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Traditional Herbal Medicine

Definition

Chinese traditional herbal medicine is an alternative system of treatment arising from a holistic philosophy of life. It emphasizes the interconnection of the mental, emotional, and physical components within each person, and the importance of harmony between individuals and their social groups, as well as between humanity as a whole and nature. Although Chinese medicine is neither the oldest system recorded by historians, nor the only form of herbal therapy practiced today, it is the oldest continuous surviving tradition of herbal medicine. The only other alternative system of treatment that can be traced as far back as Chinese medicine is the Ayurvedic system of India. It should be noted that traditional Chinese herbal medicine did not develop in complete isolation. As early as the second century B.C., Chinese merchants in India came into contact with Ayurvedic medicine. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries A.D., Chinese trade with the West -- especially with the Dutch -- led to exchanges of information and observations about the use of herbs in medical treatment.

The Chinese attributed their traditional medicine to three legendary emperors: Fu Si (2852 B.C.), who was credited with authorship of the I Ching or Book of Changes, the source of the yin/yang distinction; Shen Nong (3494 B.C.), who compiled the first treatise on herbal medicine, or Shen Nong's Herbal Classic; and Huang Di (2697 B.C.), the Yellow Emperor, regarded as the author of the Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic. This third book is the earliest summary of ancient Chinese medical theories. In their present form, these books were probably written down around the third or fourth centuries B.C. The first Chinese medical school was founded by the first emperor of the Tang dynasty in 629 A.D. Its foundation was followed by standardization of medical books and a set of formal examinations for doctors. In the centuries that followed, other medical schools were established, the curriculum was expanded, and the examination and licensing process became more comprehensive. Shen Nong's original list of 365 herbal remedies was expanded by Li Shizhen (1590) to 1892 medicines, and by Zhao Xue Min (1765) to 2500.

In 1970 the Chinese Academy of Medical Science published a collection of traditional herbal remedies in common use. It lists 796 prescriptions made from combinations of 248 plant or animal ingredients. A group of American pharmacologists evaluated these prescriptions in 1974 and estimated that 44.7% are useful, measured by present western methods of chemical analysis.

Purpose

The purpose of Chinese traditional herbal medicine is the restoration of health through correction of imbalances within the patient's body or between the patient and the larger social and natural order. Chinese medicine regards the human body as a small-scale reflection of the cosmos. The principles of treatment are derived from Taoism, a philosophy or religion that emphasizes following the right path, or Tao, in order to find one's place within the larger universe of being. Taoism's holistic emphasis was reflected in the close correlation between Chinese herbal medicine and daily dietary habits. Foods were eaten with regard to their therapeutic qualities and adjusted to changes in the body. Traditional herbal medicine in China included preventive treatment. It was a customary part of people's lives, not necessarily reserved for acute illness or emergencies.

The specific teachings of Taoism that have had the most profound effect on Chinese medicine are the concept of duality, and the belief in a primordial form of universal energy called qi. The terms yin and yang are applied to the two primal opposites that continually interact and produce constant change in the universe. Yang is associated with heat, dryness, brightness, upward or outward movement, forceful action, lightness, and speed. Yin represents the corresponding qualities of cold, moisture, dimness, downward or inward movement, quietness, heaviness, and slowness. These opposites are regarded as interdependent rather than mutually destructive or antagonistic. Humans participate in qi, or the universal life force, which circulates throughout the body and determines the person's basic level of vitality.

Over a period of centuries, Chinese doctors worked out elaborate systems of correlation between yin and yang and the so-called five elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, and water); the ten major internal organs of the body; and meridians, or invisible three-dimensional pathways that circulate qi and blood throughout the body. The meridians regulate the yin/yang balance in the body, provide connections between the individual human being and cosmic forces or influences, and protect the body against external sources of disease. There are certain points along the meridians where qi is thought to collect or concentrate. These points are used in Chinese medicine for acupuncture treatment as well as diagnosis. Prescriptions for herbal medicines are formulated to correct excesses of yin or yang, blockages or incorrect direction in the flow of qi, disorders located in a specific organ, and the emotional problems that accompany physical illness. Chinese herbal medicine does not distinguish between psychiatric and general medical conditions in the manner of western medicine.

Precautions

The primary precaution for Westerners in using Chinese herbal medicine is to respect its complexity. Problems do not usually result from combinations of Chinese herbal therapy and western medicine as such -- in contemporary China, the so-called "new medicine" blends western laboratory equipment and biochemistry with traditional Chinese theories of disease. Difficulties can arise, however, when Westerners ignore the differences between Chinese herbal therapy and European folk medicine, Native American medicine, homeopathy, and other alternative treatments that use herbs, and attempt to medicate themselves with mixtures of herbs from a variety of recipes. Many books that discuss traditional Chinese medicine as a treatment option advise readers to consult a qualified practitioner and use his or her herbal prescriptions consistently, without making arbitrary substitutions.

