Arthritis and Chinese Herbal Medicine - A Natural Alternative

« « Learning About Alternative Accupuncture and Chinese Medicine | Chinese Medicine for Anxiety - How Does It Work? » »

Arthritis and Chinese Herbal Medicine - A Natural Alternative

Thursday, January 3rd, 2008 Subscribe To Our Feed

Literally millions of Americans suffer from arthritis and related conditions. Daily they endure pain and stiffness in their joints as a result of their arthritis. As I sure you know there are hundreds of different remedies around and many of them can be bought over the counter at drug stores without the need of a Doctor’s prescription. Very few Americans, however, know about the many herbal remedies that the Chinese have used for centuries to help offer relief of the pain caused by arthritis.

The Philosophy of Arthritis and Chinese Herbal Medicine

The foundation belief of Chinese herbal medicine is the view that all manners of disease is as a result of an imbalance between major forces in our body—organ systems. For example heat versus cold, and the blockage of the flow of blood, and Qi (pronounced “chee”) the life force. Chinese herbal medicine has longed viewed the occurrence of arthritis as result of the restriction of the flow of blood and Qi due to the presence of an over-abundance of cold.

Arthritis and Chinese Herbal Medicine — Common remedies and how to find them

Arthritis and Chinese herbal medicine remedies are available in extremely complex formulations. The most common formulations are Si Miao Wan, Guan Jie Yan Win, and Du Huo Ji Sheng Wan.

Most of these formulations are available as drinking teas, extracts or tablets, which you can purchase from a wide range of sources including online, from traditional Chinese medicine supply stores, or from Asian grocery stores. Arthritis and Chinese herbal medicine formulations usually include some or all of the following herbs:

* Yi yi ren (Coix lachrymal jobi/Seeds of Jobs Ears seed)
* Qin jiao (Gentiana macrophylla/bitter root)
* Wu zhu yu (Evodia rutaecarpa fruit)
* Fang ji (Stephania tetrandra root)
* Cang zhu (Atractylodes lancea rhizome)
* Fu ling (Poria cocos fungus)
* Du zhong (Eucommia ulmoides bark)
* Hai tong pi (Erythrina variegata/coral bean bark)
* Gui zhi (Cinnamomum cassia/cinnamon twig)
* Xiang jia pi (Periploca sepium root-bark)
* Huai niu xi (Achyranthes bidentata root)
* Huang qin (Scutellaria baicalensis/skullcap root)
* Du huo (Angelica pubescens root)
* Shu di huang (Rehmannia glutinosa root)
* Dang shen Codonopsis pilosula root)
* Bai shao (Paeonia lactiflora root)
* Fang feng (Ledebouriella divaricata root)
* Chuan xiong (Ligusticum wallichii rhizome/lovage root)
* Sheng jiang (Zingiber officinale rhizome/ginger root)
* Sang ji sheng (Taxillus chinensis twig/Mulberry twig)
* and Gan cao (Glycyrrhiza uralensis root/licorice root)

A word of recommendation is that you should try to learn the Chinese, and where available, the English and the scientific names of these Chinese Medicine remedies. This way, you will be able to communicate both with Chinese merchants and your health care provider. Of course, you should always consult with your Doctor to get an accurate diagnosis of your arthritic condition and before you take any Chinese medicine treatments you should always check with your doctor to ensure that your alternative medicine will not adversely react with any other medications you may be taking.

We wish you well on your healing journey and hope you are able to benefit from the alternative treatments available.