Jiuzhi Niuru Yin: A Dietary-Therapy Drink for Dysphagia and Regurgitation

Ye-ge (dysphagia) and fan-wei (regurgitation) are TCM disease names. Ye-ge presents as obstruction or pain on swallowing, while fan-wei presents as immediate vomiting after eating; the two often occur together. In modern medicine, reflux esophagitis, esophageal stricture, esophageal ulcer, esophageal cancer, cardiac cancer, and cardiac spasm all fall within the TCM category of ye-ge fan-wei.

TCM has several symptomatic treatments for ye-ge fan-wei; besides medicinals, there are dietary therapies, of which jiuzhi niuru yin is a representative formula. Leek juice is pressed from Chinese chives, and niuru is cow's milk—both are common foods. However, the ancient jiuzhi niuru yin was not a single formula; historically, two formulas both bore the name jiuzhi niuru yin.

The first is the jiuzhi niuru yin from Yifang KaO (A Textual Study of Medical Formulas). It uses equal parts of leek juice and cow's milk, mixed well, and taken from time to time. Its action is to invigorate blood and remove stasis, nourish blood and moisten dryness. It is indicated for dead blood in the stomach duct, dryness and withering, pain on swallowing, and regurgitation with constipation. By this description, the condition closely resembles the clinical symptoms of esophageal cancer. Such patients can usually take only fluids; in daily life we also use milk to nourish them, but adding leek juice to the milk not only provides richer nutrition but also relieves clinical symptoms. Some patients whose disease has not reached the terminal stage have even recovered part of a normal diet after using jiuzhi niuru yin.

The second formula named jiuzhi niuru yin comes from Wenre Jingjie (Explanation of Warm-Heat Diseases). Its composition is: leek juice 150 ml, fresh cow's milk 180 ml, lotus-root juice 200 ml, ginger juice 10 drops, pear juice 200 ml, and radish juice (note: radish juice is pressed from fresh daikon) 200 ml. Mix all the liquids and bring to a boil; divide into three doses and take warm daily. This formula resolves stasis and opens the esophagus, descends counterflow and stops vomiting. It is indicated for stasis in the stomach with ye-ge fan-wei. This formula is slightly more complex than the first, but again uses only foodstuffs, so it too is a dietary-therapy formula; it can also relieve the symptoms of ye-ge fan-wei.

Dietary therapy cannot cure major diseases such as esophageal and cardiac cancer, but it can serve as an adjunctive treatment to improve the patient's quality of life and is worth trying.