Herbal Formulas have been the chief agents of Chinese Medicine for over 4000 years. In its principal theory, the human being and the natural world are considered an indivisible whole. Knowing how to work with Yin Yang, Meridians or channels, differentiation, etc., are considered essential to sustain the balance of the whole body. An herbal practitioner assists the body to unblock the circulation of energy thus supporting a natural healing. The stasis, excess or deficiency of energy will finally make the body vulnerable to “evils” or external invasions. For instance, “evil heat” is very similar to infection. English expression of Medicine when translated in Chinese in the late 16th Century, lacking the knowledge of modern chemistry. The Chinese used the word “Chinese Medicine” and “Chinese Drug” as a way to translate or help the English speaking understand their healing methodology before there was a FDA regulation outlawing the use of Chinese/American medical terminology.
Chinese medicine is still used in most of European countries and recognized as a viable contribution to the health arts and practice. Again, the term was coined to help English and Chinese speaking medical practitioners understand, bridge and assist in the exchange of information. The goal was to never replace one another’s art but to share between methodologies. Precisely, Chinese medicine is not a chemical type of remedy. Herbs are not pharmaceutical chemicals but therapeutic foods. In fact, if you were to look for nutritional content in herbs and in pharmaceuticals, observation would indicate the obvious, there are nutrients in herbs while American medicine is absent of nutrition which qualifies it as chemical.
Two thousand years ago, Dr. Hauto, the most respected doctor of Chinese medical history declared that, ” Herb is food, food is medicine”. At that time, the English term of medicine did not exist yet. Language, sometimes, can cause problems. This is especially true when you are still learning a foreign language. The current situation is a challenging paradox for American Chinese herbologists who have to live under the standards of traditional American medical doctors while in the U.S.A. Whereas, in China, both traditional medical arts from America and China are respected, equally. In the U.S., its OK or legal for Chinese acupuncturists and herbologists to say, “Chinese Medicine heals the body, but herbs are not medicine”. This is hard to comprehend when the Chinese healing arts have survived over 4000 years weighed against to the 200 year span of American conventional medicine.
Over time, the sharing of both medical practices will yield more trust and exchange. Overall, improvement in the healing arts will rise from this synergy and ultimately the infirmed will benefit as long as truth and the patient’s wellbeing are valued.