🌿 Folk Prescriptions

Alopecia
Alopecia is a common skin disease characterized by sudden or gradual patchy hair loss. Modern medicine believes this condition is related to nervous system dysfunction and immune reactions. Excessive mental labor, long-term mental anxiety, worry, sorrow, and fear all fall within the scope of nervous system disorders and are the most common causes of alopecia. Therefore, patients with alopecia often experience symptoms of nervous excitement such as insomnia and irritability, or symptoms of nervous inhibition such as drowsiness and lethargy. Traditional Chinese medicine believes the following factors contribute to the onset of this condition:
First, dual deficiency of qi and blood: Hair is the surplus of blood; when qi is deficient, blood cannot be generated properly, and the hair roots fail to receive nourishment, leading to patchy hair loss.
Second, liver and kidney insufficiency: The liver stores blood, and the kidneys store essence; insufficient essence and blood deprive hair of its source for growth.
Third, blood stasis blocking the hair pores: Obstruction of blood flow prevents new blood from nourishing the hair, resulting in hair shedding.
Based on these considerations, the main folk and secret remedies for treating alopecia are as follows.
[Formula One]
Jin Lian Cao 20 grams (double the amount if fresh). Wash the herb with clean water, steam it for 20 minutes, cool after steaming, then soak in 200 ml of 75% alcohol (soak for 3 days in winter/spring, 2 days in summer/autumn), filter out residue to obtain a coffee-colored tincture, store in bottle for later use. Apply the solution to affected areas using cotton swabs, let dry, then gently tap the bald area with a seven-star needle, maintaining even technique—avoiding abrupt changes in speed or pressure—and ensuring the needle tip rises and falls flat without tilting to prevent skin laceration. Tap until the skin turns red. Initially, apply the solution three times daily (morning, noon, evening) and use the seven-star needle twice daily, without interruption. Once new hair growth becomes evident, reduce to two applications of the solution and one tapping session per day until fully recovered.
[Formula Two]
6 slices of fresh ginger, 15 grams of powdered raw Ban Xia. First rub the ginger on the affected area for 1 minute, pause briefly, then rub again for 1–2 minutes. Then mix the powdered Ban Xia with fragrant oil and apply to the area. Continue application for a period until hair regrows.
[Formula Three]
10 grams of Aloe Beetle, 100 ml of Bai Bu Wine. Soak and apply externally to the affected area.
[Formula Four]
15 grams of Tong Zi Nuts. Soak in boiling water, apply to the affected area 2–3 times daily.
[Formula Five]
Several pieces of old ginger. Soak in sorghum wine for 2–3 days, rub the area regularly. Effects may appear after half a month.
[Formula Six]
30 grams of fresh ginger, 5 grams of Luo Yang Hua, 60 ml of white wine. Soak the first two ingredients in wine for 5 days, then apply the medicated wine externally to the affected area once or twice daily.
[Formula Seven]
He Shou Wu, Dang Gui, and Bai Zi Ren, equal parts. Dry the herbs, grind into fine powder, sieve through 80–100 mesh sieve, mix with honey to form pills, each weighing 9 grams. Take 1 pill three times daily.
[Formula Eight]
10 branches of jujube tree twigs. Gather fresh tender jujube twigs, bundle them together, burn one end with fire so that oily juice drips from the other end; collect the juice in a clean bottle for storage. First wash hair with warm clean water, dry thoroughly, then repeatedly rub the bald area with ginger until skin reddens, then apply the jujube twig juice to the area.
Apply 3–4 times daily; hair growth may appear within about one week, with noticeable results after a month.
[Formula Nine]
50 ml of good vinegar, 1 piece of ink. Grind the ink into a thin paste with vinegar, apply to the affected area with a brush, twice daily.
[Formula Ten]
3 centipedes, 90 grams of tea oil. Soak the centipedes in tea oil for 4–5 days, filter the oil and store for later use.
Apply externally to the affected area three times daily.
