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TCM Medicine Safety

Dreambirdie

work in progress
Messages
5,569
Location
N. California
TCM has been my primary healing modality since 1984, so after studying it for over 25 years, I know a few things about it. :Retro wink::Retro smile::Retro smile: Here's the main things to consider when using Chinese herbs.

WHAT IS THE YOUR SOURCE OF CHINESE HERBS?

Unfortunately many Chinese herbs grown in China (where environmental standards are pathetically lacking) are contaminated with heavy metal and pesticide residues. Because I have MCS as well as CFS, I am extremely sensitive to these kinds of contaminants, and have had adverse reactions when I used herbs laced with toxins. The herbs that I never had any problems with are the powdered (freeze dried) ones put out by Sun Ten/Brion. As far as I know they are the ONLY company that successfully fought California's Prop 65 suit, and won. (read below)

"Of the numerous herbal companies sued to date, Sun Ten and Brion Herbs are the only companies who have successfully fought the Proposition 65 suit by proving that their products were not in violation of the California Law.

The allegations stated that all of Sun Ten and Brion Herbs herbal formulations and single herbs were in violation of Proposition 65. Over a period of three years, Sun Ten Labs and Brion Herbs Corp. engaged in a process of costly research and methods of verification of manufacturing processes, using an international team of esteemed soil experts, herbal experts, pre-eminent academic experts, and scientists in related fields to document that all their herbal products, processing practices, sources of herbs and the soils in which they were grown do not add any metal pollutants, and that the heavy metals that occur naturally in soils were reduced to the lowest levels possible. In this process they were able to demonstrate that all their products met the requirements of Proposition 65.

The winning of this case establishes that Sun Ten and Brion Herbs products are compliant with Proposition 65 requirements for heavy metals and that their manufacturing process supports the healthy results for which the products are intended."

Besides Sun Ten/Brion http://www.brionherbs.com/ Evergreen Herbs is another company that has a good reputation among the practitioners I see. http://www.evherbs.com/for_patients/why_evergreen.html
 

uni

Messages
52
Dreambirdie,

How well has Chinese medicine worked for you? I am interested in giving it a good try. I actually stumbled upon a book which explained chronic fatigue syndrome and the different TCM formulas you can use to treat it. It says treatment will likely take a few months. I would soo happy if I could get some real results with TCM. So far, the only thing that has noticeably helped me is hydrocortisone but I don't wish to take that continually.

I am currently in Asia right now, and its interesting, because at this hospital they have many TCM practitioners which are split into different specialties (just like conventional medicine). I am thinking of seeing doctors which specialize in metabolism, and rheumatology & immunology since there are some slight abnormalities with my immune system according to lab results.

Do you have any thoughts on what is going on in CFS, and which herbal formulas can be useful?

I am currently trialing bu zhong yi qi tang, liu wei di huang wan, and jia wei xiao yao san. This combination seems to make me feel even more tired, unfortunately. Maybe it is one of those - you feel worse before you feel better thing? I do seem to sleep better with this.

One of my biggest problems is blood sugar regulation. I remember noticing problems with hypoglycemia after I came down with a virus two years ago, and eventually progressing into CFS. I wonder if there are any good herbal formulas for this (along with fatigue, brain fog, poor exercise intolerance, excessive inflammation, etc.)


Thanks
 

Dreambirdie

work in progress
Messages
5,569
Location
N. California
Dreambirdie,

How well has Chinese medicine worked for you? I am interested in giving it a good try. I actually stumbled upon a book which explained chronic fatigue syndrome and the different TCM formulas you can use to treat it. It says treatment will likely take a few months. I would soo happy if I could get some real results with TCM. So far, the only thing that has noticeably helped me is hydrocortisone but I don't wish to take that continually.

I am currently in Asia right now, and its interesting, because at this hospital they have many TCM practitioners which are split into different specialties (just like conventional medicine). I am thinking of seeing doctors which specialize in metabolism, and rheumatology & immunology since there are some slight abnormalities with my immune system according to lab results.

Do you have any thoughts on what is going on in CFS, and which herbal formulas can be useful?

I am currently trialing bu zhong yi qi tang, liu wei di huang wan, and jia wei xiao yao san. This combination seems to make me feel even more tired, unfortunately. Maybe it is one of those - you feel worse before you feel better thing? I do seem to sleep better with this.

One of my biggest problems is blood sugar regulation. I remember noticing problems with hypoglycemia after I came down with a virus two years ago, and eventually progressing into CFS. I wonder if there are any good herbal formulas for this (along with fatigue, brain fog, poor exercise intolerance, excessive inflammation, etc.)


Thanks

Hi uni--

I use Chinese herbal formulas regularly, and they have helped me manage some of my symptoms. My TCM practitioner, who is very knowledgeable about ME and neuro immune system abnormalities, changes my herbal prescriptions according to what I need at the time. I don't use any pre-packaged formulas, as those are not effective for an illness as complex as ME, and also I do not trust their purity.

If you pursue working with a TCM practitioner, I suggest you find someone who has LOTS OF EXPERIENCE with ME. In my experience most of them do not. And that you use herbs from Sun Ten/Brion or Evergreen Herbs, which are the purest and most reliable. Please read my post above for more info about that.

When it comes to suggesting herbs for specific issues, that's extremely difficult to do, because there are so many variables involved--such as whether you have more of a yin deficient or yang deficient condition, or both, and which patterns of deficiency affect what organ systems. Herbal formulas need to be balanced with all of that in mind. If you have major problems with hypoglycemia, this would require dietary and lifestyle changes as well as herbs.

What has helped me personally with hypoglycemia is making sure I eat every 2 hours, including some protein in every meal and snack, and not eating more than one piece of fruit/day. I have also found that staying on top of my adrenals has an effect on my blood sugar. When they are down, due to stress of any kind, then I am more likely to have blood sugar issues. My practitioner takes this into account and includes adaptogens in my herbal prescriptions.

I hope that's helpful. I wish you well in your pursuit of finding what you need with TCM.
 

Dreambirdie

work in progress
Messages
5,569
Location
N. California
Hi uni--

Here's an interview with Heiner Freuhof, Ph.D., L. Ac., on how he treats "GU SYNDROME," something that might be translated as chronic infectious diseases. I don't know him personally, but have heard good things about him from people who have consulted with him. I think he is one of the few pre-packaged formula makers whose herbs I would trust. And I know he is very knowledgeable on ME.

http://www.classicalchinesemedicine.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/fruehauf_guinterview.pdf