often used in formulas for seminal emission, leukorrhagia, excessive perspiration due to weakness and excessive uterine bleeding. It is often found in formulas designed to enhance male sexual performance. In this usage, it has both a calming effect on the mind, preventing premature ejaculation, and it has the astringent action, literally locking in the semen and thus further preventing premature ejaculation. Its astringent action is also useful for problems like excessive perspiring, chronic diarrhea, leukorrhea and frequent urination. Furthermore, it is extremely effective at restraining night sweats in weakened individuals, especially when taken with Jing and Qi tonic herbs such as Codonopsis, Gynostemma, Ganoderma, Dioscorea and Astragalus.
The Daoists often used Dragon Bone at the initial stages of their training in order to calm the mind so that they could make quick progress in their meditation practices. Since agitation was considered to be anathema to a Taoist, Dragon Bone provided a powerful tool in gaining a grip on ones emotions. Of course, the Taoists combined the consumption of Spirit Stabilizing herbs with mind training, and the results were quick and profound.
Dragon Bones calming effect can be just as useful in our modern, generally hectic society. In fact, Dragon Bone is one of the most useful and effective substances in Chinese herbalism. It is an incredible tool that I have seen help thousands of Americans. Anyone experiencing stress and agitation can benefit from the calming, stabilizing effect of Dragon Bone. This rich source of minerals has excellent relaxing effects on the nerves and muscles. It helps relieve muscular spasms associated with chronic or acute tension.
Formulations containing Dragon Bone are among the most popular in the current Japanese herbal system, known as Kampo. If you suffer from insomnia, restlessness, apprehension, palpitations, anxiety, irritability, anger, frustration, tension, fear, or any of the symptoms that require an astringent, find a good Dragon Bone product. Dragon Bone changes peoples lives. And its extremely safe.
More Information…
Products Featuring This Herb:
Strong Bones
Profound Essence
Will Power
Bupleurum and Dragon Bone Combination
More Information:
Other Common Names
Dragon BonePage Number In Ancient Wisdom of the Chinese Tonic Herbs
207Pharmaceutical Latin
Os DraconisPinyin
Long GuTreasures
Spirit stabilizerTreasure Rating
***1/2Atmospheric Energy
NeutralTaste
Sweet, AstringentOrgan Meridian Systems
Heart, Liver, Kidney, Large IntestinePart Used and Form
Fossilized bones of prehistoric animals such as mastodon, hairy rhinoceros, hipparion, deer, oxen, etc. Large or small chunks of white mineralized vertebral or extremities bone. Dragon’s Teeth, which are the fossilized teeth of these animals, are also used with similar, though not identical function.I’m brewing up a batch of a dragon bone tonic based on a Ron Teeguarden formula: Poria, Codonopsis, Jujube date, Oyster shell, Cinnamon, Dragon Bone in 2/3rds brandy and 1/3rd 100 proof Vodka. I recently discovered that a friend of mine is an amateur paleontologist and had a nice collection of bones and fragments from a dig in South Dakota (US). He gave me a few small pieces that were worthless to him. The bones are approximately 70 million years old. I can report back on its effects when I decant this fall.
I was given some ‘dragon bone wine’ by a martial artist friend in Chicago awhile back. Drank an ounce or so before going on long runs in the dead of winter. Kept a very pleasant and deep warmth while outdoors in below zeroF temps. If you’re curious about it, heed Ron’s note about quality. I’ve seen cow and dog bone attempting to be passed off as dragon bone.
-MichaelL
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