Herbal Medicine Continued
Herbs are best used in a traditional clinical context where patients are clinically evaluated both constitutionally and according to their disease symptoms. This wholistic approach to healing, weighs and measures various factors that encompass the entire demeaner and expression of a patient and may use highly skilled methods of observation, listening and and palpation that may take into account emotional factors, various sensitive areas of the body, complexion, tongue and pulse as traditional diagnostic parameters.
Herbs are then usually prescribed in formulas classified according to their four energies (hot-warm-neutral-cool-cold), their drying or moistening effects, the five flavors (sweet, pungent, salt, sour, bitter) and the areas of the body upon which they exert specific stimulatory actions on different organic processes. It comes as no surprise therefore that what may be considered as a weed in one context, such as dandelion, it used as a powerfully effective medicinal herb, especially valuable for the liver and kidneys. Since herbs are therapeutically utilized similarly to foods, an herbalist may offer relevant dietary guidelines.
Many states now recognize herbal medicine along with acupuncture and naturopathy as a licensed profession. Increasingly herbs are working their way back into conventional medical practice, which is certainly the case in some European countries such as France and Germany for instance. In the United States, while not a stand alone licensed profession, increasingly we find skilled community herbalists serving the needs of the family, friends and broader community in much the same way as has occurred since the dawn of recorded history.
Where Tradition and Science Come Together
East West Herb and Acupuncture Clinic
