What is the difference between Western Herbal Medicine & Chinese Herbal Medicine?

Chinese Herbal Medicine originated in ancient China thousands of years ago and has been evolving ever since. It follows the view that our mind and body are connected and what happens to one part affects every other aspect, for example, it is believed that mental health can have an effect on the functions of internal organs.

Western Herbal Medicine uses predominantly European and Native American herbs, which have mostly evolved from the ancient Greeks, with Middle Eastern and Egyptian influences as well as having some ancient Roman heritage.

The main distinction between Western Herbal Medicine and Chinese Herbal Medicine is that Western herbals focus on symptoms based on a single remedy or herb, whereas, Chinese herbalists prefer unique herbal combinations for each individual. Chinese herbalists will use one or two main ingredients to target the condition and the others will be formulated to the person’s work, life and environmental variations.

In Western Herbal Medicine, the main ingredient is the focus to treat the presenting symptoms; whereas, in Chinese Herbal Medicine, the balance and interaction of all the ingredients are considered more important than the effectiveness of particular herbs.