The Chinese government has designated traditional medicine production as a strategic industry. The country’s production value of traditional medicine, which is also known as herbal medicine, amounted to 95.8 billion yuan (about 12 billion US dollars) in 2004, up 18.3 percent from the previous year.
Minister of Science and Technology Xu Guanhua said the Chinese government has mapped out a detailed strategy in developing the traditional medicine industry. Modernization of the medicine has been inscribed in the country’s primary agenda for scientific and technological exploration.
According to vice minister of Science and Technology Liu Yanhua, international demand for traditional Chinese medicine has risen dramatically in recent years, which has boosted the adoption of modern scientific breakthroughs in the industry. Liu said net yield and profit rate of the traditional medicine production is much higher than the average level of the country’s medication industry.
The country has built 14 technological development bases and eight demonstration plantation bases of traditional medicine in the past five years. So far, there are some 1,000 varieties of medicinal herbs available on the market with some 150 strains artificially cultivated. The plantation area has reached one million ha. nationwide, representing a 90 percent increase from the year 2000.
China has developed cultivation technology of some 500 varieties of medicinal herbs. The plantation has become a new source of income for Chinese farmers in backward mountainous regions. Many inland provinces such as Hebei, Guizhou, Sichuan, Shaanxi and Shanxi have designated traditional medicine as a pillar industry.
Expect to see a lot more herbal medicine from China in a store near you soon. Certainly traditional medicines have stood the test of time in China. Let’s just hope that in the process of modernizing to cash in on a potential marketing bonanza, nothing good from the past is lost.
Have you ever wondered what doctors do to stay healthy? Actually, it’s a myth that doctors are particularly healthy or resistant to disease. The fact is they aren’t. It’s little wonder, they don’t generally engage in particularly healthy behaviors, frequently working excessive hours, getting very stressed, eating poorly, and so on.
However, here are some excellent words of advice from Dr Huemer that you may find quite useful.
Jonathan Swift said it, three centuries ago: "The best doctors in the world are Doctor Diet, Doctor Quiet, and Doctor Merryman." They are actually the assistant doctors to the greatest physician of all, the Doctor Within. That is my name for the body’s innate ability to heal itself when given the tools to do so.
Doctor Diet is first. We need to get back to the whole, natural foods with as little processing and preparation as possible. We need to scrap that ubiquitous food pyramid, which like the pyramids in ancient lands, supports superstitious beliefs–in this case, the faith that the pyramid actually has anything to do with good nutrition.
Let’s build a new food pyramid with a broad base of fresh vegetables and fruits, with plenty of room for fiber and beneficial fats from fish, legumes, and seeds, and no space at all for refined carbohydrates, trans fats, and food additives. Let’s further nourish and protect our bodies with supplemental micronutrients and phytochemicals, which, for the first time in human history, science has made available to us.
As for Doctor Quiet and Doctor Merryman, they are increasingly elusive in modern times, but well worth pursuing as the spiritual side of healing. The science of psychoneuroimmunology testifies to their central importance in health.
For me personally, they were always harder to relate to than nutritional biochemistry. One day, when I was facing an especially difficult decision, a patient gave me a bit of advice that made everything clear. She said simply, "Dr. Huemer, follow your bliss." I tell others to do likewise. –Richard P. Huemer, M.D.
Dr Huemer’s pearls of wisdom above were included in a book by Cal Orey called Doctor’s Orders: What 101 Doctors Do to Stay Healthy. Maybe you can find a copy at your local library, otherwise, there’s always Amazon.
Bernadine Healy, M.D. wrote an article recently for U.S. News and World Report. Dr. Healy warns about "I am God" physicians in the context of Katie Wernecke’s clash with doctors and Texas Child Protection Services over her treatment for Hodgkin’s disease. Dr. Healy helpfully illustrates Katie’s dilemma with a comparison to another famous Texan who underwent cancer treatment.
When Lance Armstrong was diagnosed with testicular cancer his first oncologist prescribed a type of chemotherapy that would have produced a harshly negative impact on his lungs. With the recommended treatment, he was told, his bike-racing career would be over.
At that point, Armstrong had not yet won even his first Tour de France. Knowing what we now know about his character it’s no surprise that he decided to pass on that first chemo formula.
