Dit Da Jow question

[fidon]

Hi, this is a question for all those who have made their own dit da jow before.
I have finished making a Jow using western herbs instead of chinese herbs, and i was just wondering if Jow's in general should feel warm after applying to the hands/arms etc? I know stuff like Zheng Gu Shui feels warm after applying it, but does dit da that you guys make at home feel any different?

Also another question, with that first batch i made i added some Peppermint and wintergreen oil, but it doesn't seem to mix properly, i have to actually shake it up before using it, then the jow turns to a brown milkshake color...anyway after an hour or so the oil raises to the top again, does anyone know how i can get it to mix together like in the store bought jow?

[David Jamieson]

oil and alcohol do not mix, just like oil and water do not mix. the properties of each prevents this from occuring.

Zheng Gui Zhui feels warm because it has a lot of camphor in it.

I have made my own jow and it works great! No camphor in it and no oils, just alcohol and herbs and resins (myrrh, dragonsblood) if in powder form, they will remain in powder form in the liquid of the jow.

The jow I made is strictly a bruise medicine and not for bone setting. I usually give it a shake before applying it just to get the resins equally distributed throughout the liquid.

cheers

[Grinding Hands]

I dont know if this will help but i was watching a cooking show and it says in order for a fat to mix with a liquid it needs a binder. I think it was a combination of protein and an acid to emulsify(SPELLING) I.e. mayonaise. That dont sound too helpful on injuries. Then again ive seen bruise powders that you mix with eggs. Dit-dar-mayo!

How did you get this recipe. Did you make it up yourself?

[fidon]

Yeah, i got the recipe through that John Crescione's wing chun info page on dit da jows, he had a recipe on both chinese and western or "American Dit da", lol... i dont think i'll be doing an mayo mix. So basically the Jows that you guys have made dont necessarily have to feel warm when applied?

[anton]

One way to "mix" oil and water is to add a detergent or soap. The soap molecules have one end that binds to oil molecules and another end that binds to water.. that's why its so good at washing away greasy stains.

That's oil and water tho... but i have a feeing it may work with oil and alcohol too.

So you might want to experiment by putting a drop of some sort of herbal or organic soap/detergent in your dit da to bind the oil to the alcohol...

[fidon]

Nah, i dont think i'll go as far as putting soap into the jow, but i wonder how the commercial brands get their recipes to mix with the oils (eg: Peppermint, or Camphor oil)

[David Jamieson]

camphor is included in dry crystal form, and I haven't honestly heard of a jow that has peppermint in it.

heals bruises to a minty fresh taste! :D

binders do not really mix so much as they absorb of each component and encapsulate both components into the filler of the binder.


Anyway, they (dit da jow)are not magic potions. the speed up blood flow and through doing that, hematoma(internal damage manifested as a bruise) heals faster. One of the things that really speeds healing is the actual way you apply the jow for bruises.

For bone setting plasters and such, they speed the healing process and keep the wound(if any) clean.

By breaking up blood stasis and speeding flow of new blood to an affected area, healing takes place in a more rapid fashion. The body would heal itslef naturally, but the jows help to break up scar tissue under the surface with the agents that have efficacy to do so. The same results can be achieved with no medicine at all, but are more painful and time consuming to do. IE: massage with as much pressure as you can take in order to break up the scarring. Scarring is only blood feeding to the area and staying there. When you break up these nodules of red cells, the scar will recede or with a steady practice of breaking them down, permanent scarring can be avoided.

cheers