[Formula Eleven]
32 grams of fresh Cypress Leaf, 100 ml of 75% alcohol. Soak the fresh cypress leaves in alcohol for 7 days, store for later use. Dip a cotton ball in the solution and wipe the affected area, three times daily. Generally effective after 2–3 months.
[Formula Twelve]
50–100 grams of fresh Bone Breaker. Cut into thin slices and keep ready. Use the sliced herb dipped in salt to rub the affected area, three times daily.
[Formula Thirteen]
500 grams of Poria. Dry the Poria, grind into fine powder, store in a bottle. Take 6 grams each time, twice daily, or take 10 grams before bedtime with warm water.
[Formula Fourteen]
120 grams of Sand Pepper. Soak the herb in wine, apply daily in a sealed room.
[Formula Fifteen]
Various amounts of Cypress Leaf. Dry under shade, grind into powder, mix with sesame oil and apply.
[Formula Sixteen]
15 grams each of Black Aconite Root, Man Jing Zi, and Bai Zi Ren. Grind all herbs into fine powder, mix with black chicken fat, crush and blend evenly, seal in a porcelain dish for 100 days, then apply to the bald area.
[Formula Seventeen]
30 grams each of fresh ginger slices and ginseng. First dry the ginger peel, then coarsely grind with ginseng. Use a fresh ginger slice to dip the powder and rub onto the bald area.
[Formula Eighteen]
1 bat, 15 grams of stone lotus root. Dry both herbs, grind into fine powder, mix with sesame oil and apply to the affected area.
[Formula Nineteen]
30 grams of walnut, 20 grams of He Shou Wu, 5 grams of Chuan Xiong. Crush the herbs, steep in boiling water, drink as tea.
[Formula Twenty]
Appropriate amount of Phoenix Tail Grass Root. Infuse in oil, apply the medicated oil to the affected area.
[Formula Twenty-One]
15 grams each of Teng Huang and Bone Breaker, appropriate amount of tung oil. Grind the first two herbs into fine powder, soak in tung oil overnight, prepare the medicated oil. First take a fresh ginger slice, cut into pieces, dip in the medicated oil, and vigorously rub the affected area, three times daily.
[Formula Twenty-Two]
130 ml of vinegar, 200 ml of hot water. Mix vinegar into hot water, use while hot to wash hair. Once daily, preferably regular washing.
[Formula Twenty-Three]
10 grams each of Huang Jing, Shu Di, and Bu Gu Zhi. Crush and steep in boiling water, drink.
[Formula Twenty-Four]
Egg Yolk Oil. Boil eggs with shells, remove yolks, place in an iron pan and fry until charred black. The yolk oil will be extracted; store for later use and apply to the affected area.
[Formula Twenty-Five]
30 grams of realgar, 60 grams of sulfur. Grind both herbs into fine powder, mix evenly, combine with pork fat and apply externally to the affected area, rubbing firmly to allow absorption. Replace the medicine once daily.
[Formula Twenty-Six]
150 grams of Mulberry White Bark. Boil and extract the decoction, remove residue, concentrate, store in a bottle, apply externally to the affected area several times daily.
[Formula Twenty-Seven]
100 grams of Chicken Gizzard Membrane (roasted and ground). Grind into extremely fine powder. Take 1.5 grams each time, three times daily, swallow with warm water before meals.
[Formula Twenty-Eight]
Appropriate amount of Sesame Flower. During the third lunar month in spring, gather fresh sesame flowers during full bloom, immediately pack them while still moist into a glass bottle, press tightly and seal the mouth securely, bury underground about 30 cm deep, cover with soil. After passing through summer, retrieve the bottle in September; the liquid inside is ready for use. Before applying, wash off scalp crusts with water, dry, then use gauze soaked in the liquid to wipe the affected area, once daily. Usually no more than 10 applications are needed to see results. New hair growth appears on the bald area 20–30 days after treatment.
<Folk Remedy>