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Thursday, August 30, 2007

Treatment of syphilis with tufuling (Smilax glabra Roxb. rhizome)

Tufuling or Rhizoma Smilacis Glabrae has been used in China as a detoxicant to treat diseases like syphilis for centuries, with a recorded use history dating back to around the 5th century A.D.

Venereal diseases were seldom encountered in China during its 5-decade closed door communist rule. Then, along with the increased outside contact and trading, these diseases gradually reappeared in recent years. This is a report by a Chinese physician, Dr. Wang Qing-Quan, from the Nanping Second Municipal Hospital of Fujian Province, who treated 30 cases of syphilis with tufuling reportedly with great success.

The patients were all male, 22 to 56 years old. Duration of disease ranged from 6 weeks to 4 years; 18 were primary and 12 secondary. The treatment consisted of a daily dose of 250 g of tufuling decocted and drunk warm 30 minutes before breakfast, lunch and dinner. Each course of treatment lasted 20 days; and efficacy was evaluated after 3 courses of treatment. A blood test for syphilis was performed after each course of treatment and again every 3 and 6 months during the first and second year of follow up respectively. According to Dr. Wang, 27 of the 30 patients (90%) were cured after tufuling treatment, as evidenced by disappearance of symptoms and negative blood tests after a 2-year follow-up. The remaining 3 patients (2 primary and 1 secondary) switched to penicillin midway during the herb treatment due to the inconvenience in decocting and taking the herbal medication (which essentially increased the efficacy rate to 100% for those who received the herbal treatment).

The reason that this report attracted my attention is that I have been aware of tufuling and other Smilax spp. (e.g., sarsaparilla) traditionally being used in treating syphilis in China and in other countries. I am also aware of the fact that there has not been any modern clinical evidence to support this use. Another factor that prompted me to select this article is the herb was used here singly (uncommon in Chinese medicine) along with the employment of modern diagnostic techniques, which confirmed that it was syphilis that Dr. Wang was treating.

This is not the first report on using tufuling to successfully treat syphilis in modern times. Earlier reports appeared in the 1950's and early 1960's. I am sure one can find more cases treated and reported in the past few years if one scans the Chinese literature. Even though, as expected, this herbal treatment is much slower to take effect than modern antibiotic therapy, it can serve as an alternative, especially for those patients who are allergic to antibiotics or others who simply don't want to take any modern antibiotics.

These and more herbal remedies are available from the volumes of Dr. Leung’s newsletter, of the same name as this blog (Leung’s Chinese Herb News). This newsletter was published and sent to subscribers (most were industry-insiders) from 1996 to 2004. The collected works now serve as an excellent reference work, created with Dr. Leung’s frank, honest opinions and down-to-earth communication style.

For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit http://www.earthpower.com/. To order the newsletter containing the remedies mentioned above, visit the bookstore, click “Buy Now” on the newsletter, and select Issue # 35 from the drop down list.

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Use of Latin Drug Names

This story is reprinted in its entirety from the May/June 2002 issue of the hardcopy edition of "Leung's Chinese Herb News". In it, Dr. Leung lays out a simple solution to the complex problem of improper identification of herbal materials used in traditional medicine. -ed

Most of this problem of nonspecific definition of herbal materials can be alleviated, if not eliminated, by returning to the use of Latin pharmaceutical names. I don't know why this fell out of favor during the past few decades in the United States. Could it be because we have been sidetracked by pursuing active principles during this time and found it no longer necessary to specifically name the plant part? After all, as long as one can obtain, say, ephedrine from an Ephedra species, what does one care which part of the plant it comes from? And for that matter, which plant species yields it?

However, natural medicines have recently made a comeback and are here to stay. Unfortunately, most modern scientists trained in botany and pharmacognosy have no training and experience in the practice of traditional herbal medicine. They may be excellent botanists or phytochemists, but they don't have the relevant comprehensive training and knowledge to deal with herbal medicines except using them as raw material sources for pharmacologically active chemicals.

