he shou wu, etc.?

May 24, 2003

Hi Emmanuel,

I have some questions regarding a post of yours from awhile back.

You wrote about the preparation of he shou wu, commenting that what

is generally available in the States is not prepared in the same way

as is described in the traditional literature.

First question is, are you aware of any other commonly used herbs

that fit this same pattern? Second, did you say that your company

imports the traditionally prepared he shou wu? What is your

company's name? I've never seen it mentioned on this site. (Is that

to keep this list " commercial " free?) If it's not appropriate to

mention it here could you email me privately?

Thank you,

Chadwick Moyer, L.Ac.

chadwick_m

May 24, 2003

Hi Chadwick,

I'll answer your questions one at a time.

Historically, the Chinese culture traveled outside of China over past 1.5 centuries from Hong Kong and the surrounding province of Guangzhou. Thus, most of the Chinese expatriates in American cities have spoken Cantonese and maintained their southern folk medicine which is a strong and viable medicine even today. As far as I can tell, it was never fully incorporated into the "medicine of literature" which is a fusion of many of the northern folk medicines and their further evolution as an organized medicine with a coherent literature. Okay, I know some people don't find it entirely coherent, but it has evolved as a literature beyond its oral traditions. There are many things that are found in American Chinatown herb shops that are different and reflect the southern styles of herbal presentation. They are not better or worse, no value judgment. The He Shou Wu from the south consists of thin reddish brown slices. The He Shou Wu of the north has been grown in Guangzhou but then traveled to one of two village in Shandong Province for very long cooking cycles in black bean. The resultant puffy thick ebony black slices have no possibility of causing diarrhea even when used in very high dosages. It is this herb that fits the profile of the He Shou Wu that many Shanghai or Beijing doctors want to see. Some of them use He Shou Wu is such large amounts in a formula, that the southern style of He Shou Wu would not be appropriate.

Are there other herbs? Of course. People have placed orders with me for exclusively southern herbs that are not listed in Bensky or other English language materia medicas. I directed them to companies that could fulfill their order. The hardest part of my work is to present herbs that are normally found in hospital pharmacies of Shanghai or Beijing because they look and are any where from a little different to profoundly different from what is in many of the pharmacies and distribution companies in America.

Do I want to go into it here on list? No. Hopefully this much information will spur you to find Shanghai, Beijing and Chengdu practitioners who can and want to present this information.

I can't remember nor at this point find my introduction in the archive. I hope I did not reveal the name of my company as I want to present myself as a "reporter" or as a citizen with points of view. I happen to have a formal training in Western sciences and have worked for 15 years in some area of Chinese medicine or Chinese herbs. My desire is to see CM flourish in America. Clearly people on this list have equally genuine desires but often different notions regarding how one arrives at the goal. So this discussion may be enlightening for all concerned.

It's my preference to communicate offlist regarding business or personal matters.

In gratitude for your interest,