CHINESE HERBS- NATURE’S BLESSINGS FOR AILING SOULS
Among the family of herbal Medicines the treatment that has inspired the human souls and has intricately woven into the social fabric of many generations globally are nonetheless Chinese Medicinal herbs. These herbs have not only benefited the ailing human beings but also have been the source of Information and studies for the people of scientific world of today. These Chinese Medicinal herbs found its birth last 3000 years back among the Zhou Dynasty. The recurrent troubles prevailing in the socio economic condition of the people led to their belief that sickness was due to the malevolent action of demonic forces. Incipient herbal medicine was employed to extirpate these unwanted intruders laying foundation of today’s Chinese healing herbs.
According to Chinese legend, Chinese father of agriculture and leader of an ancient clan, Shen Nung, tested one by one hundreds of different plants to discover their nutritional and medicinal properties and then on this tradition continued.
CHINESE HERBS
There are over 3000 different Chinese healing herbs that can be used for medical purposes. Only 300 to 500 of these herbs are commonly used.
BENEFITS OF CHINESE HERBAL MEDICINES
Chinese healing herbs performs three main functions:
• To treat the immediate problem, such as killing bacteria or a virus,
• To strengthen the body, helping it to recover, and
• To maintain health.
DISEASES CHINESE HERBS CURE
Chinese healing herbs are commonly used to treat disorders such as:
• Digestive problems
• Eczema and psoriasis
• Fatigue
• Gynaecological disorders
• Hepatic (liver) disorders
• Cardiovascular disorders
• Stress
There are different herbs for different types of diseases like:
• Diabetes Chinese herbs
• Chinese herbs for scabies
• Chinese herbs for endometrosis
As Diabetes has been most common ailment so there are different herbs for Diabetes patients like Diabetic neuropathy among others.
Specially for Gynecological disorders there are Chinese herbs for fertility and Chinese herbs for infertility
CATEGORIZATION OF MEDICINAL HERBS
Chinese Medicinal herbs are categorized in following ways:
• Property: Every herb is said to have the property of being either cool, cold, warm, or hot. Cool and cold herbs treat “hot” symptoms, such as fever, thirst, sore throat or constipation. Warm and hot herbs treat “cold” symptoms, such as cold hands and feet.
• Flavor: There are seven flavors of herbs; pungent, sweet, sour, astringent, bitter, salty, and neutral.
• Channels: Channels (or meridians) run throughout the body, affecting different organs. Each kind of herb affects a particular channel and organ.
• Actions: Herbs perform different actions in the body. These are known as lifting, floating, lowering, and sinking.
MECHANISM OF CHINESE HERBAL MEDICINE IN BODY
Chinese treatment is a part of larger healing system called as “Traditional Chinese Medicine” (TCM), which includes among others acupuncture, massage dietary advice and exercise. For maintaining good health we must strive to attain a harmonious balanced relationship between the different systems inside our body, and between nature and our body and when this balance is disturbed we suffer from various diseases. These traditional Chinese Medicine balances our body system with the help of the prescribed Chinese healing herbs. The principle theory includes Yin and Yang, Qi, Blood and Body Fluid theory and Channels and Collaterals theory.
YIN AND YANG
The ancient Chinese proposed that all living things are sustained by balance of two opposing forces of energy, called Yin and Yang. Together, they make up the life essence, or Qi - a type of energy that flows through the body via invisible channels called meridians. Half of organs and meridians are governed by Yin and the other half are governed by Yang. When Yin and Yang are out of balance in the body, this causes a blockage of Qi and a subsequent illness. Yin and Yang imbalances can be caused by stress, pollution, poor diet, emotional upsets or infection. For diagnostic purposes, Yin and Yang are further subdivided into interior and exterior, hot and cold, deficiency and excess.
PHILOSOPHY BEHIND CHINESE HERBAL TREATMENT
This treatment depends on the philosophy that we live between heaven and earth and we are miniature universe in ourselves and we have five organs like
• Heart" or "mind" (hsin);
• 2."lungs" or "respiratory system" (fei);
• 3."liver" (kan);
• 4."spleen" (p'i);
• 5."kidneys" (shen)
These are called as Latent Phenomena
Exessive Wind (feng), cold (han), heat (shu), moisture (shih), dryness (tsao), and internal heat (huo "fire") harms the body, and are referred to as the "six external disease-causing factors" (liu yin). On the other hand, if mood changes within the individual, such as happiness(hsi), anger(nu), worry(yu), pensiveness(szu), grief(pei), fear(k'ung), and surprise(ching) are too extreme, they will also harm the health. These emotions are called the "seven emotions"(ch'i ch'ing). In Chinese Herbal treatment, the six external disease-causing factors, interacting with the seven emotions, form the theoretical foundation of disease pathology. These theoretical models, coupled with the "theory of latent phenomena," are used to analyze the patient's constitution and his illness, and diagnose the exact nature of his overall physical and psychological loss of balance. Based on this analysis, the doctor prescribes method to correct the imbalance.
