Chinese Herbal Medicine Therapy in London

Herbal medicine has been used to treat a wide variety of illnesses the world over, with evidence of use from ancient Egypt and India through Europe and the Americas. It is the source of many pharmaceuticals in use today including aspirin and digitalis. Wheras the drug attempts to isolate the active compound, a herbalist uses the whole plant, so in some cases may benefit from a wider range of pharmacokinetic effects.

The Chinese system has been established and related to medical theory from at least 200AD, and used in the treatment of symptoms from at least 200BC, possibly earlier. Prescriptions of a number of herbs are given for an identified 'pattern of disharmony'. Through its history Chinese medicine has evolved and adapted to changing clinical conditions and this process continues today with pharmacological and clinical research informing practice.

It is thought that this combining is important to the effectiveness of herbs as some combinations make the pharmacological components more active, or reduce side effects. Some research supports this idea. This process allows the herbalist to tailor a prescription to the individual pattern of the person rather than purely by a biomedical diagnosis. Herbal medicine aims to correct internal imbalances based on the traditional ideas about health rather than just treat symptoms.

What Chinese Herbs Can Treat

As in the case of acupuncture, herbalists are legally limited in what they can claim to treat so if you want to read further about research the Cochrane collaboration library of systematic reviews contains evidence of intervention benefits, i.e. amelioration, but not always necessarily cure in some conditions. Click here for more information about what conditions Chinese Herbal Medicine can help with.

Herbal medicine ought to be more suitable for placebo controlled trials, however very rarely are studies designed in a way that allows for the individualisation of treatment so central to the Chinese medicine way of looking at health. Therefore what we often find is the studies included in reviews are for single herb extracts, all given to people with the same biomedical disease label, but with no attention to diagnosis within the Chinese medical system through which a practitioner would make their choice of prescription.

Some of the conditions people use Chinese herbs in the treatment of are things for which Biomedical science has already failed to treat successfully, or has no real remedy for. In other cases people use it to ameliorate existing conditions alongside conventional biomedical treatment.

This should illustrate however the range that Chinese medicine has, using hundreds of different substances in thousands of possible different combinations according to the presenting patient.

Taking Chinese Herbs

The herbs can be supplied in various forms, raw herbs that need to be cooked up daily at home, or powdered granules of herbal extract which can be dissolved in hot water are the most common types I use. It is also possible to get the formula made into tablets at extra cost, or patent pills of standard herbal formulae are also available.

Some people are put off by the taste of the herbs which can be quite bitter (depending on the prescription) but most people get used to it quite quickly, and certain formulas are actually quite nice... Really.

Safety of Chinese Herbs

There are concerns about the safety of Chinese herbal medicine, there are certainly risks if materials are not prescribed correctly, which is why it is important to ensure you see a suitably qualified practitioner. Organisations like the Register of Chinese Herbal Medicine (RCHM) have a code of practice to ensure their members keep up to date with the latest knowledge of risks and operate a reporting scheme to monitor any adverse reactions.

Here in the UK we do not use animal or mineral products due to the law (1968 Herbal Medicines act). There are a small number of herbs in the materia medica which have toxic effects and these are also avoided, some by law and some voluntarily due to possible risk. Almost all cases of injury due to herbs in the UK in recent years has been due to improper administration by either people not properly qualified, or through contaminated products.

Sometimes a herb may be contaminated with another, or with other substances like pesticides and heavy metals, for this reason the RCHM has an approved supplier scheme to ensure products used by members are not contaminated. This means the suppliers products are tested, monitored for purity and contamination, minimising risk to the public and ensuring better quality herbal medicines.

Endangered Species and Chinese Herbal Medicine

It is generally known that traditional medicines can include substances from endangered species. As an RCHM member I follw a code of ethics and conduct and will never use endangered species in accordance with the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) which resticts or bans trade in certain species.

In some cases a species may be cultivated and a certificate allowing export be granted, without which trading it is a criminal offence in most countries. All RCHM approved suppliers also adhere to these rules to protect the environment and the public, another good reaseon to only use practitioners with a clear transparent code of practice.