The most relevant modern field appears to be ethnobotany, pioneered by the late Dr. Richard Evans Schultes. Since most of the research and subjects in this field relate to jungle medicines, it is imperative to be able to return to the same location and collect the same plant material, should preliminary chemical and pharmacological results indicate it to be promising as a modern pharmaceutical agent, hence the 'voucher specimen', deposited in a reputable herbarium. This system was pioneered by Dr. Schultes, and, for the past four to five decades, has served us well as the gold standard in phytochemical research. However, this system does not address the needs of traditional herbal medicines of the Old World, such as China and India where the resources of herbal medicines are well documented and a single plant species often supplies two or more drugs that are sometimes very different, or different plant species supplying the same drug. This Latin-binomial-and-voucher-specimen system can only serve as one of several elements for defining a particular herbal drug.

Consequently, in the current scientific research in the validity of traditional herbal medicines, just assigning an herbal drug a Latin binomial and depositing a voucher specimen of the plant in an herbarium is not enough and often is not even relevant. We must specify clearly from what part of the plant and how it has been prepared. It appears that we are the only major country in the world which does not use Latin pharmaceutical names. China does, and so does Germany. It's time we realized the importance of plant parts in modern CAM research and relearned Latin drug names and started to use them in our research and in this field.

More of Dr. Leung's observations and opinions are available from the volumes of Dr. Leung’s newsletter, of the same name as this blog (Leung’s Chinese Herb News). This newsletter was published and sent to subscribers (most were industry-insiders) from 1996 to 2004. The collected works now serve as an excellent reference work, created with Dr. Leung’s frank, honest opinions and down-to-earth communication style.

For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com. To order the newsletter containing the article above, visit the bookstore, click “Buy Now” on the newsletter, and select Issue # 38 from the drop down list.

Thursday, August 23, 2007

Herbs for Cardiovascular Health - Part 3 of 3

NOTE: This is an excerpt of an article originally published in 1998 in Dr. Leung's newsletter, "Leung's Chinese Herb News", Issue 12, page 3. It is the third and final in a series of excerpts on cardiovascular health. The first excerpt provided a summary of herbs used in cardiovascular health, while the second excerpt discussed hyperlipidemia. Today's excerpt covers hypertension. The information is as useful today as when it was written. -ed

Chrysanthemum flower, kudzu root, and duzhong are a few of the most commonly used herbs for treating high blood pressure.

Chrysanthemum flower
It is one of my favorite herbs to recommend for hypertension because it is simple to use. Simply place a few flowerheads in a pot of boiling water and let it steep for a few minutes. If you like, you may sweeten the tea with honey or sugar. And you don't need to have high blood pressure to enjoy it either.

Herbal pillow
I am not that up-to-date on aromatherapy, and I don't know what culture started it first. But I know the Chinese for centuries have been using herbal pillows for treating various illnesses, and I keep a file on them. I have never tried any of these remedies myself because I personally would not want my bed to smell (or should I say reek) of herbal medicines. However, in case some of you are into aromatherapy, here is an herbal pillow treatment for hypertension. Fill a small pillow case (about 20 cm x 30 cm) made of loosely knit cloth with the following coarsely ground herbs: 150 g Sichuan lovage (chuanxiong), 35 g chrysanthemum flower, and 85 g mulberry leaf (dried). Sleep on your side with you rear resting on the pillow. Normally, herbal pillows are much bigger and are to be used like normal pillows. But this is specially made for proximity to the ears. You don't need to press your ear directly on the pillow. Rather, you can make an indentation in the middle of the pillow and let your ear sink into this, to avoid a sore ear in the morning. In addition to hypertension, it also helps headache and dizziness. One word of caution: watch for allergies! So far, I have not come across any reported, but you never know. It is better to be safe.

These and more herbal remedies are available from the volumes of Dr. Leung’s newsletter, of the same name as this blog (Leung’s Chinese Herb News). This newsletter was published and sent to subscribers (most were industry-insiders) from 1996 to 2004. The collected works now serve as an excellent reference work, created with Dr. Leung’s frank, honest opinions and down-to-earth communication style.

For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com. To order the newsletter containing the remedies mentioned above, visit the bookstore, click “Buy Now” on the newsletter, and select Issue #12 from the drop down list.

Monday, August 20, 2007

Change is in the Air

Just a quick post to say that we will be making some editorial and formatting changes to the blog in the next few days.

You may have already noticed the addition of a search widget. It will search our blog only, or the whole internet, and you decide which it will be. Please try this out, as well as our other widgets, all located in the right margin. After you've had a chance to use the widgets, drop a comment to let us know what you think. Can we improve them? Are they "too much"? Do we need more functionality that isn't here already?

