Herbology

In TCM herbology, health is ultimately determined by the balance of the body’s basic vital substances- qi (vital life-force energy), xue (blood), jing (essence), and jin-ye (body fluids). Poor conditions of health arise when any one of these substances become misaligned or weakened, causing an imbalance that impairs the synergistic functioning of body systems. TCM herbology aims to return functional synergy to body systems by restoring the correct balance of vital substances, thereby optimizing the fundamental processes that support health and wellbeing.

Patterns of imbalance help identify how illnesses begin, what trajectory they’re taking, and how functional health and wellbeing is impacted. Rather than just chase the manifesting symptoms of disease (branch), the goal in TCM herbology is to identify and treat the underlying pattern of imbalance (root). In this way, patterns of imbalance ensure all of a person’s needs are addressed simultaneously, with highly individualized and complete treatments geared towards prevention.

TCM herbology primarily relies on the use of various parts of plants, such as flowers, fruits, seeds, stems, twigs, branches, leaves, barks and roots, as well as various fungi species such as medicinal mushrooms. Over thousands of years of continual use, the therapeutic properties and actions of these substances were discovered through trial and error, and classified according to fundamental TCM theories. This process produced an elaborate system whereby herbs correspond to various body systems and their functions, and they can be matched with any number of patterns of imbalance.

To improve effectiveness and minimize unwanted effects, TCM herbology emphasizes combining herbs together into prescription medicines called formulas. Over millennia, thousands of TCM herbal formulas have been developed and used to help treat a wide variety of health problems, support wellbeing and promote longevity. Combined with their relative inexpensiveness and accessibility to everyone, TCM herbal formulas have become a staple in most industrialized households, with many now being studied for their effectiveness in the treatment of biomedically defined diseases.

TCM herbal formulas offer a wide spectrum of nutritional value and health benefits. Modern research has shown that many TCM herbs and formulas contain active components that display a wide spectrum of pharmacological effects. Combined with traditional indications of use, TCM herbal formulas have become an effective natural choice in both supporting a wide range of health benefits, as well as treating many different types of illnesses and conditions that are often closely associated with biomedically defined diseases.