Chinese Herbal Medicine

What is Chinese Herbal Medicine?

Chinese Herbal Medicine is one discipline within a broad tradition, which also includes Acupuncture, Massage (Tuina), Dietary Therapy, and Exercise (Qigong). It is one of the great herbal traditions of the world, with a recorded history of more that two thousand years. Chinese Herbal Medicine has retained a strong presence in health provision in China today, where it is practised alongside western medicine in state hospitals throughout the country in the treatment of a wide range of conditions. More recently it has become increasingly popular in the West, and has expanded rapidly in the UK since the 1980's.

Like the other Chinese medicine disciplines, Chinese Herbal Medicine is based on the principle that good health depends on achieving optimum vitality and balance - a balance described in terms of the polarity of Yin and Yang. Chinese Herbal Medicine has a great deal to offer in supporting that vitality and balance.

What does Chinese Herbal Medicine involve?

Treatment with CHM involves the use of combinations of herbs, which are designed to correct the particular disharmony of the individual. The Chinese materia medica contains several hundred commonly used ingredients, including roots, stems, flowers, leaves and barks, together with some non-plant materials. The principle is that a balance of ingredients with certain properties is matched to the individual patient's pattern, allowing the practitioner to adapt to the changing needs of the patient.

Chinese Herbal medicine may be administered in a variety of ways. Most commonly it is prescribed either as a tea, to be made up from raw herbs or from concentrated powders, or as a ready-made formula in tablet form. External preparations are also used, including creams, ointments and washes for skin conditions, and compresses for traumatised tissue.

Chinese herbal teas tend to be bitter but most people get used to them quickly.

What can Herbal Medicine treat?

The possible uses for Chinese Herbal Medicine are very wide, and people of any age or constitution can benefit from it. The following conditions are commonly treated:

• Skin disease, including eczema, psoriasis, acne, rosacea
• Respiratory conditions, including asthma, bronchitis and chronic coughs; allergic and perennial rhinitis and sinusitis
• Digestive complaints, including irritable bowel syndrome, indigestion, ulcerative colitis
• Gynaecological problems, including pre-menstrual syndrome, painful periods, menopausal syndromes, endometriosis, some forms of infertility
• Urinary conditions, including chronic cystitis
• Rheumatological conditions, including rheumatoid and osteo-arthritis
• Headaches and migraine
• Chronic fatigue syndrome
• Anxiety and depression
• Hepatitis and HIV: some promising results have been obtained from hepatitis C, and supportive treatment may be beneficial for HIV
• Some metabolic disorders, including diabetes and thyroid conditions, may benefit from supportive treatment

For further information, please contact the Register of Chinese Herbal Medicine:

Tel: 01603 623994

Email: herbmed@rchm.co.uk

Web: www.rchm.co.uk

Practitioner:

• Isabel James