A strong "zi-yin jiang-huo" (enrich yin and descend fire) formula from Zhu Danxi's Yuan-dynasty "Danxi's Experiential Therapy", considered one of the most "forceful" classical yin-tonics.
Cultural reference - how this formula has been discussed in Chinese medical tradition. Not medical advice.
Background & origin
Compiled by Zhu Danxi (朱丹溪) in his Yuan-dynasty "Danxi's Experiential Therapy" (《丹溪心法》, 1347) as a "strong force" yin-tonic. Danxi is famous in TCM history for his doctrine of "yang is always in excess, yin is always in deficit" (阳常有余, 阴常不足), and Da Bu Yin Wan is the most representative prescription of that doctrine. In Japan, 大補陰丸 (だいほいんがん / Daihoin-gan) is sold by Kracie (クラシエ) and other makers as the standard "strong yin-deficiency" formula. In Korea, it appears as 대보음환 in the Kyungdong (경동) hanbang line. The formula is, in short, the heaviest-duty classical "yin-tonic + fire-drain" in the canon.
From the source text
This page is cultural documentation, not medical advice.
From the source text · 《丹溪心法》卷三·补损·大补阴丸
Classical text
大补阴丸：黄柏（炒褐色）、知母（酒浸炒）各四两，熟地黄（酒蒸）、龟板（酥炙）各六两。为末，猪脊髓蜜丸，服七十丸，空心盐白汤下。
Modern Chinese rendering
大补阴丸以熟地黄、龟板为君,滋阴填精、壮水制火;黄柏、知母为臣,清热泻火、存阴润燥,佐以猪脊髓滋阴益髓、蜂蜜甘缓调和。全方滋阴与清热并重,标本兼治,治"阴虚火旺"之骨蒸潮热、盗汗遗精、咳嗽咯血、烦热易饥、足膝疼热、舌红少苔、尺脉数而有力。本方命名"大补阴"而非"大补肾",意在强调"阴"作为万物生长之本的全面滋养,而非局限于补肾一脏。
Editorial translation
Dà Bǔ Yīn Wán uses Shú Dì Huáng and Guī Bǎn as sovereigns to nourish yin, fill essence, strengthen water and control fire; Huáng Bǎi and Zhī Mǔ as ministers to clear heat, drain fire, preserve yin and moisten dryness; with Pígǔ Jǐ Suǐ (pig spine marrow) to nourish yin and supplement marrow, and honey as a sweet moderating harmonizer. The formula equally weights yin-nourishing and heat-clearing, addressing both the branch and the root, and is used for the "yin deficiency with fire effulgence" pattern: tidal fever from bone-steaming, night sweats, seminal emission, cough with blood, irritability with easy hunger, painful heat in the knees and feet, a red tongue with little coating, and a rapid forceful chi pulse. The name "Dà Bǔ Yīn" (Great Yin-Supplementing), rather than "Great Kidney-Supplementing", emphasizes "yin" as the comprehensive generative basis of all growth, not narrowly restricted to tonifying a single organ.
In tradition
In TCM framing, traditionally used in the context of "yin deficiency with strong fire", pronounced night sweats, a sensation of heat in the palms and soles, lower-back and knee soreness, occasional tinnitus, light-headedness, hot flushes, a rapid pulse, and a red tongue with little coating. The formula's distinction from Zhi Bai Di Huang Wan is its use of "animal-derivative" yin-essence tonics (tortoise plastron) and stronger fire-draining herbs (Phellodendron, Anemarrhena), making it the "heavier-duty" version. In Japan, 大補陰丸 (Daihoin-gan) is sold by Kracie (クラシエ) and other makers as the standard OTC "strong yin-deficiency with fire" formula. In Korea, it is sold as 대보음환 (Daebo-eum-hwan) by Kyungdong (경동).
