There are more than 25,000 Chinese herbal formulas that have been documented. By definition, an herbal formula will contain at least two different individual herbs. Most herbal formulas contain six to twelve herbs in various combinations.

Herbal combinations can come in several forms: Decoctions (tang), which are solutions or suspensions that are easily absorbed. Plasters (gao), which are used externally for such things as abscesses, boils, and painful joints or muscles. Powders (san), which are easily absorbed and pills (wan), which are pulverized and come in various sizes. In my practice, I only use “Wan”, also known as Chinese Prepared Herbs. These are preformulated and generally in the form of tablets, capsules, pills, tinctures and freeze-dried herbs. They are easy to take, no bad taste, and easy to take with you to work etc.

Certain herbs have particular influences on specific organs. These actions and functions have been tested time and again through the millennium. The terminology may sound a little strange to those of us in the western world because we are not used to hearing of medical conditions like “Deficient Kidney Yin” or “Liver Fire Rising.” We are not used to getting a prescription for herbs to be taken home, boiled and drunk as a tea. It is simply a different language, the language of a healing art that has existed thousands of years before anyone ever heard of allopathic, chiropractic, homeopathic and all the others.