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Ancient Chinese Herbal Remedy

Ancient Chinese herbal remedy may be solution for chronic pain

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A study published in January this year in the journal of Current Biology has provided evidence to support the efficacy of an ancient Chinese herbal remedy that has been used for centuries in the treatment of pain.  The remedy comes from Corydalis yanhusuo, a flowering herbal plant that grows in Siberia, Northern China and Japan. The results showed the importance of turning to ancient knowledge for solutions rather than focusing on the creation of synthetic drugs.

The findings were made through a collaborative study between the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics in China and the University of California as part of the ‘herbalome’ project, which is cataloguing all the chemical components in plants that have healing properties. So far almost 500 different compounds have been tested for their ability to relieve pain.

The Corydalis yanhusuo plant is a member of the poppy family, and has been used as pain reliever for most of Chinese history, but unlike opium, the medicine is a non-addictive analgesic that works via a compound that can relieve acute, inflammatory, and neuropathic or chronic pain.  The study was found to be especially effective on injury-induced neuropathic pain, which currently has no adequate treatment.

When the roots of the plant are dug up, ground, and then boiled in hot vinegar, they produce dehydrocorybulbine (DHCB), which acts like morphine, but does not work through the morphine receptor in the human body. Instead it acts on the other receptors that bind dopamine.

"Today the pharmaceutical industry struggles to find new drugs. Yet for centuries people have used herbal remedies to address myriad health conditions, including pain,” said Neuropharmacologist Oliver Civelli.  “Our objective was to identify compounds in these herbal remedies that may help us discover new ways to treat health problems”.

In traditional Chinese medicine, Corydalis is believed to reduce pain by invigorating the blood and facilitating the movement of ‘qi’ throughout the body.  Qi is frequently translated to mean ‘life force’ and is the central underlying principle in traditional Chinese medicine.  It is believed that qi (also chi or ch’i) is an active principle forming part of any living thing and linking everything together).  Concepts similar to qi can be found in many cultures, for example, prana in the Hindu religion, mana in Hawaiian culture, lüng in Tibetan Buddhism, ruah in Hebrew culture, and vital energy in Western philosophy.

Philosophical conceptions of qi can be found in the earliest records of Chinese philosophy (5th century BC) and in the Vedas of ancient India (circa 1500-1000BC). Historically, it is the ‘Huangdi Neijing’ (‘The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Medicine’), written in the 2 nd century BC that is credited with first establishing the pathways through which qi circulates in the human body.

By April Holloway

 

Comments

thank so much 4 this article , and alsaw the comment which warns of toxicity ..

Good for pain. BUT. Although this herb has been used for thousands of years either by it self or with other herbs you must take care when using or thinking of using. It is slightly toxic. Some people can develop drowsiness, dizziness, and abdominal distention. Toxic over dose poisoning with symptoms appearing 1-4 hours after taking can included dizziness, facial pallor, drowsiness, weakness, dyspnea, spasms, low blood pressure, weal pulse, in severe cases shock, tetanic convulsions and respiratory inhibition. Care must be taken when taking this. You should only use if under the direction of someone qualified to dispese it. It is good for some chronic pain but not all. It is contraindicated for pregnant women

thank article !! article really helped us good luck.

ancient-origins's picture

Hi Bud. If you google it I am sure you will find where you can buy it from!

Where can I get some ....I want to try this...Maybe I could walk more 40-50 feet without pain....

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April

April Holloway is a Co-Owner, Editor and Writer of Ancient Origins. For privacy reasons, she has previously written on Ancient Origins under the pen name April Holloway, but is now choosing to use her real name, Joanna Gillan.

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