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Book Reviews
Chinese Medical Herbology And Pharmacology
Author: John K. Chen and Tina T. Chen
Copyright Date: 2004
Publisher: Art of Medicine Press, Inc.
Book Review
By Carrie Murphy, L.Ac.
The debate is over how to approach an endocrine pathology using TCM. One student in my classroom of graduating seniors at Pacific College is arguing that we should just treat the pattern that is in front of us, ignore the biomedical diagnosis, and that will naturally lead us to the correct herbal prescription. Another argues that it is dogmatic and foolish to ignore the herbs that we know have certain biomedical effects on the patient’s disease out of a desire for purity of approach. A third student turns to me. How do we make use of our biomedical training and knowledge while maintaining clear-sighted TCM thinking?
Good question! Of course we could arguably ignore modern research and biomedicine and focus on pattern diagnosis as our sole toolkit, if not for one thing: our patients are taking allopathic medicine along with their herbs. We therefore have to devise an intellectual, integrative approach that uses the very best of TCM thinking to analyze the complex information our patients bring us. Finding a satisfactory approach is vital to the future of our medicine, and with John and Tina Chen’s new book, Chinese Medical Herbology and Pharmacology, the future is now. This brilliant book discusses traditional herb attributes like taste, temperature, channels entered, function, indication, and cautions but goes onto list chemical structure, pharmacological action, and research. The herbs are organized into familiar categories, and the author’s lucid comparisons of herbs provide insight for the fledgling practitioner. There are wonderful, clear dosage instructions, and a photograph of each herb with its monograph. (My only quibble with the book is that the herb photos are black and white, and there is no standard of size. Color photographs of each herb taken along side a ruler or other object to provide scale would be a real boon to students and practitioners seeking to hone their herb recognition skills.)
An understanding of pharmacology up until this point has only helped in decoding biomedicine. Now our profession can use this book to pose better research questions about drug-herb interactions, as well as feel more comfortable in our clinics, armed with knowledge. This is certainly the book we have been waiting for in terms of making sure we aren’t exacerbating a patient’s condition. I will confess that my favorite part of the book is the detailed index at the back, listing herbs for use by TCM pattern and complaint alongside an index listing herbs by pharmaceutical effect. This, I believe, is the beginning of the answer to my student’s question, but it must necessarily come with a serious warning. By way of an example, I am looking at the herb list under the heading “Immunostimulant.” Over 60 herbs are listed, from ba ji tian to zi he che. So, if I am interested in stimulating my patient’s immunity, am I set? Of course not. The beauty of herbology, and its wisdom, lies in choosing the herbs from this list that also fit my patient’s pattern. Huang lian is listed here, and long dan cao, but they would be disastrous for my most deficient, immune-suppressed patients. So our task, and our burden, and our treat, is to be excellent TCM diagnosticians, and scrupulous students of traditional herbology, and accept gifts like this book with grace and the wisdom to stay true to the medicine that inspires us to such richness.
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Essentials of Chinese Medicine - Materia Medica
Author: Dafang Zeng
Copyright Date: 2003
Publisher: Bridge Publishing Group, Walnut, CA
Hardcover, 276 pages - 5x7"
ISBN 0-9728439-2-2.
Book Review
By Karin Levitski
The Materia Medica, part of the Essentials of Chinese Medicine series by Bridge Publishing is a pocket-sized herbal reference that is handy to use in clinic, classroom, or as a study reference.
This book is set up in similar fashion to Bensky's Materia Medica with herbs organized by category. Each herbal entry includes the Pinyin name, Latin pharmaceutical name, the properties (flavor, temperature), channels entered, basic characteristics, functions and indications with major combinations for each indication, recommended dosage, and precautions. Many also have comments that relate to things such as usage of the herb, notations about the function of the herb and/or the category, as well as comparisons to other similar herbs. At the end of each section, there are remarks and differentiations that compare the most common herbs in each category.
