Our ancestors separated medicinal herbs from food. In early human history, people sought foods to ease their hunger, and only gradually found foods that nourished them and cured illnesses, as well as foods that caused problems. They divided foods into two groups: those that nourish and are for daily consumption; and those that we now call medicinal herbs, which have strong effects and should not be consumed frequently or without cause. Otherwise, Those herbs can cause health problems or even poison our body.
Although medicinal herbs are grown and processed naturally, most of them cannot be consumed regularly without potentially serious side effects. Ingesting powerful herbs is dangerous to your health. Only a very few herbs, such as wolfberries, can be consumed regularly and even then, only in limited amounts. These are called tonic herbs, and they can be found in many grocery stores. Traditional Chinese doctors can tell us which tonic herbs each of us may take regularly.
Medicinal herbs need special process to enhance their healing effects as well as minimizing their side effects or even poisonous ingredients. Unknowingly, some Americans casually plant their own medicinal herbs at home and then consume them directly in their kitchen. This may cause serious health problems. Nowadays, many of the young Americans even consume marijuana, one of the worst herbs on earth, that used to be banned in the USA and still banned in many countries throughout the world. China has strict regulation on marijuana and do not want any marijuana to appear in its land. The Chinese Consulate General in the USA warned the Chinese citizens in the America of the short-term and long-term severe and harmful effects of consuming marijuana, as well as its strict regulations on marijuana. Also, check out the post I wrote on marijuana and its consumptions right after marijuana is legalized in some states in the America.
Most herbal formulas prescribed by doctors, as well as herbal products readily available for purchase, cannot be taken daily for very long. Every time a patient visits a traditional Chinese doctor, the doctor may change the herbal formula depending on the current state of the client’s health. We should see experienced doctors since they are best able to prescribe the right formula for each individual at different stages of health and ill-health at different times of the year. A particular formula may be good today, but not be as good or may even be harmful next month, in a different season, next year, or for someone else. If the wrong herbs are taken for your health issues, these same herbs can be toxic and harm you, even though they were helpful for someone else in a different situation at a different time.
An herbal formula was the last resort for treating disease throughout the history of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Traditional Chinese doctors applied many other kinds of treatment before using an herbal formula because of potential side effects. They treated patients by:
- Changing a patient’s diet, exercise, and habits.
- Working from outside the body through the skin, such as by massage, acupuncture, cupping, moxibustion, or herbal patches.
- Using herbal remedies, a more serious action, if 1 and 2 above did not cure the illness or the illness was already deep inside the body.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, it is not herbal medicines themselves that cure disease, it is our body. Herbal medicines enable us to do what our body and mind want to do but cannot. We use the strong effects and movements of herbs along certain meridians to move energy and blood to the affected area, such as to the Liver. Once that energy reaches a weakened area, it restores the affected part. Only the body can heal itself. Herbal medicine is just another tool for traditional Chinese doctors to coax the body into curing itself.
If you suffer from extreme lethargy or have a serious energy blockage, herbs cannot carry enough energy to the sick area for a complete return to health. This is why there is a Chinese proverb: “real medicine cures a non-severe illness; but there is no medicine to cure a serious disease.”
Herbs facilitate strong energy movements that use life energy and blood to restore the body to full health. Long-term use of medicinal herbs, as well as acupuncture and other medical treatments, can consume life energy and all too easily become harmful. If there are other treatments, such as energy healing and changes to diet and exercise, medicinal herbs may not be necessary. There are many ancient Chinese sayings about food and herbal medicine: “If it is medicine, there are toxins in it,” and “food is the best medicine.” The ancient Greek doctor Hippocrates also wrote, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.”
Know your own body and its (potential) health problems, select the right foods, exercise, and daily activities for your own condition. This not only will improve your health but also make a long illness life possible. If you haven’t, start to learn your health conditions in your body’s energy system and act accordingly with the help of my book: Total Life Energy Plan. If you are severely ill, my strong energy healing can help! Never hesitate to reach out to me about your health conditions, especially severe illnesses. I have been helping people with various health conditions that range from terminal diseases to extremely healthy.
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