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