Bing Tang
StarSaccharum sinense Roxb.
☯ TCM Properties
Tonifies the Middle and Augments Qi; Harmonizes the Stomach and moistens the Lungs; Moistens the Lungs and Stops Cough; Resolves Phlegm; Nourishes Yin and Generates Fluids
Traditional Chinese Uses
Bing Tang (rock sugar, crystallized sugar) is a neutral, sweet substance used in Chinese medicine as a harmonizing and supporting ingredient in medicinal formulas and preparations. It nourishes the middle burner, moistens the Lungs, and relieves cough and dry throat. As a processing medium, it tempers the harsh actions of certain herbs and makes preparations more palatable. Its mild moistening and harmonizing properties make it a standard ingredient in Lung-nourishing syrups and medicinal foods for cough and throat conditions.
Western Herbalism Properties
Botanical Description
Saccharum sinense, Chinese sugarcane, is the historical East Asian sugar grass in the Poaceae family from which Bing Tang (rock sugar) is produced. It is a tall robust perennial grass forming clumps of cane-like jointed culms 2-4 m high and 2-4 cm thick, with thick swollen nodes and pale waxy internodes that are rich in sucrose-laden parenchyma. Long linear leaves 1-2 m long arise sheathing the culms, with serrated margins and a prominent midrib. Plumose silvery inflorescences 30-60 cm long appear in cooler months. Bing Tang is prepared by recrystallizing concentrated cane juice into large translucent crystalline lumps.
Active Constituents
Sucrose
Disaccharide (glucose + fructose)Concentration: ~99-100%
Rock sugar is essentially pure crystallised sucrose; it is the source of its sweet, neutral, moistening quality that harmonizes the Stomach, moistens the Lungs and generates fluids.
Invert sugar (glucose + fructose)
MonosaccharidesConcentration: trace
Small amounts of free glucose and fructose from partial sucrose inversion during crystallisation.
Trace minerals
Mineral elementsConcentration: trace (higher in unrefined golden/amber rock sugar)
Minor mineral residues remain in less-refined golden rock sugar made from incompletely refined cane juice; negligible in white crystal sugar.
Water
MoistureConcentration: trace (crystal moisture)
A small residual moisture content held within the crystalline lattice.
⚠ Drug Interactions
Antidiabetic drugs (insulin, sulfonylureas, other glucose-lowering agents)
As essentially pure sucrose, rock sugar directly raises blood glucose and can partially counteract glycemic control in patients on antidiabetic therapy.
Clinical note: Diabetic patients should minimise or avoid rock sugar and account for it as simple sugar; this is a dietary caution rather than a pharmacological interaction.
Dosage
| Form | Amount | Frequency | Duration | Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| decoction | 9-30g | Daily | — | — | — |
Preparation Methods
Dissolved in decoction / hot water
Parts: Crystallised sugar
Rock sugar is dissolved into warm decoctions or hot water to moderate bitterness, harmonize a formula and add a moistening, Lung-nourishing quality; typical amounts range from a few grams to 15-30 g.
Steamed with pear (Chuan Bei Bing Tang Dun Li)
Parts: Crystallised sugar
A classic household remedy: rock sugar is steamed inside a hollowed pear (often with Chuan Bei Mu) to moisten the Lungs and stop dry cough.
Medicinal syrups and congee
Parts: Crystallised sugar
Added to tonifying congees, herbal teas and syrups to augment qi, harmonize the middle and generate fluids for dryness and thirst.
Historical Texts
Xin Xiu Ben Cao (Tang Materia Medica / Newly Revised Materia Medica)
Tang dynasty (659 CE)Ben Cao Gang Mu (Compendium of Materia Medica), Li Shizhen
Ming dynasty (1596)References
- U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), FoodData Central. Sugars, granulated/crystalline (sucrose) — nutrient composition reference . USDA FoodData Central (2019) [DOI]
- Bensky D, Clavey S, Stoger E. Chinese Herbal Medicine: Materia Medica, 3rd Edition (Bing Tang / crystallised sugar) . Eastland Press (2004) [DOI]
This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before using any herbal remedy, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking medications.
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