Cold, warm and hot Dit Da Jow liniment are three popular properties sold today and we must not forget neutral properties. Depending on your injury or whether it just happened or it is considered chronic, should determine which type of liniment to purchase. If no injury is involved and you are using a liniment for training then this will also determine which liniment property to choose.
Cold Property Jows are used only when a fresh injury occurs to minimize swelling, controlling pain and preventing Qi and blood stagnation. A Jow like Di Guo Die Da Yao which is also called the Imperial Cold Jow is a cold property Jow and should be in any martial arts school or MMA gym and applied immediately after an injury. A cold property Jow is only used for the first 24 to 48 hours then you should switch to a neutral or mildly warm Jow.
Our Authentic Dit Da Jow that you might have read about on our main page is a neutral to mildly warm liniment. This liniment can be used when an injury occurs with or without swelling. As most of you know when a fresh injury like a sprained ankle for example occurs,there is swelling and it is always recommended to apply ice as the cold will keep the swelling down and help with the pain. If something hot is placed on the injury then you will increase the swelling due to to much blood flowing to the injured area and it can not flow property due to the damaged blood vessels.
To better understand the sequence of healing an injury lets go through the three stages of trauma.
The Stages of Trauma
The First Stage of Trauma is the most distinct and is marked by the three chief manifestations of pain, heat, and swelling. Blood stasis and toxin are beginning to form. All traumatic injury involves the first stage of trauma, which can last anywhere from a few hours up to two weeks, depending on the type and severity of injury.
Heat usually manifests as localized redness, but in the absence of redness, heat might also be experienced by the patient as the sensation of heat at the site of the injury, or the area may hot to the touch. In minor injuries,the heat may not be detectable, but it is always present. The treatment strategy is to clear heat and resolve toxin, dispel stasis, and relieve pain. The formulas used to treat stage one trauma are the coldest formulas of
the three stages; they emphasize eliminating heat-toxin while helping the body move out damaged tissue.
The Second Stage of Trauma is in phase when the initial inflammation first subsides. What remains is blood stasis combined with congestion of qi and fluids in the local area. This congestion causes stiffness and pain.The damaged tissue weakens the defense against the invasion of external pathogens such as wind and damp.
Swelling may remain a factor, especially if treatment during the first stage was neglected, insufficient, or if the damage was severe. The treatment strategy for the second stage of trauma is similar to the first stage, but clearing heat becomes secondary to moving blood and dispelling stasis. Herbs are added to dispel wind and damp so that these pathogenic factors do not become lodged in the area, leading to chronic bi syndrome.
The Third Stage of Trauma is traditionally marked by the need to rebuild tissue and dispel exogenous pathogens that may have transformed into wind-cold-damp bi syndrome. There is often residual blood stasis that contributes to the lingering pain. As a result, there is inevitable overlap between the second and third stage of trauma formulas. Both should move blood, dispel stasis, and relieve pain, but in the second stage, heat may still be a minor factor, and the formulas are cooling or neutral. Third stage trauma formulas are the warmest of the formulas that treat trauma; they often contain kidney-supplementing herbs to stimulate the regeneration of ligaments, bones, and cartilage.
The most important thing to remember is lingering heat in the injured area should be cleared before applying a warm- hot property formula.
List of Cold Warm and Hot Dit Da Jow Liniment Properties
Di Guo Die Da Yao – Cold
Shaolin Dit Da Jow– Neutral to Slightly Warm
Shaolin Iron Palm– Neutral to Slightly Warm
Hung Ga Kuen Dit Da Jow– Neutral to Slightly Warm
Yang Shang Tie Da Yao– Warm
Nine Tiger Jow– Warm
Ku Yu Cheung– Warm
Tie Ba Zhang Jow – Warm
Bak Fu Pai– Warm
Leung Jan Dit Da Jow -Warm
Wing Chun Dit Da Jow– Hot
Zheng Gu Shui– Hot
Rule of Thumb
Use cold or neutral to slightly warm liniment immediately after a injury when swelling or blood stagnation occurs.
Use Warm liniment when there is no swelling or it has dissipated. Can be very helpful for chronic symptoms.
Use Hot liniment for training or loosening up the joints and muscles WHEN no injury is involved.
These are general guidelines to be followed as with anything each individual might benefit differently depending on his or hers specific situation.
Some schools and customers keep on hand several different property Jows so they prepared if an injury occurs or help with conditioning during training.