Visiting
a Chinese pharmacy in the Republic of China is much
like being inside a miniature museum of natural science.
Tucked away in row after row of tidy drawers are animal,
plant, and mineral products, each with a particular
purpose. Among the assortment of curiosities are cinnabar
and amber, to relax the nerves; peach pits and safflower,
to improve blood circulation; bear gall to relieve
pain and tranquilize; Chinese ephedra (mahuang) to
induce perspiration; and ginseng to strengthen cardiac
function.
The filling of a prescription ordered by a Chinese
doctor is a fascinating process to watch. The pharmacist
selects a few particular ingredients from the hundreds
on his shelf. These are taken home by the patient,
boiled into a 'soup', and consumed. Confronted with
such a steaming brew, you might ask yourself just
what the basis of this ancient medical art is. The
theoretical framework of Chinese medicine was established
more than two millennia ago. A great deal of ancient
medical knowledge is preserved in the pre-Chin (221-207
B.C.) Inner Cannon (Nei Ching), a comprehensive record
of Chinese medical theories up to that time. The Han
dynasty (206 B.C.-220 A.D.) produced an authoritative
and valuable practical guide-even to the present day-to
the treatment of illness, the Treatise on Diseases
Caused by Cold Factors (Shang Han Lun) by Chang Chung-ching.
One of the best-known Chinese medical works is the
Materia Medica (Pen Tsþao Kang Mu), compiled
in the Ming dynasty (1368-1644 A.D.) by Li Shih-chen.
This encyclopedic work heralded a new era in the world
history of pharmacology; it includes descriptions
of 1,892 different kinds of medicines. These works
have all been translated into several foreign languages,
and have exercised a profound influence on East Asian
and European countries. The Chinese have a unique
system of categorizing illnesses that is widely divergent
from its Western counterpart. The philosophy behind
Chinese medicine is that man lives between heaven
and earth, and comprises a miniature universe in himself.
The material of which living things are made is considered
to belong to the yin? or female, passive, receding
aspect of nature. The life functions of living things,
on the other hand, are considered to belong to tang?
or masculine, active, advancing aspect. The functions
of living beings are described in terms of the following
five centers of the body: . 'heart' or 'mind' (hsin);
this refers to the 'command center' of the body, which
manifests itself as consciousness and intelligence;
2. 'lungs' or 'respiratory system' (fei); this system
regulates various intrinsic functions of the body,
and maintains cybernetic balance; 3. 'liver' (kan);
this term includes the limbs and trunk, the mechanism
for emotional response to the external environment,
and the action of organs; 4. 'spleen' (p); this organ
system regulates the distribution of nutrition throughout
the body, and the metabolism, bringing strength and
vigor to the physical body; and 5. 'kidneys' (shen);
this refers to the system for regulating the storage
of nutrition and the use of energy; the human life
force depends on this system. This theory is used
to describe the system of body functions, and as a
whole is referred to as the 'latent phenomena' (tsang
hsiang). The passage of the seasons and changes in
the weather can have an influence on the human body.
Those having the most pronounced effect are wind (feng),
cold (han), heat (shu), moisture (shih), dryness (tsao),
and internal heat (huo 'fire'). Excessive or extraordinary
changes in the weather harm the body, and are referred
to as the 'six external disease-causing factors' (liu
yin). On the other hand, if mood changes within the
individual, such as happiness (hsi), anger (nu), worry
(yu), pensiveness (szu), grief (pei), fear(kung),
and surprise (ching) are too extreme, they will also
harm good health. These emotions are called the 'seven
emotions' (chchng). In Chinese medicine, the six external
disease-causing factors, interacting with the seven
emotions, form the theoretical foundation of disease
pathology. These theoretical models, coupled with
the 'theory of latent phenomena,' are used to analyze
the patientþs constitution and his illness,
and diagnose the exact nature of his overall physical
and psychological loss of balance. Based on this analysis,
the doctor can prescribe a method to correct the imbalance.
