Guest guest Posted May 11, 2000 Report Share Posted May 11, 2000 any thoughts to share on this formula: Burdock Root Sheep Sorrel leaf Slippery Elm Da Huang Ed Kasper, LAc Santa Cruz, California Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 11, 2000 Report Share Posted May 11, 2000 Essiac, used as a popular formula for cancer patients and other auto-immune conditions, is actually a well balanced formula, designed to 'cleanse the blood' of 'toxins'. In terms of Chinese herbal medicine criteria, We can consider the following possibilities: 1) there are other ingredients, one I know is red clover. Red clover is cool, sour and clears heat from the blood. Not unlike mudanpi. This analysis is based on traditional usage and qualities from western herbal texts translated into Chinese medical analysis by myself (therefore, speculative and not definitive) 2) Sheep sorrel is also sour, cool and astringing, and clears blood heat. 3) Burdock root is from the same plant as niu bang zi/sm. arctium lappa which is a wind/heat clearing medicinal. The root is used in western herbal medicine, again, to clear heat from the blood. 4) Slippery elm is bland, sweet and neutral, regulating the spleen, stomach and large intestine. It would seem to balance this prescription. 5) Rhubarb (untreated, unlike much of the Chinese da huang, mostly wine-fried) clears heat from the blood and drains it from the bowels. In this formula, its precipitating effect would depend on how long it is cooked in this formula. It would seem that Essiac is largely focused on clearing heat from the blood and blood division in warm diseases, and to some degree, relieving blood stasis. It may be appropriate for such conditions (after more thought, and clinical testing), but would be contraindicated for spleen qi or yang xu patients, kidney yang xu patients with cold, or in later, debilitated stages of cancer. >any thoughts to share on this formula: >Burdock Root >Sheep Sorrel leaf >Slippery Elm >Da Huang > >Ed Kasper, LAc Santa Cruz, California > >------ >There's still time to order Calyx & Corolla flowers for mom. >These fresh and elegant bouquets are available for delivery >by Mother's Day. To order, please visit >http://click./1/4103/9/_/542111/_/958089580/ >------ > >Chronic Diseases Heal - Chinese Herbs Can Help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 11, 2000 Report Share Posted May 11, 2000 By reputation, an anti-cancer formula. The original formula is: 52 parts Burdock Root (Arctium lappa) 16 parts Sheep Sorrel (Rumex acetosella) 1 part Turkey Rhubarb (Rheum palmatum) 4 parts Slippery Elm (Ulmus fulva) The main ingredient is the burdock root, similar in action to niu bang zi, but -much- less pronounced in action. Used as food (gobo root) in Japan, but the cultivated variety there may not be as medicinal as the wild burdock used medicinally in the West. Probably enters the liver, bladder, gallbladder channels, clears heat and cools the blood. Maybe use caution or balance with other herbs in formula in deficiency heat, because, although clearing heat, it promotes diuresis and diaphoresis. From a nutritional perspective, burdock root contains 50% inulin, a fructooligosaccharide which feeds the lactobacilli in the intestines -- 15 grams per day (inulin) as food altered stool flora beneficially in some trials. Slippery Elm would be a demulcent yin tonic, probably affecting Stomach, Spleen, Lung, and Bladder. Don't know much about the sheep's sorrell except that it was used -topically- for skin cancers in the 1800s. It's flavor is sour (among others), and oxalic acid effects in the kidney must be considered with long term use. -- Paul Bergner Editor, Medical Herbalism Clinical Program Director, Rocky Mountain Center for Botanical Studies Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 11, 2000 Report Share Posted May 11, 2000 Paul Bergner and Thank yous very much for the information Ed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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