Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is thousands of years old and has changed little over the centuries. Its basic concept is that a vital force of life, called Qi, surges through the body. Any imbalance in Qi can cause disease and illness. This imbalance is most commonly thought to be caused by an alteration in the opposite and complementary forces that make up the Qi. These are called yin and yang.
Ancient Chinese believed that humans are microcosms of the larger surrounding universe, and are interconnected with nature and subject to its forces. The balance between health and disease is a key concept. TCM treatment seeks to restore this balance through treatment specific to the individual.
It is believed that to regain balance, you must achieve the balance between the internal body organs and the external elements of earth(spleen, stomach), fire(heart, small intestine), water(Kidney, bladder), wood(liver and gall bladder), and metal(lungs and larger intestine).
Chinese herbal medicine is part of a larger healing system called Traditional Chinese Medicine. Herbs are prescribed to restore energy balance to the opposing forces of energy – Yin and Yang – that run through invisible channels in the body.
Herbs are simply plants and vegetables. Herbs are classified according to their natural properties, flavors, directions of qi movement, meridian tropism and therapeutic actions. Traditionally, a group of herbs, not a single herb, are selected as a formula for a given condition based on the diagnosis
