Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is a health care system that has been practised in China for over 2,500 years. It has also been commonly practised in Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam, and other countries in the far East. TCM treats each individual’s emotional and physical state to heal, recover and maintain homeostasis/ balance for optimal health. The components of TCM include: acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, nutrition, tuina (Chinese massage) and exercise (qi-gong, tai-chi).
Medicinal Chinese herbs have been used for centuries to treat diseases and alleviate discomfort for many disorders. Chinese herbal ingredients include various parts of plants (ie. the root, leaves, fruit, bark etc) and minerals. The most common form of herbal medicines consists of loose dried herbs, which are tailored to the individual to balance and restore normal physiological function of the body.