Formula composition
Monarch2
- Rehmannia root, cooked (Shú Dì Huáng / 熟地黄) - principal, nourishes yin, fills essence
- Tortoise plastron (Guī Bǎn / 龟板) - principal, nourishes yin, subdues yang
Minister2
- Phellodendron bark (Huáng Bǎi / 黄柏) - minister, drains fire, especially lower-burner
- Anemarrhena rhizome (Zhī Mǔ / 知母) - minister, clears heat, nourishes yin
Assistant1
- Pig spine marrow (Zhū Jǐ Suǐ / 猪脊髓) - assistant, nourishes yin, supplements marrow
Envoy1
- Honey (Fēng Mì / 蜂蜜) - harmonizes, moderates the bitter-cold nature
International availability
Taiwan & Hong Kong
- 順天堂OTC大補陰丸Da Bu Yin Wan
Cautions & context
- A "bitter-cold + cloying" formula with tortoise plastron and cooked Rehmannia, long-term daily use is considered inappropriate in TCM framing; it is intended for short-to-medium courses of clearly "yin-deficiency with strong fire" presentations.
- People with what TCM describes as "spleen yang deficiency" (loose stools, cold limbs, fatigue) or "dampness" (heavy limbs, sticky tongue coating) are typically advised to avoid it.
- Not appropriate during a common cold, fever, or active digestive upset in TCM framing, the formula is tonifying and cloying.
- Persistent night sweats, hot flushes, or low-back soreness should be evaluated by a clinician, TCM tonics are not a substitute for evaluation of underlying cardiac, endocrine, or infectious causes.
Related formulas
Other formulas from this text· "Danxi's Mastery of Medicine"
Other formulas by this contributor· Zhu Danxi
Related concerns
Concern · stress
Stress & Mood
Everyday tension, low mood, irritability, the sense of being "wound up but tired". The cluster of complaints that brings many Chinese adults to the family 中成药 drawer before they ever see a doctor.
Concern · immune
Immune Support
The everyday language of "wanting to stay well", a sense of being run down, the change of seasons, occasional mouth ulcers, the slow recovery after a cold.
Editorial note
Compiled from "Danxi's Mastery of Medicine" (1347).
Last reviewed: July 18, 2026
Three layers of evidence
Classical source
≈ 700 years · "Danxi's Mastery of Medicine" (1347)
Pharmacopoeia indication
"Nourish yin and downbear fire. Used for yin deficiency with excess fire: tidal fever, night sweats, cough with bloody sputum, tinnitus, and seminal emission."
Modern research status
As of 2026-07-18, a PubMed search using the formula name and the Latin / Korean / Japanese transliterations together with "systematic review" and "meta-analysis" did not identify a dedicated systematic review for this formula. Any clinical evidence that does exist is fragmented across small individual trials or covered in broad herbal-medicine umbrella reviews, which do not allow a per-formula evidence assessment; the absence of a dedicated SR is itself the relevant editorial fact here.
References
References reviewed on July 18, 2026 · PubMed search on 2026-07-18
- 01ClassicalZhū Zhènhēng (朱震亨, styled Yànxiū 彦修, self-styled Dān Xī 丹溪, 1281–1358), 《丹溪心法》 (Dān Xī Xīn Fǎ / Danxi's Mastery of Medicine), compiled by his disciples around 1347, vol. 3 (卷三), the "tonic-deficiency" (补损) section, the entry for Dà Bǔ Yīn Wán (大补阴丸), the foundational "nourish yin and descend fire" (滋阴降火) representative formula in TCM, embodying Zhu Danxi's signature "yang is always in excess, yin is always insufficient" (阳常有余, 阴常不足) thesis through the use of "yin-animal" (龟板) and "fire-draining" (黄柏/知母) herbs; the present-day 中成药 form is the modern industrial production of the classical pig-spine-marrow-and-honey pill formula.
- 02TextbookDuan Fuqin (段富津) et al. (eds.), 《方剂学》 (Fāngjìxué / Science of Formulas), 2nd edition, Shanghai Scientific and Technical Publishers, 2011, the standard modern university-level formula textbook in mainland China, with Dà Bǔ Yīn Wán analysed in the "yin-tonifying formulas" (补阴剂) chapter as the representative "nourish yin and descend fire" formula, the canonical entry for "yin deficiency with fire effulgence" (阴虚火旺).
- 03PharmacopoeiaPharmacopoeia Commission of the PRC, 《中华人民共和国药典》 2020 edition, vol. 1 (Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó Yàodiǎn, Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China, 2020 ed., vol. 1), China Medical Science Press, 2020, the official national monograph for Dà Bǔ Yīn Wán (丸), "functional indication" reads "nourish yin and downbear fire, used for yin deficiency with excess fire: tidal fever, night sweats, cough with bloody sputum, tinnitus, and seminal emission".