Your patients' MDs, both General Practitioners and Specialists, need to know that you are participating in their patients' care. As our medicine is more and more tied into the electronic records' system and more of us are billing insurance, this is a lo… more »

Pictured above is the finest piece of ginseng art that I have ever witnessed.  Located in a museum dedicated to Prof. Zhao Zhongzhen's medicinal collection at Hong Kong Baptist University, this statue is larger than life and simply breathtaking.  It is… more »

By Honora Wolfe So if you're tired of learning how to market your practice on Facebook and LinkedIn...and especially if you live in a smaller town, here are some ideas for marketing yourself and your practice that can cost little or nothing. Some a… more »

>Eric Brand   This morning I received a comment about my blog on gynostemma from yesterday… my friend mentioned that he had only heard of gynostemma from a particular vendor who specialized in “adaptogens” and was known for the sale of ants. Yes, ants… more »

Alternative Chinese Name: 七叶胆 qī yè dǎn. English: gynostemma. Latin Pharmaceutical: Gynostemmatis Rhizoma seu Herba. Source: Gynostemma pentaphyllum (Thunb.) Mak. Nature and Flavor: Sweet, bitter; cold. Channel Entr… more »

Last weekend the internet was abuzz with articles about NFL players using velvet antler (Lu Rong) to enhance athletic performance. Apparently the antler contains naturally-occurring IGF-1, a performance-enhancing substance that is banned unless it comes… more »

Several plants in the mint family are used in Chinese medicine. Herbs in the mint family are recognizable by their square stems, and many mint products in Chinese medicine share similar medicinal actions. The most famous mint products in Chinese medicin… more »

  By Christian Nix In the fall of 2006, I first met with Juan Manuel Chuc, Guatemalan director of the Hospitalito of Santiago on Lake Atitlan. On the 6th of August 2008, he was the first patient I treated at the Hospitalito. Having slept fitfully the… more »

  By Eric Brand   The ancient nature of Chinese medicine makes it a challenging discipline. The classics often contain statements that are ambiguous, and many concepts can be elusive to a single definition. As a translator, classical Chinese mate… more »

Pǔ Jì Xiāo Dú Yǐn is a very eloquent and focused formula, but it rarely gets the recognition that it deserves. Originally created by Li Dong-Yuan in the 13th century, Pǔ Jì Xiāo Dú Yǐn was originally indicated for a diseas… more »

By Eric Brand Timing and method of harvest are important factors in herbal medicine. There was recently an interesting study on harvesting time published in Herbalgram- the article described the influence of the moon and time of harvest on medicinal… more »

By Eric Brand As Europe prepares for unprecedented restrictions on herb sales, the topic of herbs as "prescription only" remedies has surfaced again and again. It appears that many Chinese herbal products will be restricted in the EU, resulting in m… more »

By Eric Brand Generally speaking, the spleen, kidney, and liver are the three viscera that receive most of the attention in Chinese medical gynecology. While the spleen, kidney, and liver are indeed often the most important organs to assess in gynec… more »

By Eric Brand Just for fun... the properties of gold, silver, and quartz, as listed in the Zhong Yao Da Ci Dian (Great Encyclopedia of Chinese Medicinals): Gold: Bitter, neutral; enters the heart and liver. Settles the heart, quiets the spirit, an… more »

By Eric Brand Chinese medicine has a long history of maintaining secrecy around prized formulas and techniques. In the old lineage model of instruction, students spent years forming relationships with their teachers and the teachers would reserve th… more »

By Eric Brand Many of the products in the Blue Poppy Originals line were inspired from Chinese research journals. Bob Flaws often translated summaries of journal articles, and we have over 1400 articles available for free on the TCM Infoline at www.… more »

By Eric Brand While taking certain medicinals, a patient should avoid certain foodstuffs. Ancient literature specified that scallions were contraindicated when taking Chang Shan (Dichroae Radix); scallions, garlic, and Chinese radish were contraindic… more »

By Eric Brand The other day I read an interesting article by Andrew Weil entitled “why plants are (usually) better than drugs.” The article is an interesting read, and it touches upon why most modern pharmaceutical companies focus on synthetic deriva… more »

By Eric Brand Huang Qi is one of the most commonly used herbs in Chinese medicine. In fact, American herb companies often report that Huang Qi sales outpace all other single herbs, and data from 1997 in Taiwan suggests that Huang Qi was the #1 herb… more »