About Chinese Herbal Medicine

The earliest book of Chinese herbal medicine (the ‘Inner Classic’) was written over 2,000 years ago, and is one of the most (if not the most) important text books used today. This suggests that Chinese herbal medicine was in an advanced state even then, and many people believe that it dates back over 5,000 years.

Together with acupuncture, herbal treatments were a major component of traditional Chinese medicine, and was used to treat almost any condition.  It has stood the test of time, being used to treat billions of people for thousands of years.

Creating a Herbal Formula

Types of Herbs

Chinese herbs can be divided into 3 groups.

• Tonic herbs, suitable for long term use to promote health
• Herbs to address constitutional issues, suitable for medium term use, and
• Strong herbs, which are suitable for short term use only

The Client’s Constitution

A Chinese herbalist will prescribe a formula for their client based on

• How bad the condition is
• How long the client has had the problem, and
• The strength of the client’s constitution

For example, if a person has a bad cold, the herbalist needs to determine if it is a bad virus and the client has a strong immune system, or if it is a mild virus but the client has a weak immune system. In the first case, they would prescribe strong herbs  to counter the virus, but in the second case they would provide mostly constitutional herbs to boost their immune system to get rid of the virus instead. (If the client with the weak immune system were given the strong herbs it could even make them worse.)

Avoiding Side Effects

Normally, the stronger the herb the more likely it will have side-effects. As an example, one herb is excellent for sore throats, but may have a weakening effect on the client’s digestion. So the herbal formula will normally be a combination of herbs that both treat the problem and help prevent any possible side effects.

So as you can see, a Chinese herbal formula is carefully crafted or selected for each individual. The herbs used can be very potent and effective, but should only be prescribed by a trained herbalist.

Registration

Fortunately, in Australia Chinese herbal medicine practitioners must the registered with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA), the same as doctors, pharmacists, dentists, acupuncturists, etc. Registration is strictly controlled, which ensures that only well-trained therapists with recognised qualifications can be a practitioner.

Taking the Herbs

The traditional way of taking herbs was top boil or steep them, and some of the herbs taste terrible. However, at our clinic we provide herbal formulas in either capsules, small pills, or in small quantities of highly concentrated granules, where taste is normally no problem at all.

Our Chinese Herbalist

Dr Hannah Chen is our registered herbalist, and she uses small amounts of high potency granules for her formulas. These will be prescribed after a careful examination of your condition and the strength of the different systems in your body.