But because the few species of sea turtles are all protected and their small populations would make for an unstable supply, and because the amount of gelatin in them is far below what is found in freshwater turtles and tortoises, few manufacturers use sea turtles as a source for traditional Chinese medicine.
但由於海龜種類、數量少，來源不穩定，加上熬膠量大不如陸龜與淡水龜，今天又都具保育龜身分，因此一般中藥商並不以海龜為藥材來源。