| About Oriental Medicine The Complementary Relationship The Juggernaut of Managed Health Care The Misuse of Chinese Herbs The Misuse and Abuse of Chinese Herbs By Fred Jennes, M.Ed., L.Ac., Dipl.Ac. & C.H. There's an old saying that goes, "Just because it comes from the ground doesn't mean it's good for you." As a practitioner of Chinese medicine who prescribes herbs on a regular basis, I have become alarmed at the number of people I treat or talk to who are self-prescribing herbs, often with detrimental results. While I am pleased that people are looking for alternatives to traditional western medicine, I would like to add a word or two of caution to temper the enthusiasm I am seeing for all things natural. First, Chinese herbal medicine is a complete health care system that depends upon a clear understanding of a patient's illness and its underlying disharmonies. This means that for individual herb or multi-herb formulas to be effective an accurate diagnosis must be reached that matches the properties, or "energetics," of the herbs prescribed for that illness. For example, a person who has a viral cold with a fever may look to ginseng root for more energy to fight off the cold. But ginseng is a "tonifying" herb which in Chinese medical terms means that its energetics tend to "hold in" pathogenic influences, such as viruses. In addition, energetically ginseng is a "warm" herb by nature, and a person with a fever is already "hot" in Chinese medical terms. So in effect, the person with good intentions who has attempted to self-diagnose and treat with Chinese herbs has effectively lengthened and worsened his/her illness by their misuse. Another problem which has both Western and Oriental Medical practitioners worried is the growing abuse of Chinese herbs for recreational purposes. The herb most commonly employed in this scenario is ma huang, or ephedra. This herb is used by Chinese herbalists as a drug to treat breathing difficulties. From the patient who is coming down with the common cold, to one who is suffering from asthma, ma huang, when prescribed in judicious amounts, can be a very beneficial remedy. Unfortunately, because ma huang can also dilate blood vessels, increase heart rates, and raise blood pressure, it is appearing in ever-alarming frequency in "athletic enhancement" products which can be easily purchased by anyone regardless of health or age. These products can be deadly for persons with cardiovascular illnesses who take them unknowingly. In addition, teenagers have discovered these products as a way to intoxication, and so many have wound up in emergency rooms nationwide, that some states are moving to ban ma huang. While removing ma huang from the market may save lives, it will also compromise the health of many thousands of patients who properly received this beneficial herb for respiratory illnesses. Finally, there is a problem of culture and language, which makes proper selection of an herbal remedy difficult for the lay person. For example, many articles for lay persons state that ginseng is good for fatigue. But in addition to the issue of proper diagnosis as stated earlier, the patient now faces the problem of which ginseng to choose. For exhaustion in a normally healthy person panax ginseng, or ren shen, as it is known to Chinese herbalists, may be quite appropriate. But in some cases American ginseng, or xi yang shen, may be more appropriate, especially if the person exhibits heat and dryness signs. If the person is elderly and exhausted, a better choice might be Siberian ginseng, or si wu jia, which comes from the eleuthrococcus plant. As you can see, the task of finding the right Chinese herbal medicine is not as simple as one might think. While I don't want to discourage patients from trying these wonderful and effective herbal remedies, I encourage those who wish to use them to consult with a trained herbalist before leaping into the fray and ending up both poorer and sicker.
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