Chinese Herbal Medicine

Chinese Herbal Medicine

Chinese Herbal Medicine is one of the great herbal systems of the world, with an unbroken tradition going back to the 3rd century BC.Chinese Herbal Medicine, along with the other components of Chinese medicine, is based on the concepts of Yin and Yang. It aims to understand and treat the many ways in which the fundamental balance and harmony between the two may be undermined and the ways in which a person’s Qi or vitality may be depleted or blocked. Clinical strategies are based upon diagnosis of patterns of signs and symptoms that reflect an imbalance

The five elements
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.

Chinese medicine is successfully used for a very wide range of conditions. Among the more commonly treated disorders are:

* Skin disease, including eczema, psoriasis, acne, rosacea, urticaria
* Gastro-intestinal disorders, including irritable bowel syndrome, chronic constipation, ulcerative colitis
* Gynaecological conditions, including pre-menstrual syndrome and dysmenorrhoea, endometriosis, infertility
* Hepatitis and HIV: some promising results have been obtained for treatment of Hepatitis C, and supportive treatment may be beneficial in the case of HIV
* Chronic fatigue syndromes, whether with a background of viral infection or in other situations
* Respiratory conditions, including asthma, bronchitis, and chronic coughs, allergic and perennial rhinitis and sinusitis
* Rheumatological conditions (e.g. osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis)
* Urinary conditions including chronic cystitis
* Psychological problems (e.g. depression, anxiety)
* Children’s diseases