Herbalism, Traditional Chinese Health Article

Preparations

Those who are unfamiliar with Chinese herbs and their uses should consult a practitioner before starting any treatment. Once a remedy is prescribed, it may be found at Oriental markets or health food stores. The remedies used in Chinese herbalism are standardized and sold prepared for use, with instructions for dosage. A Chinese herbalist may prescribe herbs to be made into tea, or taken as capsules.

Precautions

When treating a patient, the herbalist will aim to gently "nudge" the system into shape, rather than producing any immediate reaction. A return to health, therefore, may take time, and it is important that the patient realizes the principle of the treatment. Some practitioners estimate that treatment will take a month for every year that a chronic condition has existed. The advantage of the slow pace is that if there is a bad reaction to any herb, which is rare, it will be mild because the treatment itself is gentle.

As with most naturopathic therapies, Chinese herbal remedies work best when taken in conjunction with a healthy lifestyle and program of exercise.

Side effects

Some Chinese herbs are incompatible with certain prescription drugs, certain foods, or should not be taken during pregnancy. To be certain, a Chinese herbalist should be consulted.

Research and general acceptance

At present, there is renewed interest in the West in traditional Chinese medicine and Chinese herbalism. Of the 700 herbal remedies used by traditional Chinese practitioners, over 100 have been tested and found effective by the standards of Western science. Several United States agencies, including the National Institutes of Health, the Office of Alternative Medicine, and the Food and Drug Administration are currently investigating Chinese herbal medicine as well as acupuncture and Tui na massage. In general, however, Western studies of Chinese medicine focus on the effects of traditional treatments and the reasons for those effects, thus attempting to fit traditional Chinese medicine within the Western framework of precise physical measurements and scientific hypotheses.

BOOKS

Molony, David. The American Association of Oriental Medicine's Complete Guide to Chinese Herbal Medicine. New York: Berkeley Publishing Group, 1998.

ORGANIZATIONS

National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine http://nccam.nih.gov/nccam/.

The California Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine http://www.CAAOM.ORG/medicine/overview.htm

For help with herbs and a list of practitioners http://www.craneherb.com/.

Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine Beijing, 100700.

Patricia Skinner

KEY TERMS

Absorption spectrometry—A scientific procedure to determine chemical makeup of samples.

Interferon—A substance proved to be necessary in the body to help fight cancer cells.

Immune function—The body's defense system against bacteria, viruses and fungi, and any malfunction of the organism.

Pharmaco-dynamics—The study of the relationships and interactions of herbs.

Platelet aggregation—The clumping together of blood cells, possibly forming a clot.

Thrombocyte—Another name for platelet.