Snow pig oil, as a traditional Chinese medicine, has many benefits. Let's explore the benefits and functions of snow pig oil and its growth environment together.
【Source of Medicinal Material】 Snow pig oil is the fat of animals in the squirrel family, including Himalayan marmots, gray marmots, steppe marmots, and long-tailed marmots.
【Properties and Channels】 Snow pig oil tastes spicy and has a warm nature. It belongs to the spleen channel. "Sichuan Materia Medica": "Spicy, warm, non-toxic." "Sichuan Materia Medica": "Enters the spleen channel."
【Benefits and Functions of Snow Pig Oil】
Traditional Chinese medicine believes that snow pig oil has the effect of dispelling wind, removing dampness, detoxifying, and relieving itching. It is mainly used to treat rheumatic swelling and pain, damp-heat sores, skin ulcers, boils, and tinea.
1. "Manual of Traditional Tibetan Medicine for Plateau Herbal Treatment": "Used for treating rheumatic swelling and pain, itchy rashes, and persistent ulcers."
2. "Sichuan Materia Medica" 1960 edition: "It dispels wind and treats sores. It is used to treat itchy foot sores, rheumatic swelling and pain, persistent ulcers, and damp-heat sores."
3. "Chinese Medicinal Animal Records": "It has the effect of dispelling wind, removing dampness, and detoxifying. It is mainly used to treat rheumatic swelling and pain, skin ulcers, boils, and damp-heat sores."
4. "Yi Medicine Animal Medicine": "Mainly used to treat rheumatic pain, hand and foot spasms. It warms the channels, dispels cold, removes dampness, promotes blood circulation, and relieves swelling and pain."
The bones (snow pig bones) and meat (snow pig meat) of marmots are also used as medicine, details can be found in specific articles.
【Growth Environment】
1. Himalayan Marmot
It inhabits high mountain grasslands at altitudes of 2800-5000m. They live in caves and prefer to live in groups. They are active during the day and hibernate in winter. They mainly eat herbaceous plants and the tender branches and leaves of shrubs. They are distributed in Gansu, Qinghai, Sichuan, Yunnan, Tibet, and other places.
2. Gray Marmot
It inhabits grasslands and meadows at altitudes of 2500-3500m. They prefer moist environments and live in caves. The entrance of the cave is a marmot mound. They feed on plants. They are only distributed in the northern part of Xinjiang.
3. Steppe Marmot
It inhabits the edge areas where the terrain is undulating and the grassland meets the desert. They live in groups. The caves are mostly built on high ground or slopes, with mounds outside the entrance. They feed on grass roots and seeds. They are distributed in the eastern part of Inner Mongolia and the northern part of Xinjiang.
4. Long-tailed Marmot
This species is one of the representative species in the high mountain grassland zone of Central Asia. It inhabits high mountain meadows and areas with dense grass. They live in caves and also like to live in groups.
There are typical marmot mounds near the entrance of the cave. They mainly feed on plants from the Cyperaceae and Poaceae families. They are distributed in the western and southern parts of Xinjiang.
【Applications of Snow Pig Oil in Complementary Formulas】
1. Used to treat rheumatic pain: Mix snow pig oil with white wine for consumption.
2. Used to treat itchy rashes: Apply snow pig oil mixed with small flowering buttercup.
3. Used to treat tinea: Apply snow pig oil mixed with blue anemone.
4. Used to treat persistent ulcers: Grind tortoise shell, mountain snail shell, and light powder into fine powder, mix evenly, and apply with snow pig oil.
5. Used to treat itchy foot sores: Grind male fern and borneol into fine powder, mix evenly, and apply with snow pig oil.