Description

Diagnosis

Diagnosis in Chinese medicine has four phases:

• Visual examination. The doctor notes the patient's expression, complexion, and general physique. The distinctive feature of Chinese medicine is the detailed examination of the tongue for color, shape, and coating (if any).
• Listening/smelling. The doctor listens to the breathing and looks for any unusual body sounds or odors.
• Verbal questions. This phase is similar to history-taking in a western medical examination.
• Palpation. The doctor feels the patient's ten organs through the abdomen, the qi points along the meridians, and the pulse. Chinese medicine distinguishes three different pulse points on each wrist and as many as thirty different pulse qualities at each point. Pulse diagnosis takes years to master in the Chinese system and is regarded by patients as an important measure of a doctor's skill.

Treatment

Traditional Chinese treatment is highly individualized because the practitioner proceeds from the assumption that different individuals have different levels of qi and therefore various degrees of vulnerability to internal imbalances or external causes of disease. Two different patients might be given different remedies for the same disease, or the same patient might be given one prescription for two different diseases.

Traditional Chinese herbal medicine applies herbs to the body externally as well as internally. Dried herbs may be mixed with water and used as poultices to treat arthritis, rheumatism, sprains, bruises, abscesses, and strained backs. A distinctive technique is the use of moxibustion, which is the application of heat to an area of skin directly over a meridian by burning a wick made of herbs (usually mugwort) a slight distance above the skin. Moxibustion is used to treat many conditions, including mumps, vaginal bleeding, pulled nerves, arthritis, and chronic nosebleeds.

Acupuncture, massage, and the use of suction cups, called cupping, are external treatments that are often used in Chinese medicine in conjunction with internal herbal therapy.

Traditional Chinese medicine uses herbs for preventive treatment as well as for curing illness. Prescriptions are fine-tuned by the herbalist, as well as by the doctor, and formulated according to the patient's constitution, as well as the nature of the herbs. Chinese herbal medicine differs from current western herbal medicine in several ways. Chinese herbal medicine, unlike western herbal medicine, is based on ancient formulas. Western practitioners have no ancient formulas, nor a developed diagnostic system, but they select herbs based on a symptom description by each patient. Also, most western herbal practitioners use one herb (called simpling) or occasionally, a combination of herbs; again differing from the Chinese system based on developed formulas. Chinese herbal medicine uses water for the extraction of its base herb. Currently, many western companies, even when manufacturing Chinese formulas, use alcohol or glycerin extraction.

When the patient takes the doctor's prescription to the herbalist, it will be made up in one of several traditional forms: broth, pills, wine with herbs steeped in it, gum, fermented dough, or paste. Pills may be made with wax, honey, or flour paste. Pastes can often be used externally as well as internally.

Normal results

Normal results are recovery from the illness or internal imbalance for which the patient was treated.

Key Terms

Acupuncture

A method of external treatment in Chinese medicine consisting of the insertion of fine needles in the points located at intervals along the meridians of the body.

Meridians

In Chinese medicine, invisible pathways in the body that circulate the flow of blood and , link the individual to cosmic forces or influences, protect the body against external causes of disease, and regulate the yin/yang balance.

Moxibustion

A technique used to apply external heat in which the doctor holds a burning wick made from herbs above the skin over a meridian.

The basic life force that animates the universe, according to Taoism. The level of in a person's body and its ability to flow freely within the body are basic diagnostic concerns in Chinese medicine.

Simpling

The use of one herb in a prescription.

Taoism

The religious philosophy of China that underlies the concepts and approach of Chinese medicine.

Yin/yang

The primal dualities of the universe, according to Taoism. Yin and yang are represented as paired qualities, such as dark/light, cold/warm, moist/dry, and so on. They are regarded as interdependent or complementary rather than destructive opposites. The proper balance between yin and yang is a fundamental principle of diagnosis and treatment in Chinese medicine.

Further Reading

For Your Information

Books

• Chin, Wee Yeow, and Hsuan Keng. An Illustrated Dictionary of Chinese Medicinal Herbs. Sebastopol, CA: CRCS Publications, 1992.
• Reid, Daniel P. Chinese Herbal Medicine. Boston: Shambhala, 1993.
• Svoboda, Robert, and Arnie Lade. Tao and Dharma: Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda. Twin Lakes, WI: Lotus Press, 1995.
• A Visual Encyclopedia of Unconventional Medicine, edited by Ann Hill. New York: Crown Publishers, Inc., 1979.

Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine. Gale Research, 1999.