Armstrong eventually found an oncologist who listened to his needs, offered a different chemotherapy option and addressed his brain cancer with surgery instead of radiation. The rest of the Armstrong, as they say, is bicycling history.
Dr. Healy points out that if Armstrong had been forced by the state to accept the "standard care" prescribed by the first doctor, who knows who might have won the last few Tours de France. It’s a very interesting illustration of the issues of freedom to chose (autonomy) and the exercise of power.
It should also serve to remind us that not all doctors are the same. Even individuals sharing the same credentials and speciatist training can practice medicine very differently. Ultimately, you need to make up your own mind. Don’t be too easily persuaded by any doctor, don’t hesitate to ask questions and don’t be put off until you are genuinely satisfied with the answers.
This assertiveness to help ensure you obtain the best treatment may make some doctors uncomfortable. That’s their problem, don’t let them make it add to yours. If necessary, find a better doctor. You should feel entitled to find an understanding and supportive attitude in your doctor.
It can also be difficult to remain composed sufficiently to think clearly when some health situations seem to unsettle your emotions. It may be best to take some time to prepare for the decision making that’s required, to seek comfort and counsel from family and friends, or even to consult an advocate before commiting to any recommended course of treatment. Remember, it’s your life.
Have the war drums gone quiet again on the vitamin E front? It is rather amusing to see the almost hysterical banter in both the ordinary and supposedly learned press concering some vitamins. Interestingly, the higher profile vitamins like E and C and increasingly D seem to cop quite a pounding in more or less cyclical fashion. So it becomes fairly easy to see which one will be next up for a promotion or a bashing.
Much of the "scientific" literature that regularly manages to find its way into various forms of media coverage can be dismissed as sheer nonsense. For example, in studies that turned out to be flawed or poorly designed, vitamin E was found to have little effect on heart health. One study even found the vitamin to be dangerous! But here’s another message that the public deserves to hear: Vitamin E may prevent heart attacks and deaths due to heart disease among diabetics.
A study published in Diabetes Care used data collected from a 2000 trial known as Heart Outcomes Prevention Evaluation (HOPE). This trial examined the way several antioxidants affected cardiovascular health. When researchers in Israel examined the HOPE data for a specific subgroup, something amazing happened: Vitamin E was recast as a potential lifesaver.
Previous research by the Israeli team had shown that certain diabetics who have a very specific "2-2" form of haptoglobin (a blood protein) may also have a risk of heart disease several hundred times higher than diabetics who don’t have the 2-2 haptoglobin. In their HOPE data study the researchers demonstrate that this high-risk subgroup reduced their risk of heart attack by more than 40 percent and their risk of dying from heart disease by well over 50 percent when they took 400 IU of vitamin E daily.
The Israeli team estimates that as many as 40 percent of diabetics are in the 2-2 haptoglobin group. If you have diabetes, ask your doctor to check this important marker in your next blood test. Hopefully your doctor will support you in taking vitamin E, but if not, find a better doctor. It’s your life.
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is usually diagnosed too late to utilize orthodox measures that would slow down the degenerative process. Early detection could facilitate early intervention.
With this in mind, scientists in the brain research laboratories at New York University School of Medicine applied a computer analysis technique to electroencephalogram (EEG) tests that they say can accurately predict AD a decade before symptoms become obvious. An EEG measures and graphically records electrical activity in the brain.
In a study published in Neurobiology of Aging, the NYU research team evaluated more than 40 people over the age of 64 who reported mild signs of cognitive decline. In spite of the reported signs, at the outset of the study EEG tests showed normal brain activity for all. Over the next nine years, subjects were monitored with additional EEGs. Nearly 30 subjects eventually developed some level of cognitive impairment and several were diagnosed with dementia.
In the earliest EEG results, researchers were able to identify brain wave patterns that predicted dementia and Alzheimer’s with more than 90 percent accuracy. While finding ways to avoid AD makes much more sense, there is certainly some value in getting a 10 years heads-up.
EEGs can easily be conducted in a doctor’s office, clinic or hospital and the procedure only takes about half an hour. The NYU researchers plan further studies of their EEG technique, which they hope will eventually become a standard test in routine physical exams for older patients.
In the meantime, take positive action to promote your own health and be sure to enjoy every day.