Chinese Herbal Medicine
Chinese Herbal Medicine is one of the core practices of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Here in the UK, acupuncture is probably the best-known aspect of Chinese medicine, but Chinese herbs have a 3000-year history of use and are safe and effective for many different health conditions. Your bespoke prescription will be a blend of herbs to address the underlying root causes of your health concerns and to relieve your symptoms. Your herbs will generally be provided in single-dose, easy-to-use sachets, sent to your home address from a UK-based herbal pharmacy.
Traditional-style raw herbs, these need soaking and cooking before use.
A sachet of herbal granules, just add hot water and drink.
There are hundreds of Chinese herbs in regular use. Some are plants that we are familiar with here in the UK – mulberry, peony, ginger, liquorice, cinnamon, honeysuckle, chrysanthemum, citrus peel... others are not grown here. I do not use any animal products, I believe there are always plant-based alternatives and only offer plant-based medicine.
Although this is an ancient traditional medicine, modern science shows us that plants have a whole range of pharmacological actions; they can contain powerful compounds which are anti-viral, anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory, anti-coagulant, anti-hypertensive, diuretic, hormone-like, laxative, vasodilatory… the list goes on. Many plant compounds have been isolated and synthesised to make Western medicines we are all familiar with such as aspirin or morphine, but when using the whole plant (or part of it) rather than just one isolated compound, side effects can be minimised.
Western medicine is amazing, but for many autoimmune illnesses such as rheumatoid arthritis or Sjogren’s syndrome; for post-viral illnesses such as ME/CFS and long covid; for chronic conditions such as Lyme disease, fibromyalgia, migraine, or eczema; and for women’s health, including managing the transition through menopause, Chinese herbal medicine gives us another way to improve our health, reduce symptoms and have a better quality of life.
The Register of Chinese Herbal Medicine (RCHM) is the main regulating body here in the UK. They set standards in professional training and practice, provide regular safety updates for herbalists, and maintain a list of approved suppliers. By choosing a herbalist who qualified via an RCHM approved course and uses an RCHM approved pharmacy, you can be sure you are being treated safely and effectively.