HOW THE HERBAL MEDICINES ARE PRESCRIBED
The TCM philosophy proposes that everything including organs of the body - is composed of the five elements: fire, earth, metal, water and wood. The herbs are similarly classified into the five tastes - sweet, salty, bitter, pungent and sour - which correspond to the five elements, for example, since the skin is a metal element Yang organ, it would be treated with a pungent herb
Each herbal medicine prescription is a mixture of many herbs tailored to the individual patient. One batch of herbs is typically decocted twice over the course of one hour. The practitioner usually designs a remedy using one or two main ingredients that target the illness. Then the practitioner adds many other ingredients to adjust the formula to the patient's Yin Yang conditions. Sometimes, ingredients are needed to cancel out side
effects of the main ingredients. Some herbs require the use of other ingredients as catalyst or else the brew remains ineffective.
HOW THE PROBLEM IS DIAGNOSED
Diagnosis is by visual assessment, listening and smelling, questioning, and palpation; a single biomedical disease may be associated with a large number of TCM diagnoses, while one TCM diagnosis may encompass a number of biomedical diseases. Once a diagnosis is established, therapy aims at restoring the body's homeostasis by treating the root cause of the disease.
CHINESE HEALING HERBS
Chinese healing herbs are mainly plant based, but some preparations include minerals or animal products. They can be packaged as powders, pastes, lotions or tablets, depending on the herb and its intended use. Different herbs have different properties and can balance particular parts of the body. Prescribing a particular herb or concoction of herbs means the practitioner’s diagnosis has to take into account the state of the patient’s Yin and Yang, and the elements that are governing the affected organs.
SCIENCE VS HERBAL MEDICINE
Dr. David Nye pointed out some interesting facts in discussing scientific vs. Chinese Herbal Medicine. He said that scientific medicine is a body of knowledge about the human body, its maladies, and their treatment acquired by the application of scientific methods of study. These methods were developed for science in general and medicine in particular. For Alternate Medicine like Chinese Herbal Medicine, he explains alternative medicine as a name has been given to several schools of folk (non-scientific) medicine whose treatments are typically derived from tradition rather than from scientific study. Ideas often come from a single founder and are then passed along generation next with little change as in the case of chiropractic or homeopathy. New form of treatments may be added but the core theories are not challenged. Alternative medical treatments are often promoted through the use of anecdotal evidence and testimonials.
STEPS TO CONSIDER BEFORE GOING FOR CHINESE HERBAL TREATMENT
Chinese healing Herbs can act on the body as powerfully as pharmaceutical drugs and should be treated with the same caution and respect. Some herbs can be toxic in high doses; others can cause allergic reactions, many can also suffer from liver dysfunction. Make sure your practitioner is fully qualified. Never abandon your regular medication or alter the dose without the knowledge and approval of your Doctor. Because of the variety of herbs used in Chinese herbal medicine, there is a potential for negative interactions with prescribed drugs. Some herbal preparations contain other ingredients
which are not always identified. The FDA has issued a statement warning diabetics to avoid several specific brands of Chinese herbal products because they illegally contain the prescription diabetes drugs glyburide and phenformin. FDA warnings have been issued for PC-SPES and production of that product stopped because the Chinese herbal products also contained prescription drugs (indomethicin, diethylstilbestrol and warfarin).
China had no doubt remained one of the leading Civilizations since centuries in arts, social, culture, Economy but the gift of unique herbs that it gave to human beings is cherished, was cherished and will always be cherished by generations ahead. Though modern medicines has took its roots among the people but Chinese Medicinal Herbs has undoubtedly taken its own place into the hearts of millions due to its magical powers of healing.
These are the points that I have covered in the Write-up
• How does Chinese medicine differ from the scientific herbs?
• How do Chinese herbs work? (can describe it in steps)
o assesses the balance between yin and yang aspects of body functions
o correspondence of the ailment to the five phase elemental system of living energy
o etc
• Health benefits of Chinese herbs
• Are several herbs combined in Chinese herbal formula? (explain in brief)
• Dangers in using Chinese herbs (e.g. affect liver function)
Diagnostic examination before administering Chinese herbs (e.g. visual exam, listening and smelling etc)
2007-09-10
23:02:05
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2 answers
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asked by
Anonymous
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Science & Mathematics
➔ Medicine