What are Chinese herbs?

In China, it is difficult to discern food from herbs because Chinese herbs are often found in many Chinese dishes. They both have therapeutic effects and characteristics which have a direct relationship.  Food tastes better while herbs are mild in therapeutic effect, but the herbs with an unpleasant taste, offer more significant benefits to one's health.  For thousands of years, the Chinese people have been using herbs in their daily diet to camouflage their strong taste while still taking advantage of the strong action of the herbs.

Over the years, Chinese medical doctors have compiled the therapeutic functions of these herbs, thereby developing Chinese herbal formulas to provide the most effective treatment.  These Chinese herbal formulas are designed to treat symptoms for a particular health issue to meet the needs of each individual patient. These classic formulas have been used in practice for hundreds of years and have helped thousands of patients.

For more complete information about Chinese Medicine please refer to “How Chinese Medicine Works”

Are Chinese herbs safe?

I have been recommending Chinese herbs to my patients for the last four years, with no major side effects. I have observed some indigestion or mild diarrhea on rare occasions, but as a whole, Chinese herbs are no more unsafe than the foods we eat. At DuPage Acupuncture and Herbs, we work with our suppliers to ensure the quality and the purity of our herbs, and we offer a 100% guarantee on our products.

Will ingesting Chinese herbs have a harmful interaction with any of the prescription medications I am taking, including birth control?

In the many years I have been providing Chinese herbs to patients, I have never seen a harmful interaction with prescription drugs, nor have any of these herbs caused birth control medication to be rendered ineffective. However, if you have any concerns about these herbal remedies, please consult with your physician.

Patients who are taking prescribed medications to thin the blood, such as Coumadine, should consult with the doctors before taking Chinese herbs. Some of the Chinese herbs work to promote circulation, and very rarely, these herbs can cause internal bleeding if taken with Coumadine.

Are Chinese herbs discouraged for certain groups of people?

In China, special herb formulas are recommended for pregnant or nursing women to tone the blood and energy of the mother. However, in America, pregnant or nursing women should consult with their doctors before taking Chinese herbs due to lack of research on the effect of herbs for fetuses and infants. 

Are Chinese herbal medications taken with food?

The best time to take herbal medicine is before meals. This helps to enhance the absorption of the herbs into the body. However, some people feel more comfortable taking herbs after meals; this is also acceptable.

More importantly, one should regularly take the herbs as scheduled without skipping doses, rather than trying to decide when to take the herbs. For example, if you forget to take the herbs before a meal, take them after the meal - it is still better to take herbs on a full stomach than not at all.

The dosage is written on the bottle, however, since the herbs are so safe, can I increase the dosage in order to get better faster?

No - we recommend you to follow the dosage written on the bottle. Chinese herbs are safe; however, they have strong effects, and taking too much could cause an undesirable effect.

How long after starting to take the Chinese herbs before I will notice a change?

The longer you have had your health problems, the longer it will take to experience the herbs' helpful effects. Most people notice a difference between four to eight weeks. Personally, I have observed some patients to have a response as soon as a week of herbal treatment. Chinese herbs work to correct the root of these problems rather masking the symptoms of the problem. This process requires more time, but is more effective overall.

Most patients feel better if they maintain on small dose of herbs even after they are cured - in most cases, the herbs work to strengthen one's blood and energy, like the vitamins in our body.

There are many places that offer herbs for similar health problems. What differentiates your herbs from others?

It is true that you can purcase herbs from over-the-counter health food stores; however, these herbs are completely different from the Chinese herbs that we offer. Our products are actually combinations of specialized Chinese herbs, derived from formulas which use the optimal combination of ingredients to aid in treating specific health concerns. In contrast, over-the-counter herbs contain one singular herbal ingredient of less-potent, "Americanized" herbs; for someone to realize the same benefits from over-the-counter herbs as they would from our products, they would have to find, purchase, and combine them in a complex manner. In the unlikely event that someone could even find one of our herbal ingredients in a store, they would then have to spend a vast amount of time and money combining these herbs to even begin to have the same effects as our products offer.

Our herbs use classic Chinese formulas, which have originated from ancient Chinese medical textbooks and have been time-tested over thousands of years. These formulas are considered especially potent, and they effectively treat many common clinical problems.

Another important quality of our herbs is their unparalleled purity. Our manufacturer guarantees the formulas are composed of the highest quality medicinal materials. Every step of the manufacturing process is evaluated according to stringent standards in order to guarantee our herbs are free of pesticides as well as toxic metals and bio-burdens such as yeast, mold, E-Coli, salmonella, and staphylococcus.

Elsewhere, there is no certification to guarantee that herbs have not been sprayed with pesticides. Recently, many inferior herbal products have been found to be contaminated with heavy metals, or adulterated with unlabeled pharmaceutical compounds. Our manufacturer tests every incoming lot of herbs for over 200 different pesticides and for all toxic metals. A proportional sample is taken from each batch and assayed by independent FDA certified laboratories. The herbs are also subjected to additional testing to determine identity and purity.

Unfortunately, many herbs are treated with sulfur to give the herbs an appearance of freshness. As a result, they have shown unacceptably high levels of sulfites. At DuPage Acupuncture and Herbs, we make every effort to ensure that our herbs are comprehensively sulfite-free.

If you have a question that was not answered above, please feel free to contact us .