CHINESE HERBOLOGY

The following information about Chinese Herbs is provided as helpful background information from Shep Saltzman’s point of view as a practitioner of Chinese Medicine.

“Herbal Medicine is truly a traditional medicine, and yet one that continues to grow. It reveres and utilizes the past, but also incorporates innovations based on clinical experience and scientific investigation.” – Dan Bensky

Chinese Herbology provides a miraculous means of utilizing plants and Herbs for healing. I have been taught to create formulas in combinations that require specialized training. This is a complex discipline beyond the use of singe Herbs. Formulas are an elegantly designed group of Herbs that allow each Herb to work best while side effects are eliminated or minimized. The advantage to Herb formulas is the benefit of synergy or the concept of a team so that your customized formula functions beyond the sum of its parts.

I use raw Herbs that are taken home to be brewed as teas. I also use manufactured products: pills, creams and teas produced by some of the highest quality companies in the United States. Every effort is made to provide Herbs that taste good or are easy to use.

All the companies I use test their products in China as well as in the USA to make sure there are no inadvertent heavy metals, herbicides, pesticides, drugs or contaminants.

My sources all operate under the strict international guidelines of GMP (Good Manufacturing Procedures). They carefully monitor the purity of the plants and the cleanliness of the procedures they use for manufacture, shipping and distribution.

There are specific uses for Chinese Herbs that no other product will address. There are many formulas that work on an aspect of a disease or dysfunction in a unique way.

Some of my formulas are modernized.  Supplements like minerals or western Herbs are added to the traditional formula to improve the effectiveness.

Many supplements traditionally produced by western medical manufacturers are now including Chinese Herbs to improve their effectiveness.

With my specialty training and experience, patients can benefit from a definite integration of Chinese Medicine and Naturopathy and Western Medicine. I use a combination of methodologies and products to provide the best results possible.

I have found Chinese Herbs to be safe when properly prescribed. I have been certified by the NCCAOM – National Certification Commission for Asian and Oriental Medicine in Herbology. That means I have taken the appropriate hours of training in an accredited school of Herbology and passed a National Certifying test in Chinese Herbology.

In addition, I apprenticed with a Chinese doctor for five years furthering my grasp of the complexities and nuances of Chinese Herbology.

Chinese Herbology and Acupuncture are the backbone of Chinese Medicine. When combined properly, Chinese Medicine is an elegant form of medicine that works on the various complex causes of disease and dysfunction. There are thousands of herbs and formulas and the practice of Chinese Medicine is over three thousand years old. It is one of the oldest and most respected forms of healing throughout the world. Yet in the United States, we are just beginning to understand the transformative healing powers of Chinese Herbs.

Even though Chinese Herbology seems to be more substantial and physical than Acupuncture it is very much an energetic modality. The Herbs work on the energetic system, as well as, the physical body, the mind, and the spirit.

It is said Chinese Herbology works on three main levels. The lowest level is the treatment of disease, the middle level is the maintenance of health, and the highest level is the nourishment of destiny (our purpose).

Some of the unique categories of Chinese Herbal formulas are: Clearing Heat and Cold, Regulating Qi, Invigorating the Blood, Calming the Spirit, Reducing Food Stagnation, Expelling parasites, Expelling Dampness, and Treating Dryness. These categories are named based on their function in a Chinese Medical context.

Some of the hallmark concepts of Chinese Herbology include:

  • The cause of the dysfunction is the diagnostic goal.
  • The cause of the dysfunction is the treatment goal.
  • Symptoms are treated, for comfort, not in place of treating the cause.
  • Balance of energy is a main goal.
  • Balance of function is a main goal.
  • Balance of Body, Mind and Spirit is a main goal.
  • All the principles of Acupuncture are incorporated into Chinese Herbology.
  • Every day you take the herbs, you are getting a treatment.

 

Some of the conditions Herbs treat very well include:

  • Menopause symptoms (hot flashes, night sweats)
  • Menstrual irregularities (heavy bleeding, cramps, etc)
  • PMS  (Pre Menstrual Syndrome)
  • Pain (Joints, Back, Neck, etc.)
  • Inflammation
  • Colds and Flu
  • Nausea (including morning sickness)
  • Side Effects of Chemotherapy and Radiation
  • Deficient Blood
  • Fatigue
  • Kidney Stones and Gall Bladder Stones
  • Lyme Disease and other infections
  • Sinusitis
  • Coughing
  • Migraines and other Headaches
  • Urinary Tract Infections

 

 

-- Shep Saltzman’s point of view as a practitioner of Chinese Medicine.