You will also notice a new, fresher look in the next few days, as we transition into a "new space". Don't worry, the content isn't changing, but we hope to make it easier for you to access it and share it.

We are very confident you will be happy with the changes we have in store. Keep an eye out for the "new look"!

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Herbs for Cardiovascular Health - Part 2 of 3

NOTE: This is an excerpt of an article originally published in 1998 in Dr. Leung's newsletter, "Leung's Chinese Herb News", Issue 12, page 3. It is the second in a series of excerpts on cardiovascular health. The first excerpt provided a summary of herbs used in cardiovascular health. We will publish the last excerpt in the next few days. The information is as useful today as when it was written. -ed

Apart from the ones well known to Westerners (e.g., garlic and hawthorn), there are many common Chinese food/herbs that are effective in reducing blood lipids. Here are a few: lycium fruit, fo-ti (both raw and cured), juemingzi, shanzha, chrysanthemum flower, danshen, tangerine peel, zexie, huzhang, purslane herb, huaijiao, and mung bean. Most of these can be regularly and safely consumed. The following are 3 simple remedies that one can try.

Juemingzi
This herb has been around for a long time, being listed in the Shennong Herbal (circa 200 BC to 100 AD) as a superior herb. It is the seed of Cassia obtusifolia or Cassia tora (syn. Senna obtusifolia or Senna tora). It is not only effective in reducing serum lipids (total cholesterol and triglycerides) and increasing HDL-cholesterol, but also in lowering high blood pressure. The dose levels for this herb range from 4.5 g to 50 g. The higher doses are mainly for treating constipation. For hyperlipidemia, 5 to 20 g per day are used. Simply fry the seeds in a frying pan at medium to high heat until they turn darker and emit an aroma. After cooling, break them into a coarse powder and save for later use. Each day take 5 to 20 g and make a tea with boiling water. Drink this every day for at least 1 to 2 months before you can expect any results. If loose bowel occurs, reduce the dose until bowel movement is normal. If you tend to constipate, you may use a dose on the higher side. Also, you may add an equal amount of tea or chrysanthemum flower to the juemingzi if you prefer. Both juemingzi and chrysanthemum flower are readily available from Chinatown herb shops or groceries.

Cured fo-ti
Place 30 g (~1 oz) of cured fo-ti in 300 ml (~10 oz) water and boil for 20 min. Take the liquid (150-200 ml) and drink it in two portions during the day. It is reported to take effect in 20 days. Cured fo-ti is available in Chinatown herb shops. Be sure to ask for the tonic, and not raw fo-ti, the cathartic. Cured fo-ti normally comes in slices, sometimes quite thin, and should be very dark brown to black; it is breakable by hand.

Lotus leaf and green tea
Place 10 g of each herb in a teapot of boiling water. Let it steep for 10 minutes. Then drink it throughout the day, adding more boiling water if needed. This can be used year round on a long-term basis. Lotus leaf is one of the most commonly used ingredients in Chinese diet formulas. It is available in Chinatown groceries and herb shops. It is used as a wrapping for lotus rice. The best way to prepare it for the tea is to break or cut it into small pieces and save for later use.

Note: To be continued in next post. -ed

These and more herbal remedies are available from the volumes of Dr. Leung’s newsletter, of the same name as this blog (Leung’s Chinese Herb News). This newsletter was published and sent to subscribers (most were industry-insiders) from 1996 to 2004. The collected works now serve as an excellent reference work, created with Dr. Leung’s frank, honest opinions and down-to-earth communication style.

For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit http://www.earthpower.com/. To order the newsletter containing the remedies mentioned above, visit the bookstore, click “Buy Now” on the newsletter, and select Issue #12 from the drop down list.

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Herbs for Cardiovascular Health - Part 1 of 3

NOTE: This is an excerpt of an article originally published in 1998 in Dr. Leung's newsletter, "Leung's Chinese Herb News", Issue 12, page 3. The topic is cardiovascular health and we will publish the rest of the article in two more excerpts in the next few days. The information is as useful today as when it was written. -ed

