Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is a natural medicine, an Oriental naturopathy. In general, it uses safe and non-toxic treatments with no or low latrogenic impact in an effort to re-establish balance within the body of the patient and between the patients and their environment. The TCM doctor seeks to nudge the patients own homeostatic mechanisms just enough for the body to fix itself.

The professional practitioners of Traditional Chinese Medicine works in concord with nature and not against it, but is different from other natural medicine; TCM works faster. Having practiced TCM for over 30 years, I noticed that some people might have a misunderstanding about TCM. They think that Chinese medicine works slower than modern Western medicine. However, as simple as the common cold or flue, TCM can heal a patient within a day. For patients with low back pain, the "pill for invigorating kidney energy" can heal them within a week. Only those on rebuilding cartilage or soft tissues take a longer time. Seldom do we have to use the same decoction for a patient over a year or so. Hence, TCM is indeed very effective, as long as you are pointed in the right direction. Therefore, it is important to discuss with the professional Chinese medicine practitioner, so as to get a focused therapeutic principle of treatment.

Western medication seldom mention how to help a patient cleanse his body, such as cleansing the liver or gall bladder. However, with over 4000 years of history, TCM has a myriad of herbs that are particularly good for such work. Five flower herbal tea, for example, is best for cleansing the liver. The decoction of estragalis, dioscoreae, dried longan, semen eurgales, and lotus seeds will tonify your body so that you will have a better absorption and have more energy to concentrate on your work or study. Therefore, the holistic treatment plan seeks not only to allay symptoms but also to restore balance at a deep level of one's being.