Herbal Medicine


Chinese Herbal Medicine

Medicinal Chinese herbs have been used for centuries to cure diseases and alleviate discomfort from various diseases, disorders, and trauma/pain. The scope of Chinese herbal medicine is one of the largest in the world, with the average practioner knowledgeable about 300 individual herbs. These herbs are generally combined in groups of 2-15 (sometimes more) to create a formula that addresses the patient’s specific issues and constitution.

Herbal formulas can be completely customized and subtly changed as progress is made, or circumstances change. In addition to custom formulas, many of the classic, time-tested, and well researched formulas are prescribed in pill or powder form.

When prescribed by a trained professional, Chinese herbal preparations are safe and effective. Side effects are extremely rare when taken as prescribed. In fact, the most commonly prescribed formulas have been used successfully for thousands of years. Acupuncture Physicians are extensively trained in herbal medicine safety and the potential interactions between Chinese herbs and pharmaceutical drugs.  We recommend herbs to many of our patients because they generally increase the effectiveness of acupuncture treatments and decrease required treatment time.  For certain conditions, herbal medicine alone can be an effective strategy (especially for children, herbal medicine is our primary tool). While typical results are relatively quick, long-term chronic conditions often take longer to correct.

We only sell American manufactured herbal products that are double laboratory tested for safety and potency.  We also offer herbal products that are manufactured from primarily organic ingredients. The cost of these herbs ranges from $30 - $50 dollars per month, much less than the average person spends on pharmaceutical co-pays. Herbal medicine is extremely effective without the serious risks of side effects and addictive potential for commonly prescribed drugs. According to recent reports, 106,000 deaths each year are the result of properly prescribed prescription drugs (#4 killer in the US).


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Western Herbals

In addition to prescribing Chinese herbal formulas we often use single Western herb extracts or combinations of several herbs together. We choose suppliers who provide only the best quality, high potency extracts that have proven to be exceptionally effective clinically.

The Hippocratic Corpus contained hundreds of medicinal herbs and their uses as far back as 400BCE. Since this time, the popularity of herbal medicine use has increased or decreased depending on the influences of the era. Medicine in Europe was suppressed during the middle ages, and the knowledge of the Greeks would have been lost, had it not been for the flourishing civilization of the Arab Meditaerranean where Christian, Jewish and Muslim doctors translated the Greek classics into Arabic and then Latin between the 9th and 12th centuries. This information was available in the first medical schools in Europe.

At the present, Germany is the most advanced system of Western herbal medicine with 500 herbs commonly used by medical doctors (and herbals are often used before synthetic pharmaceuticals are prescribed).

The most popular western herbs, like St. John’s Wort, gained popularity through use by Western MDs in Europe over the past 25 years. In Germany, St John’s Wort is prescribed much more often than SSRIs like Prozac or Lexapro, as it does not have the side effects of these anti-depressants, and has an added benefit of liver cleansing actions and immune stimulation.

When indicated we prescribe Western herbs, often in combination for difficult insomnia, adrenal dysfunction, fatigue, depression, anxiety, pain, digestive disorders, infections, lowered immunity, poor circulation, and other conditions. Occasionally we will combine a Chinese formula with a single Western herbal extract to boost clinical effect.