Ox Gallstones – Are They Worth a Lot of Money?

Gallstones are hard crystalline masses that develop in the gallbladder or bile ducts as a result of bile pigments, calcium and cholesterol in digestive fluids.

They are an important ingredient of Chinese medicine. Reportedly, the pharmaceutical industry requires about 100 metric tons of gallstones for a variety of proprietary Chinese medicines each year.

High value

One of the most interesting things to come out of a recent Beef Central investigation into gall stones being harvested from abattoirs is the fact that these stones are actually worth a lot of money, especially if they’re a high quality. Brokers in Australia said the stones can be valued up to ten times their weight when retrieved at the abattoir, and prices are based on a variety of different parameters, including their size and quality.

The reason why these stones are so valuable is that they’re a form of bile, which is essential for your body to digest fats and other substances. Bile is produced by the liver, and it’s stored in your gall bladder.

When you eat, your body uses the bile to break down fats in your stomach and small intestines. The bile then travels through your digestive tract and reaches the duodenum.

However, your gallbladder, and the ducts that lead to it, can get blocked by a type of stone called cholelithiasis. This stone, or a collection of them, can block the flow of bile and cause pain in your stomach and other parts of your body.

According to a study by Dr. Thomas Stavropoulou, of the Institute of Health and Medical Sciences in Paris, France, gallstones are made up of bilirubin and can be divided into two types: crystal-like and pigment-based. The pigment-based stones are dark in color and can also contain bilirubin, but they’re not quite as common as the crystal-like ones.

These crystal-like stones can be shaped into a range of different sizes and shapes. Some of them look like river pebbles, while others can be shaped into a feather-like shape.

This is why they’re often used for traditional Chinese medicine making. In addition, the crystal-like stones are also a source of calcium.

These ox gallstones are a good value, and they can be exported to China. They’re in high demand as a precious Chinese herbal medicine, and the retail price can be as much as HK$19,000 for one tael.

Short supply

Ox gallstones have been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) for thousands of years. They contain pure calcium bilirubinate, an unconjugated form of the bile pigment bilirubin that is the principal pigment in bile. They have been used to treat a variety of diseases, including hyperpyrexia-induced infantile convulsions, hepatitis A and B, and oliguria.

Historically, ox gallstones were the most valuable of all medicines, and were often prescribed in conjunction with other herbal preparations. The most expensive ox gallstones, called Sheng Huang, were obtained from oxen raised in the central regions of China.

According to the ancient Chinese medical text Shen Nong’s Herbal Classic (c. 221-206 BCE), Sheng Huang was composed of granules that were similar to green beans and that had a sweet smell. These were collected from intrahepatic bile ducts, which were usually found in sick oxen.

These were then washed with water to remove blood clots, and then dried for two weeks in a well ventilated room at a temperature of 20 degrees Celsius. Then they were sold to buyers in hermetically sealed bags.

In TCM, ox gallstones were prescribed in combination with other herbs to treat a variety of hepatobiliary diseases, such as jaundice (Gu Dan). The main herb in this preparation was flavescent sophora root (Sophora flavescens; Ku Shen), which also had astringent and anti-inflammatory properties.

Another herb was rough gentian root (Gentiana scabra; Long Dan Cao). This was believed to be effective in promoting the expulsion of intestinal parasites, and it was often combined with flavescent sophora root to treat jaundice.

This herb was also believed to have astringent and anti-inflammatory properties that could heal hemorrhoids. It was also thought to have a mildly sedative effect on the nervous system, which helped with insomnia and relaxation.

Natural ox gallstones are in very high demand in the Chinese herbal medicine industry. However, there is only a minimal supply of these precious stones. This has led to the development of synthetic/ artificial ox gallstones that are produced by chemically or artificially cultured methods. These are used as an ingredient in a number of proprietary Chinese medicines, but they have no medicinal value comparable to natural ones.

Medicinal value

Ox gallstones are a valuable natural medicinal resource that has been used therapeutically in China for over two thousand years. In TCM, these calcium bilirubinate pigment stones are highly prized as a drug to treat and prevent a range of disorders including hyperpyrexia-induced infantile convulsions and hepatitis C.

These bilirubins have antipyretic, anticonvulsive and antihypertensive properties as well as a variety of bacterial growth inhibitors, inotropic effects on heart muscle, and astringent and emollient properties. These properties make them useful for treating a number of gastrointestinal diseases and other health conditions, such as hepatitis A, B, C, and fatty liver disease.

The use of ox gallstones for therapeutic purposes is documented in many texts, such as Shen Nong’s Herbal Classic (c. 221-206 BCE) and Tao Hong-Jing’s Records of Famous Physicians (c. 510 CE).

In TCM, ox bile has been known to cure a wide range of ailments including hepatitis, cholera, bronchitis, fever, pneumonia, pyogenic tonsillitis, and lumbago, among others. In addition, it was considered a powerful agent for preventing and reversing the development of chronic diseases in children such as hepatitis B or C, and scurvy.

However, natural ox gallstones are scarce in sufficient quantities and can only be obtained from abattoirs after slaughter. In order to overcome this shortage, artificial gallstones have been developed.

As a result, these gallstones have been added to many proprietary Chinese medicines as an additional ingredient to provide patients with the beneficial effects of ox bile. They can be purchased in China and have a retail price of US$65 per gram.

While there is a short supply of natural ox gallstones, the demand for these bilirubin pigment stones is great and has created an opportunity for the manufacture of synthetic ox gallstones. These artificial ox gallstones are manufactured based on chemical ingredients and are also cultured.

Although there are artificial ox gallstones available for sale in the United States, they have not been accepted as a substitute for natural ox gallstones. In fact, they are not even comparable in their pharmacological properties to natural ox gallstones.

The high value of ox gallstones is largely due to the short supply of them. This has led to the emergence of artificial gallstones, as well as the production of “man-made” natural gallstones using ox bile culturing.

Synthetic/ artificial

Ox gallstones are not for the faint of heart. They can only be culled from steers (Bos taurus domesticus Gmelin) by the surgical eviscera or bile extraction process, and are typically the stuff of nightmares. The best ones are a few millilitres in size and have a shelf life of at least five years. The best ones may be found at a few selected plants around the world, most notably Nolans at Gympie in the good old state of Queensland. It would be a shame to miss out on the enticing ox gallstone jackpot.

As you might have guessed, the ox gallstone is the star of the show when it comes to a discerning consumer. It is also the reason that we at Beef Central have a dedicated ox gallstone team. In fact, we have a special ox gallstone trophy of our own. To help promote the ox gallstone of the month program we have created the ox gallstone award, which can be earned by an abattoir for the most impressive gallstones in one year.

Ox Gallstones – Are They Worth a Lot of Money?