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Chinese
Herbal Medicine has used botanical, animal, and mineral substances for
several millennia. Current herbal formulae are at least several hundred, if
not a thousand, years old. Chinese herbal formulae use multiple herbs at the
same time, unlike single herbs in western herbal tradition. Each formula has
one to a few herbs that exert the principal action of the formula. Other
herbs are then added to counteract potential negative effects of the
principle herb, still others to strengthen the effects of the principal herb,
and finally still others to make all of the components of the formula work
smoothly and well together. Typically, a Chinese herbal formula has five to
ten individual components. The
proper use of Chinese herbal formulae for treatment relies on the careful use
of the Chinese diagnostic system, which is different from the system of
diagnosis used in the West. The Chinese view illness as arising from various
external influences, such as dryness, dampness, heat and cold, and other
internal influences that are the result of imbalances of the emotions of joy,
pensiveness, sadness, fear, and anger. These influences affect the overall
energetic balance of the patient, causing energy excess or deficiency, or the
stagnation in the smooth flow of energy. The result is the condition
underlying the patient’s symptoms. The western diagnosis of a sinus infection
might be described in the Chinese system as damp heat. Before
using Chinese herbal formulae safely, it is important that a proper diagnosis
be made using the Chinese paradigm. Lacking this, Chinese herbs, just like
improperly prescribed Western pharmaceutical agents, may result in harm. |
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©2008 by Dr. Adrienne Clamp. All rights reserved. |
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