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Kingdom: Mineral

Use: Medicinal

Category: External-use agents / Toxin-attacking, worm-killing, and itch-relieving agents

Properties: Acrid, bitter, and astringent; warm; toxic.

Channel entry: Liver, spleen, lung, bladder, pericardium, liver channels.*

Actions and indications:

• Resolves toxin and heals sores; dries dampness and kills worms: Burns and scalds; welling- and flat-abscesses; cinnabar toxin (dān dú); ruptured scrofula and phlegm nodes; malign sores; scab (jiè) and lichen (xiǎn); damp sores; corns, warts, and moles.
• Stanches bleeding: Bleeding from external injury.

Dosage and method: Topical: Grind and apply mixed. Oral: Use in pills, powders, or drink in water solution.

Product description: Lime, made by calcining limestone, takes the form of powder compacted into small lumps with the appearance of earth or stone. Distinction is made between Shēng shí huī (生石灰 Calx Viva, quicklime), unslaked lime, and Shú shí huī (熟石灰 Calx Exstincta, slaked lime), slaked lime, the latter differing from the former by having been exposed to water or air. Unslaked lime, which includes Fēng huà shí huī (风化石灰 Calcis Efflorescentia, weathered lime) and shuǐ shí huī (Calx Hydrata, hydrated lime)hydrated lime 水石灰, is white or gray, and opaque and comes in irregular lumps. Slaked lime takes form of white or gray powder with occasional lumps. Unslaked lime is chiefly composed of CaO (calcium oxide), and after slaking, it becomes Ca(OH)₂ (calcium hydroxide). After further long exposure to air, it becomes old lime Chén shí huī (陈石灰 Calx Veta, old lime), which contains both Ca(OH)₂ and CaCO₃ (calcium carbonate). Any form of lime usually also contains magnesium, iron, and aluminum.

Production area: Most parts of China.

Etymology: The name shí hú 石灰, literally stone ash, reflects the fact that this is (lime)stone that has been calcined.

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