There are many Chinese herbs commonly used for cardiovascular problems, such as coronary heart disease, angina, arrhythmia, hypertension, atherosclerosis, hyperlipemia, Raynaud's disease, congestive heart failure, fibrillation, etc. The more well-known ones include danshen or red sage (Salvia miltiorrhiza root/rhizome), honghua (safflower flower), kudzu root, sanqi (Panax notoginseng root), astragalus root, dangshen (Codonopsis pilosula root), Asian ginseng, Sichuan lovage (Ligusticum chuanxiong rhizome), danggui (Angelica sinensis root), chishao or red peony root (Paeonia lactiflora), jiangxiang (Dalbergia odorifera wood), shanzha or Chinese hawthorn, duzhong (Eucommia ulmoides stem bark), chrysanthemum flower, ganoderma, garlic, baizhu (Atractylodes macrocephala rhizome), schisandra berry, maidong (Ophiopogon japonicus rhizome), lycium fruit, zexie (Alisma orientale rhizome), fo-ti (raw and cured Polygonum multiflorum root tuber), purslane herb, dushen (Sophora flavescens root), huaijiao (Sophora japonica fruit), juemingzi (Senna obtusifolia or Senna tora seed), tangerine peel, rehmannia (raw anad cured Rehmannia glutinosa root tuber), puhauang or catttail pollen (Typha angustifolia or Typha orientalis), lotus leaf, huzhang (Polygonum cuspidatum root/rhizome), and fuzi (Aconitum carmichaeli prepared lateral root). All except fuzi are mostly mild medicines with little or no known side effects. Even fuzi (which has been carefully cured to drastically reduce the toxic effects of raw aconite) is quite safe when used properly.

Although some of the above herbs I have listed are for treating the more serious heart problems (e.g. astragalus, danshen, dangshen, maidong, kushen, and sanqi for coronary heart disease and arrhythmia; Sichuan lovage, danshen, honghua, chishao, and jiangxiang for angina; etc.), most are used for milder conditions that eventually may lead to more serious ones. The following two common conditions can be helped with some of these herbs and their combinations.

NOTE: To be continued in next post. -ed

These and more herbal remedies are available from the volumes of Dr. Leung’s newsletter, of the same name as this blog (Leung’s Chinese Herb News). This newsletter was published and sent to subscribers (most were industry-insiders) from 1996 to 2004. The collected works now serve as an excellent reference work, created with Dr. Leung’s frank, honest opinions and down-to-earth communication style. For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit http://www.earthpower.com/. To order the newsletter containing the remedies mentioned above, visit the bookstore, click “Buy Now” on the newsletter, and select Issue # 12 from the drop down list.

Monday, August 13, 2007

Yet Another Confusing Coffee Article

“Caffeine shown to slow loss of memory in older women” by Maria Kubacki, Canwest News Service. The Gazette, Montreal, Tuesday, August 7, 2007, page A11.

This article is not about caffeine. It’s about coffee! But the mix-up is not the author’s fault. Maria Kubacki was simply quoting the lead researcher, Karen Ritchie, of the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research, who equated caffeine with coffee, a big leap of faith, and certainly behind the times in natural products research. The study was published in the current issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Twenty-five years ago, you could get away with such assumptions and equating an active component (which is one of many) of a natural food, drink, or medicine to be responsible for all its pharmacologic activities. Nobody would question you then because little research was being performed on the natural material’s other active components; and most researchers viewed a natural substance as if it were a single-chemical drug, for example, caffeine as coffee. It is no longer the case. The Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) passed in October of 1994 has changed all that. Since then, scientific research on natural medicines or supplements has been broadened to not just fixate on a particular chemical component, but rather begin to look at their totality and how they actually may benefit people. And in its totality, coffee is not caffeine!

Common drinks such as coffee and tea used to be considered synonymous with caffeine and/or theophylline. But research over the past ten to twenty years has found them to be rich in other phytochemicals such as polyphenols (e.g., up to 10% chlorogenic acid, an anti-inflammatory polyphenol) that have strong antioxidant properties. That’s not all. There are other potentially beneficial chemicals or phytonutrients also present. However, since these findings are still not widely known except through marketing by dietary supplement companies, the mainstream press largely ignores them. Which is why in both the scientific and popular media, coffee is still so often reported as caffeine. Another reason is old habits are difficult to break. Many conventionally trained health researchers tend to continue to confuse an active chemical with an intact botanical or any natural material, for that matter. Thus, some still use ginseng (whatever kind), Echinacea, tea, or coffee as if it were a single-chemical drug in their research and reporting. It appears the French researchers and the Neurology journal reviewers and editors fall into this category.

