Category: Healing Medicine

Posted on

Herbal Medicine: How Do We Know It Works?

medicinal herbs

I often lecture in hospitals or to groups schooled in conventional medical thinking. Although they are intrigued by herbal medicine, one of the first questions they ask is, “How do you know that herbs really work?”

This is a valid question. It’s not enough to say, “Well, this herbal remedy worked for my grandparents, so it will work for me.” Although there may be validity in this way of thinking, it certainly won’t stand up to the scientific, research based approach of modern medicine. First, it’s important to understand that traditional medical systems, such as Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), Ayurveda, or the tradition of American Eclectic Medicine, are based on complex, but practical medical assumptions and theories; they are organized systems, acquired from hundreds, if not thousands of years of development through direct experience with patients.

Continue reading “Herbal Medicine: How Do We Know It Works?”

Posted on

Are Statins Safe?

Hand with Heart

The straightforward answer to this question is “NO.” Statins are not benign, health protective medications, as the pharmaceutical companies would have you believe. If the decision were left up to the makers of Lipitor, Zocor, Crestor, Pravachol, and other cholesterol-lowering drugs, statins would be prescribed for every American (including children), handed out with fast-food meals, and added to our water supply. I’m not exaggerating—these absurd measures have actually been suggested at one time or another. The pharmaceutical industry, mainstream medicine, and even many governmental agencies are pushing the belief that lowering cholesterol (most often with statins) is the best way to protect against heart disease.

As a result, statins have become wildly popular drugs, so much so that Lipitor is the world’s all-time biggest selling prescription medication. An astonishing one out of every four Americans over the age of 45 currently takes a statin drug.

It’s time to dispel some popular myths regarding cholesterol, heart disease, and statin drugs.

Continue reading “Are Statins Safe?”

Posted on

Western and Eastern Medicine: Finding Union

I’m intent on helping people to live fully, and I untiringly seek ways to optimize health, vitality, and wellbeing in every aspect of existence. My life’s work as an herbalist and healer, supported by decades of scientific research and infused by my spiritual practices, have culminated in the creation of the Eclectic Triphasic Medical System, a unique healing approach that draws from both the Western and the Eastern traditions of medicine.

These philosophies are at opposite ends of the medical spectrum. But instead of choosing one over the other, I’ve found that it is the synthesis of these two approaches that facilitates the greatest healing, by providing me with a wide spectrum of tools from which to draw. There’s no question that Western medical technology can be extremely useful, and even life saving. But there is much more than technology involved in true healing, and this is where I find great value in the Eastern approach to medicine.

Continue reading “Western and Eastern Medicine: Finding Union”

Posted on

The Spirit of Eclectic Medicine

Both Eastern and Western healing traditions have long known that strengthening vitality is the basis for improving health and recovering from illness or injury. Early American herbal systems such as the Eclectic tradition understood this concept as central to healing. In my 25 years of clinical practice, I’ve found that enhancing vitality, although often ignored in modern medicine, is essential for health. As such, the Eclectic model has provided me with a wealth of information that informs my healing practice today.

As their name implies, the Eclectics encouraged exploration of every system of medicine, regardless of its origins, to discover and apply the most useful principles for the wellbeing of humanity. The basic principles of Eclectic medicine can be distilled to these simple precepts:

  • Nature is the great physician who, if permitted and not interfered with, provides for our physical requirements.
  • Disease (dis-ease) of whatever nature is caused by a lack of equilibrium (an imbalance), the result of an abnormal condition in the body, or the result of congestion due to poor elimination.
  • These conditions of dis-ease can be truly cured only by the use of plants or other agents that conform to the laws of life and assist the powers of nature.
  • A physician is spiritually inclined; he or she loves and lives for their profession. Their feelings are always for those who suffer and their intention is to bring as much relief to the ill as may be in their power.