Hua Rui Shi (Ophicalcite)

Chinese Herb Actions

Chinese Herb Dosage

• What is the typical dosage of Hua Rui Shi?

  Roughly 9–15 g in decoction, or 1–1.5 g of the fine calcined powder taken 2–3 times daily for internal hemostatic use — the smaller powder dose is the more distinctive, and more consistently cited, way the herb is actually used for active bleeding. For decoction, the mineral is broken/crushed before adding to the pot.

  Note: owner’s Five Branches notes (1–1.5 g powder) agree closely with Chinese materia medica references, but some English-language sources cite a wider powder range (roughly 1–9 g); this likely reflects different single-dose vs. total-daily-dose conventions rather than a true disagreement on typical use.

  Preparation: Hua Rui Shi is usually calcined (煖花荼石) before internal use — calcining reduces its sourness/astringency, makes it easier to grind fine, and is gentler on digestion than the raw mineral; raw Hua Rui Shi is also used, particularly for topical application. For external trauma or sores, a larger quantity of the powder is applied directly to the affected area.

  Source: owner’s Five Branches notes; cross-checked against Chinese and English-language materia medica dosage references. Reference only — not a prescription.

Chinese Herb Contraindications & Cautions

• Are there cautions for Hua Rui Shi?

  Hua Rui Shi is contraindicated in pregnancy, consistent across both the owner’s notes and Chinese/English materia medica references. It is also traditionally considered unsuitable when a patient does not have blood stasis — the owner’s notes flag this specifically as its defining contraindication, distinguishing it from broader-use hemostatics that treat bleeding regardless of stasis.

  • Weak constitution — sources note it is not well suited to patients with a weak constitution; its sour, astringent, mineral nature can be harder on digestion, especially in raw (uncalcined) form.
  • Professional use — as a mineral substance used for active bleeding, it is best used under a qualified TCM practitioner, with dosing and calcination/preparation handled professionally.

  Source: owner’s Five Branches notes; cross-checked against Chinese and English-language materia medica cautions. Reference note, not a safety guarantee.

Chinese Herb Toxicity & Overdose

• Low, as a processed mineral. Hua Rui Shi is composed mainly of calcium and magnesium carbonates (with trace magnesium silicate and other trace elements); no significant intrinsic toxicity is reported at traditional doses. A 2026 composition/safety analysis using multi-spectroscopy methods found that trace heavy-metal contaminants (copper, lead, arsenic, chromium) present in the raw mineral are reduced by standard processing — water-flying and calcination — to within safety limits, supporting that properly processed, market-standard material meets modern safety thresholds.

  Source: PMID 41494477 (composition, safety, and quality-control analysis of Ophicalcitum). Reference note, not a safety guarantee; sourcing/processing quality of the specific product matters.

Herb-Drug Interactions

• No well-established clinical herb–drug interactions specific to Hua Rui Shi are documented. Because its major component is calcium carbonate, the general precautions that apply to calcium-carbonate/antacid-type substances are a reasonable, precautionary consideration — e.g., spacing dosing from tetracycline or fluoroquinolone antibiotics, bisphosphonates, or thyroid hormone, where calcium can reduce absorption. This is extrapolated from its mineral composition, not a demonstrated clinical interaction for this herb specifically. (Flagged for practitioner confirmation.)

Western / Biomedical Research

Chinese Herb Clinical Studies & Research

Provided as research context — a summary of published biomedical study, not a therapeutic or medical claim.

• Is there modern research on Hua Rui Shi (Ophicalcitum)?

  Modern research is limited and concentrated in mineral composition and biomaterials engineering rather than clinical trials — no human clinical trials of Hua Rui Shi were located via a PubMed search.

  • Composition, safety, and quality control (2026) — multi-spectroscopy analysis (Raman, XRD, elemental) identified the mineral’s components (calcite, dolomite, serpentine, chlorite, magnetite) and showed that standard processing (water-flying and calcination) reduces trace copper, lead, arsenic, and chromium contamination to within safety limits; the authors developed rapid spectroscopic models for quality control of the processed drug.
  • Biomaterials-inspired hemostatic research (2025) — calcium-carbonate microspheres inspired by Ophicalcitum (optionally loaded with the flavonoid luteolin) were engineered and tested as a topical hemostatic/wound-healing material in preclinical work, showing good hemostatic performance without hemolytic or cytotoxic effects, independent of particle size. This is an engineering application inspired by the traditional mineral, not a study of the raw herb or its traditional oral use.

  Both studies are preclinical/materials-science in nature; they support plausibility and modern quality control but are not clinical evidence for the traditional oral or topical use of Hua Rui Shi in bleeding disorders.

  Sources: PMID 41494477, DOI 10.1016/j.saa.2025.127397 (composition/safety/QC); DOI 10.1021/acsabm.5c00925 (Ophicalcitum-inspired hemostatic microspheres, ACS Applied Bio Materials). Research context, not a therapeutic claim.

Chinese Herb Notes

• How is Hua Rui Shi different from San Qi, Pu Huang, and Jiang Xiang? What formulas is it in?

  All four are in the same “transform stasis & stop bleeding” subgroup and enter the Liver channel, but San Qi is regarded as the strongest of the four, with Hua Rui Shi specifically compared to it for bleeding secondary to blood stasis. Two of the four are warm (San Qi, Jiang Xiang) and two are neutral (Pu Huang, Hua Rui Shi).

  • San Qi — the broadest-use member; prized for stopping bleeding without causing blood stasis, for both internal and external bleeding.
  • Hua Rui Shi — compared directly with San Qi for bleeding secondary to blood stasis (San Qi considered the stronger of the two); best for vomiting of blood with stasis, and usable topically on sores.
  • Pu Huang — better for excess-type, blood-stagnation bleeding; also invigorates blood generally (uterine bleeding, chest/menstrual/post-partum pain).
  • Jiang Xiang — warm, adds qi-regulating and pain-relieving action; more associated with traumatic (Die Da) pain in the epigastrium/abdomen/chest.

  Key formula — Hua Xue Dan (化血丹, “Transform the Blood Elixir”): a formula attributed to the late-Qing/Republican-era physician Zhang Xichun, combining Hua Rui Shi with San Qi and Xue Yu Tan (carbonized human hair) to transform stasis and stop bleeding without damaging new blood — used for hemoptysis, hematemesis, epistaxis, hematuria, and blood in the stool. English-language sources also note Hua Rui Shi combined with Bai Ji for lung/stomach bleeding. (Traditional formula context, not treatment advice.)

  Source: owner’s Five Branches notes (Bensky-derived comparison table, Regulate Blood chapter); Chinese-language references on Hua Xue Dan and Zhang Xichun’s formula work.