In any case, in the current report, three or more cups of coffee or tea daily was found to slow memory loss in older women, especially those over 80. The authors of the study readily pointed out this benefit as due to caffeine. Yet this was not a drug study. The drug, caffeine, was not consumed by itself, but rather as a constituent in coffee along with hundreds of other chemicals, some of which have been shown to be strongly antioxidant and possibly with other more important pharmacologic effects on Alzheimer’s disease as well. If the researchers were more cognizant of the other beneficial components of coffee and tea (as both have another thing in common – high polyphenols content), they might have discovered something important which could stimulate new research on coffee and tea. Instead, it’s more of the same based on the wrong premises. It’s a pity! The effects of other coffee and tea components besides caffeine are worth serious scientific study. It may even resolve some of the controversies about coffee, or caffeine.

Learn more about coffee and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit http://www.earthpower.com/.

Friday, August 10, 2007

Diet Therapy for Diabetes: Part 5 of 5

NOTE: Following is the fourth of five excerpts on diabetes from one of Dr. Leung's earlier writings. This originally appeared in 1997 in Dr. Leung's newsletter, Leung's Chinese Herb News, Issue 11, page 3. -ed


In a recent issue of the Shizen Journal of TCM Research [Shizhen Guoyao Yanjiu,8(6): 553 (1997)], numerous simple treatments of diabetes using common Chinese foods or herbs are summarized by three doctors from the Caiyuan Municipal People's Hospital of Shandong Province. The following recipes are based on herbs/foods that should be available in Chinese or other ethnic stores in North America.

Machixian or purslane herb (Portulaca oleracea)


This grows in many parts of the United States and southern Canada. Here in New Jersey, it grows as a weed on many lawns and waste places. The aboveground part is used as a vegetable and salad green in many parts of the world. It is rich in nutrients (vitamins A, B1, B2, C, niacinamide, nicotinic acid, alpha-tocopherol, beta-carotene, omega-3 acids, glutathione, flavonoids) and also contains high concentrations of noradrenaline (0.25% in fresh herb reported). It is considered cold-natured and has detoxicant and heat-dispersing properties. Traditionally, it is used internally to treat headache, stomachache, painful urination, dysentery, enteritis, mastitis, bleeding, etc. It is also used externally to treat burns, insect stings, inflammations, eczema, pruritus, and skin sores. Modern uses include the treatment of colitis, diabetes, shingles, and dermatitis. For diabetes, simply eat it regularly as a vegetable when in season or dry it for use in winter. It is a little tart and does not taste bad. Bon apetit!

These and more herbal remedies are available from the volumes of Dr. Leung’s newsletter, of the same name as this blog (Leung’s Chinese Herb News). This newsletter was published and sent to subscribers (most were industry-insiders) from 1996 to 2004. The collected works now serve as an excellent reference work, created with Dr. Leung’s frank, honest opinions and down-to-earth communication style.For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit http://www.earthpower.com/. To order the newsletter containing the remedies mentioned above, visit the bookstore, click “Buy Now” on the newsletter, and select Issue # 11 from the drop down list.

Thursday, August 09, 2007

Diet Therapy for Diabetes: Part 4 of 5

NOTE: Following is the fourth of five excerpts on diabetes from one of Dr. Leung's earlier writings. This originally appeared in 1997 in Dr. Leung's newsletter, Leung's Chinese Herb News, Issue 11, page 3. -ed

In a recent issue of the Shizen Journal of TCM Research [Shizhen Guoyao Yanjiu,8(6): 553 (1997)], numerous simple treatments of diabetes using common Chinese foods or herbs are summarized by three doctors from the Caiyuan Municipal People's Hospital of Shandong Province. The following recipes are based on herbs/foods that should be available in Chinese or other ethnic stores in North America.

