QING DAI SAN - Indigo Powder

Also known as: Qing Dai San, Indigo Powder.

Three ingredients. Gypsum, Amur cork bark and Chinese indigo, ground to a powder.

Powders are the oldest form in Chinese dermatology and they do something a cream cannot: they sit on a wet surface and dry it without sealing it. Nothing to trap moisture underneath.

What's doing the work

• Qing Dai as Polygonum tinctorium leaf and stem extract, the plant Qing Dai is prepared from.
• Huang Bai (Phellodendron amurense) clears damp-heat.
• Shi Gao (calcium sulfate, gypsum) is the drying mineral and the bulk of it.

How to use

Two ways. Sprinkle it lightly and directly onto skin that is eroded or slightly weepy. Or, where a surface has crusted over, mix it with sesame oil into a paste and apply that. Two to three times a day.

Pairs well with

Once the surface has dried and closed, move to a cream. Shi Zhen Shui Gao or Zi Cao Shui Gao depending on whether heat or dryness is leading.

Full ingredients

Calcium Sulfate, Phellodendron Amurense (Amur Cork) Bark Extract, Polygonum Tinctorium (Chinese Indigo) Leaf/Stem Extract.

Ingredients as published by Dermatology M. Check the panel on the item you receive.

Good to know

• 5g.
• May contain traces of nuts or seeds.
• Deep blue pigment. It stains everything, and mixed with oil it stains more.
• Best used under the guidance of a qualified Chinese herbalist.
• Patch test first. For external use only. Keep out of reach of children.

Dermatology M, formulated by Dr Mazin Al-Khafaji. Selected and reviewed by Dr. Stacee Munroe, OMD, L.Ac. Cosmetic use only. Not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.