The object of Chinese medicine is the person, not
just the illness. In Chinese medical thinking, illness
is only one manifestation of an imbalance that exists
in the entire person.
According
to Chinese legend, Shen Nung, the Chinese father of
agriculture and leader of an ancient clan, took it
upon himself to test, one by one, hundreds of different
plants to discover their nutritional and medicinal
properties. Many of these turned out to be poisonous
to humans. Over the millennia, Chinese have used themselves
as guinea pigs in this same way to continue testing
plants for their properties of inducing cold (han),
heat (jeh), warmth (wen), and coolness (liang). They
classified the medicinal effects of the plants on
the various parts of the body, then tested them to
determine their toxicity, what dosages would be lethal,
and so forth. For example, the stem of Chinese ephedra
is a sudorific; but its roots, to the contrary, can
check perspiration. Cassia bark is warming in nature,
and is useful in treating colds. Mint is cooling in
nature, and is used to relieve the symptoms of illness
resulting from heat factors. This accumulation of
experience strengthened the Chinese understanding
of natural phenomena, and increased the applications
of natural principles in Chinese medicine. The same
principles described in the preceding are also applied
to assess the patientþs living environment,
his life rhythms, the foods he prefers or avoids,
his personal relationships, and his language and gestures,
as a tool in better understanding his illness, and
suggesting improvements in various areas. Once the
excesses or imbalances are pinpointed, they can be
adjusted, and physical and mental health and balance
restored. This attainment of equilibrium in the bodyþs
flow of energy is the ultimate guiding principle of
Chinese medical treatment. In addition to the prescription
of medicines, acupuncture is another frequently used
tool of treatment in Chinese medicine. Its history
antedates written Chinese language, but acupuncture
was not fully developed until after the Han dynasty.
Its theoretical base is the adjustment of hi, or the
flow of life energy. Ci flows through the body via
the system of 'main and collateral channels' (ching
luo) of the body. At certain points along these channels,
acupuncture needles may be inserted, or Chinese mugwort
(ai tso) burned in moxibustion, to adjust imbalances
in the flow of ci, and concentrate the bodyþs
self-healing powers in the points where needed.
In 1980,
the World Health Organization released a list of 43
types of pathologies which can be effectively treated
with acupuncture. The use of acupuncture as anesthesia
during surgery or for painless childbirth is no longer
ews.?Acupuncture is simple to administer, has few
side effects, and has broad applications. It has opened
up a whole new ot?field of scientific and medical
research. In the Republic of China on Taiwan, the
government has put great efforts into promoting the
modernization of Chinese medicine. As a result, there
are now people trained in both traditional Chinese
and modern Western medical arts who have made commendable
contributions to the treatment of hepatitis, high
blood pressure, cancer, and other diseases that are
so far difficult to treat. In the area of pharmacology,
researchers have evaluated effectiveness, analyzed,
tested, and formulated concentrated dosages of Chinese
pharmaceutical products for commercial sale. The prescriptions
for these drugs are easier to fill, and are much more
convenient for the patient than the old boiling method.
In the area of basic scienc, modern research is being
conducted in the field of pulse diagnosis. The three
fingers used in the past to determine illness through
feeling of the pulse are now being replaced by pressure
reactors. The pressure reactor converts variances
in pulse pressure into electromagnetic waves, and
registers them on a screen. This data is then analyzed
by a computer. Many important new discoveries have
been made through unique combinations of traditional
and modern science. In the Republic of China, the
marriage of modern scientific precision with the art
of traditional Chinese medicine is on the threshold
of opening up a whole new world of medical diagnosis
and treatment.
|About
Doctor | Herb Medicine
| Rectal-Cancer
Knowledge | Culture
About It |
|Chinese Drug Therapy
| Chinese Patent Formulas
|Contact
us|
Homepage|