The layout of this book is user friendly. Each page is easy to read with the pinyin names in bold blue-green letters and the functions and indications laid out in a table format making it easy to quickly find the information you are looking for. This book contains most of the basic information printed in Bensky, however it is much more concise making this book a quick and easy reference. This Materia Medica is does not contain as many herbs as the Bensky Materia Medica, but it at least has all of the major herbs for each category. There are both Pinyin and Latin indices at the back of the book for quick reference. The table of contents is useful as well, listing not only each category, but each herb in the category.
I have found this book to be the most useful while studying formulas or as a reference to use during lectures for quick reminders of functions, channels or properties of herbs. Because of the small size, it is easy to carry - no more lugging around a big, bulky Materia Medica to every class.
Karin holds a B.A. in Anthropology and Russian from Northern Illinois University and is finishing the MTOM program at PCOM-Chicago. Her areas of interest include the treatment of autoimmune disorders, chronic pain, and she also hopes to work with the geriatric population.
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The Trans Fat Solution: Cooking And Shopping To Eliminate The Deadliest Fat From Your Diet
Author: Kim Severson
Copyright Date: 2003
Publisher: Ten Speed Press
Book Review
By Patricia Faivre, L.Ac.
Most of us as thoughtful consumers are aware of the need to make healthy choices regarding the fats and oils in our diet. In recent years, the dangers of trans fats or partially hydrogenated oils have become more and more evident in the news and in the popular press. This small, easy to read book, offers consumers a very accessible way to educate themselves about this topic. The book includes clear explanations about what trans fats are, how to determine if they are in your food, alternatives to trans fats in the grocery store and when eating out, and a wealth of recipes to help you avoid trans fats when cooking at home.
This book begins by explaining what trans fats are, what foods they are found in, and the science of hydrogenating oils. It tells us that trans fats are found in bakery cakes, chips, and fast-food French fries, as well as cereals, frozen waffles, premium ice cream, some brands of peanut butter and even lowfat cookies and breakfast bars. Ms. Severson explains that trans fats, or partially hydrogenated vegetable oil such as margarine or Crisco, are made by adding hydrogen to a polyunsaturated oil, which converts it to a solid fat. She also tells us that like saturated oils, trans fats raise LDL-cholesterol levels, which leads to atherosclerosis and heart disease.
Ms. Severson goes on to explain why trans fats are harmful to the human body. Not only do they raise LDL’s but also go one step further and “scrub away the good cholesterol (HDL) that keeps arteries clean.” She cites work done by Walter Willett, MD, the Harvard University doctor who oversees the longest-running health study in the nation of 250,000 doctors, nurses, and other health care providers who regularly fill out questionnaires about their health and diet. He discovered that people who ate a lot of trans fat are 50 percent more likely to develop heart disease than people who eat very little. The book also says that “ his ongoing Nurses’ Health Study of 80,000 women showed that for each 2 percent increase in the amount of calories from trans fat, a woman’s coronary risk will jump by 93 percent.”
The book tells us that after a long fight and much pressure from food and health advocates, the FDA has agreed to require food manufacturers to clearly label food products that contain trans fats, or partially hydrogenated oils, and declared that there is no safe amount of trans fat in the diet. This ruling was enacted in 2003, but food manufacturers have until 2006 to comply. Ms. Severson informs us to read labels carefully for the words “partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, vegetable shortening, or some variation on the words shortening or partially hydrogenated”. Until 2006, we as consumers are going to have to be savvy readers of labels.
This helpful little book goes on to give you specific ideas about label reading, portion size and how to estimate the portion of fat in a product that comes from trans fats. The book continues with tips on eating out, shopping for trans fat free foods, and how to cook at home trans fat free.
For any of us who grew up in the era when every housewife thought that margarine was the healthy choice, and for all of us who struggle to keep snacks and fast food out of our diet, this book will give you the tools and determination you need to create a trans fat free diet.
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