CHINESE HERBAL MEDICINE: WHAT IS IT?
Chinese herbal medicine, a component of Traditional Chinese Medicine, is one of the great herbal systems of the world. In China and parts of East Asia, Chinese herbal medicine has been the traditional method of healthcare for thousands of years.
Through the ongoing study of the medicinal effects of locally grown flora, Chinese herbal medicine is continually developing. Unlike other traditions of herbal medicine, it does not consider the pharmacological properties of the herbs. Instead it uses each herb for its energetic characteristics. Despite its long history of use, Chinese herbal medicine is yet to have the mechanism of its theory scientifically proven.
As with other Traditional Chinese Medicine techniques, such as acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine is said to take a holistic approach to health. Practitioners can select from over 300 plants and herbs, in the form of roots, leaves, flowers, seeds, twigs, stems and fruit.
By skilfully selecting and combining a number of herbs, the Chinese herbal medicine practitioner creates a personalised herbal formula unique to each patient. Each customised Chinese herbal medicine formula traditionally contains between two and twenty individual herbs.
Chinese herbal medicine can be taken in a variety of forms including capsules, tablets, pellets, powders, liquid, and ointments. At Meridian Healing Centre, Dr Kirk Wilson prescribes Chinese herbal medicine formulas in a concentrated powder and is typically taken twice a day.
