Herbal medicine

Plants have been used for healing in China for more than 5000 years. And herbal medicine is at the heart of Chinese medicine. About 80% of all treatments consist solely of the use of herbal formulations or of ready-made preparations. In special pharmacies with which I work, herbs, consisting on average of four to fourteen ingredients, are prepared or compounded in the form of granules, boiled teas, powders, and in original form.

The herbal formulations and finished preparations of Chinese medicine should not be confused with phytotherapy, which is recognized in Germany as a special therapeutic direction. Herbal medicine follows the long tradition developed observing the effects and effectiveness, which so far hardly found a place in the school medicine and pharmacy.

Nevertheless, we are on a good path. Science has an increasing interest in researching traditional Chinese medicinal herbs, especially after the Nobel Prize for Medicine of 2015. We, as naturopaths, are currently still engaged in the traditional teachings and findings, have all a watchful eye on the research results of phytotherapy and phytopharmacology. I will report updates concerning the matter in the future, and please never hesitate to contact me.