Lycium Fruit

This is the fruit of the above Lycium species (editor's note: see the third post in this series). For diabetes, simply eat 10 to 20 g a day. It can be eaten as one would raisins. It has a similar texture as raisin but a little bit less sweet. Lycium fruit is a well-known Chinese yin tonic widely used in traditional Chinese medicine and as a disease-preventive food. It is rich in amino acids and its polysaccharides have been shown to have broad biological activities (antioxidant, antimutagenic, immunomodulating, antistress, antitumor, etc.). I have written about it in previous issues of this newsletter (see Issues 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7). It has become one of my favorite Chinese herbs for very personal reasons. I am one of those people with excessive yang. These people are full of energy, usually hyperactive, and prone to constipation, especially if they do not watch their diet. After using a lycium fruit product daily for the past 16 months, everything else as usual, I have not had a single incidence of constipation, despite my hectic traveling schedule. The reason I hadn't started correcting my problem earlier is for two reasons. First, I was torn between my scientific training and my traditional Chinese medical belief. On the one hand, despite my open-mindedness regarding nonconventional health practices, my scientific mind kept admonishing me not to accept anything that has not been "proven" by science. Besides, occasional constipation is only an inconvenience, not a major problem, which can easily be corrected by a laxative. For this reason, I never pushed for the alternative solution. Second, in order to solve my problem, it is not just a matter of watching my diet. It used to occur once in a while, whether or not I ate lots of fruits and vegetables during that time. I knew it was not the foods that I was eating, nor stress, but rather, my basic yang constitution. If it were a more serious problem, I could have started cooking up Chinese yin tonics to correct it. To do so would involve preparing the concoctions daily for months, which I was too lazy to do, especially for such a minor and common condition. But then I had the opportunity to prepare such a product in a convenient modern dosage form for one of my clients. That was 16 months ago. I can tell you, I have been a happy camper since. And I have not lost my other yang qualities, either! Modern nutritionists think that if you eat a "nutritionally" balanced diet, you should never have a constipation problem. But it is not true, because we are not all equal "living machines". Every one of us is different. A yin person can eat the same foods as a yang person and have diarrhea, while the yang person has constipation. Why can't we accept that? A basic flaw in modern conventional medical practice, in my opinion, is that it assumes everyone is the same and does not take common sense and empirical wisdom seriously. Where are the doctors' grandmas?!

These and more herbal remedies are available from the volumes of Dr. Leung’s newsletter, of the same name as this blog (Leung’s Chinese Herb News). This newsletter was published and sent to subscribers (most were industry-insiders) from 1996 to 2004. The collected works now serve as an excellent reference work, created with Dr. Leung’s frank, honest opinions and down-to-earth communication style.For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit http://www.earthpower.com/. To order the newsletter containing the remedies mentioned above, visit the bookstore, click “Buy Now” on the newsletter, and select Issue # 11 from the drop down list.

Thursday, August 02, 2007

Diet Therapy for Diabetes: Part 3 of 5

NOTE: Following is the third of five excerpts on diabetes from one of Dr. Leung's earlier writings. This originally appeared in 1997 in Dr. Leung's newsletter, Leung's Chinese Herb News, Issue 11, page 3. -ed


In a recent issue of the Shizhen Journal of TCM Research [Shizhen Guoyao Yanjiu,8(6): 553 (1997)], numerous simple treatments of diabetes using common Chinese foods or herbs are summarized by three doctors from the Caiyuan Municipal People's Hospital of Shandong Province. The following recipes are based on herbs/foods that should be available in Chinese or other ethnic stores in North America.

Jiao gu lan tea (Gynostemma pentaphyllum herb)


Once daily, steep 30 g of the herb in boiling water in a teapot. Drink the tea througout the day. Guaranteed effective! That's according to the authors. Jiao gu lan is currently a hot item, because it contains saponin glycosides that are very similar in chemical structure to ginsenosides (and a few are actually identical to certain ginsenosides). For this reason, intensified studies during recent years have shown it to have many similar pharmacological effects as ginseng. One of these effects is the lowering of blood sugar. You can buy this herb in Chinatown herb shops. I have seen packaged jiao gu lan tea bags for sale in some New York Chinatown herb shops. But if you use the tea bags, you will probably need 10 to 15 a day, depending on the weight of each tea bag.

Digupi or lycium root bark tea

Digupi is the root bark of Lycium barbarum or L. chinenese. Its properties and uses were first recorded in the Shennong Herbal about 2,000 years ago. Even at that time, it was described as being able to relieve thirst, sweet urine, and excessive urination (polyuria) that are major symptoms of diabetes. It is considered cold-natured and is also traditionally used to treat "hot" conditions, including dyspnea cough, hectic fever, sweating, and hemmmorrhages. More recent uses include the treatment of hypertension, malaria, carbuncle, and sores. It is available from Chinatown herb shops.

