| Arthritis And Chinese Herbal Medicine
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By: Roger Thompson
Most people with joint pain are diagnosed with arthritis, which
is a general term for a number of different conditions that
involve swollen, painful, and/or stiff joints. The two most
common forms of arthritis are rheumatoid arthritis, which
affects more than 6.5 million people in the United States alone;
and osteoarthritis, which is an age-related degeneration of
joints. One in seven Americans is afflicted with osteoarthritis,
and some are virtually housebound by joint pain. In the West,
anti-inflammatory drugs are commonly prescribed for arthritis.
In the East, acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine, with their
thousand-year-old history, are the major health care modalities
used to fight joint and musculo-skeletal disorders including
arthritis. These ancient therapies are still used because they
are empirically effective, and have stood the test of time. Now
they are standing to meet the tests of Western medicine.
In traditional Chinese medicine, the condition that is
congruent with arthritis is called "Bi syndrome." Bi syndrome
manifests as pain, soreness, or numbness of muscles, tendons and
joints, and is the result of the body being "invaded" by the
external climatological factors of Wind, Cold, Heat, and/or
Dampness. The symptoms manifested by the individual depend on
which external pathogenic factor is strong. Chinese herbal
medicine views disease as an imbalance between major forces in
our body[ch8212]organ systems, heat versus cold, and the blockage of
the flow of blood, and Qi (pronounced "chee"), the life force.
Chinese herbal medicine views arthritis as restriction of the
flow of blood and Qi due to an over-abundance of cold.
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 teas, extracts or tablets,
which you can purchase online, from supply stores for
traditional Chinese medicine, 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), Fang ji (Stephania
tetrandra root) , Cang zhu (Atractylodes lancea rhizome),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),Qin
jiao (Gentiana macrophylla/bitter root) ,Wu zhu yu (Evodia
rutaecarpa fruit) ,Huang qin (Scutellaria baicalensis/skullcap
root) , Du huo (Angelica pubescens root) , Sheng jiang (Zingiber
officinale rhizome/ginger root) , Sang ji sheng (Taxillus
chinensis twig/Mulberry twig, Shu di huang (Rehmannia glutinosa
roo)t, Dang shen Codonopsis pilosula root), Fu ling (Poria cocos
fungus), Du zhong (Eucommia ulmoides bark), Bai shao (Paeonia
lactiflora root), Fang feng (Ledebouriella divaricata root),
Gentiana macrophylla root, Chuan xiong (Ligusticum wallichii
rhizome/lovage root), and Gan cao (Glycyrrhiza uralensis
root/licorice root).
You should learn both the Chinese, and where available, the
English and the scientific names of the Chinese Medicine
remedies for arthritis. This way, you will be able to
communicate both with merchants and your health care provider.
Of course, your first consultation about your arthritis should
be with your health care provider. He or she can insure that any
arthritis and Chinese medicine treatments you take are safe and
effective and do not interact with any other medications you may
be taking. We wish you well on your healing journey.
About The Author: Roger Thompson advises consumers on jobs in
the health care, hospital and medical sectors for portal
http://www.idohealthcare.com/
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