These and more herbal remedies are available from the volumes of Dr. Leung’s newsletter, of the same name as this blog (Leung’s Chinese Herb News). This newsletter was published and sent to subscribers (most were industry-insiders) from 1996 to 2004. The collected works now serve as an excellent reference work, created with Dr. Leung’s frank, honest opinions and down-to-earth communication style.For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit http://www.earthpower.com/. To order the newsletter containing the remedies mentioned above, visit the bookstore, click “Buy Now” on the newsletter, and select Issue # 11 from the drop down list.







Diet Therapy for Diabetes: Part 2 of 5

NOTE: Following is the second of five excerpts on diabetes from one of Dr. Leung's earlier writings. This originally appeared in 1997 in Dr. Leung's newsletter, Leung's Chinese Herb News, Issue 11, page 3. -ed

In a recent issue of the Shizhen Journal of TCM Research [Shizhen Guoyao Yanjiu,8(6): 553 (1997)], numerous simple treatments of diabetes using common Chinese foods or herbs are summarized by three doctors from the Caiyuan Municipal People's Hospital of Shandong Province. The following recipes are based on herbs/foods that should be available in Chinese or other ethnic stores in North America.

Green Tea

The original study was made by a Japanese professor, who showed that drinking green tea can reduce excess sugar in the blood. However, the tea must be made with cooled boiled water and not with hot water. It is claimed that hot water will destroy the hypoglycemic components. For sanitary reasons, I suggest you select your green tea with care, since any harmful bacteria in the tea would not be killed when steeped in cold water. Japanese green teas are usually good. If you don't mind drinking cold tea, this remedy is certainly simple and convenient. It won't hurt to try it for a couple months. You never know.

Asian ginseng and egg white soup

Mix 3 g of ginseng powder with one egg white and add boiling water to make a tea/soup. Take this no more than once a day, or better, every other day.

These and more herbal remedies are available from the volumes of Dr. Leung’s newsletter, of the same name as this blog (Leung’s Chinese Herb News). This newsletter was published and sent to subscribers (most were industry-insiders) from 1996 to 2004. The collected works now serve as an excellent reference work, created with Dr. Leung’s frank, honest opinions and down-to-earth communication style.For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit http://www.earthpower.com/. To order the newsletter containing the remedies mentioned above, visit the bookstore, click “Buy Now” on the newsletter, and select Issue # 11 from the drop down list.

Diet Therapy for Diabetes - Part 1 of 5

NOTE: Following is the first of five excerpts on diabetes from one of Dr. Leung's earlier writings. This originally appeared in 1997 in Dr. Leung's newsletter, Leung's Chinese Herb News, Issue 11, page 3. -ed

In a recent issue of the Shizhen Journal of TCM Research [Shizhen Guoyao Yanjiu,8(6): 553 (1997)], numerous simple treatments of diabetes using common Chinese foods or herbs are summarized by three doctors from the Caiyuan Municipal People's Hospital of Shandong Province. The following recipes are based on herbs/foods that should be available in Chinese or other ethnic stores in North America.

India wheat or Siberian buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum Gaertn.)

The seed contains 1% flavonoids, including rutin and cyanidin, as well as other nutrients. For treating diabetes, a mixture of the following flours is made into different types of foods (such as bread and congee) and eaten regularly as part of one's diet: 30% India wheat, 10% soybean, 20% millet, and 40% wheat. No other details are given except that a 93% response was claimed after trials at the Beijing Tong Ren Hospital, Tianjin Medical School Affiliated Hospital, and other hospitals.

Nan gua or cushaw (Cucurbita moschata Duch.)

Use the young fruits when in season. Eat 400 g (a little over a pound) each day, stir fried. One can also cut the young fruit into slices and sun dry them for use in winter or other times. Using this recipe for diabetes, a response rate of up to 75% has been reported. There seems to be many varieties of cushaw. Consequently, in order to get the right type used by the Chinese, it is best to buy it in Chinatown. If you use the Chinese name, nan gua ('southern mellon'), there will be little confusion, as most Chinese know it.

These and more herbal remedies are available from the volumes of Dr. Leung’s newsletter, of the same name as this blog (Leung’s Chinese Herb News). This newsletter was published and sent to subscribers (most were industry-insiders) from 1996 to 2004. The collected works now serve as an excellent reference work, created with Dr. Leung’s frank, honest opinions and down-to-earth communication style.For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit http://www.earthpower.com/. To order the newsletter containing the remedies mentioned above, visit the bookstore, click “Buy Now” on the newsletter, and select Issue # 11 from the drop down list.