The Holistic Practice of Botanical Medicine

Kathryn Tian

Registered Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine (Canada)

Registered Acupuncturist (Canada)

ND Candidate (Canada)

MD (Canadian Equivalence)

After listening to the Podcast “The Plant Path: Elemental Plant”, I understand deeper what we mean about holistic practice of botanical medicine. According to Aristotle, there are four basic elements in nature: air, water, earth, and fire. Plants are an important part of nature, so every plant has these four elements in them, with one or two being the key constitution. When we observe and research into plants, we need to consider all aspects of them, including habitat, shape, color, smell, taste, and then its action, indication, contraindication at both physical and spiritual levels. The concept of “elemental plant” enables us to understand the herbal medicine holistically, not allopathically. The elemental force of plants connects healing with nature, so that the holistic practice of botanical medicine can help people achieving optimal wellness.

The podcast speech also made me thinking about the true meaning of botanical medicine, that is, it is a holistic medical practice regarding practitioners, patients, nature, society and spirit as a whole. Comparing with conventional pharmaceuticals, in botanical medicine we use whole plants, and we respect the self-healing ability of life. The holistic practice also involves individualized diagnosis and treatment for each individual patient. Each plant and each person are unique, we use specific plant to treat specific patient.

How can we match the plant with patients? The basic is that we need to know the plant and check the patient in details. On top of the basic, I found the system affinity of herbs is very important. For examples, yarrow and hawthorn for circulatory system, Chamomile and ginger for digestive system, St. John’s wort and rosemary for nervous system. System affinity helps practitioners a lot in finding the right herb for specific patients.

Interestingly, in Traditional Chinese Medicine, there is also “element” concept. It is five elements instead of four. The five elements in TCM are: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. The five elements have inter-generation and inter-inhibition relationship, and system affinity is highly emphasized in TCM herbal medicine practice. In spite of the differences, the basic principles are the same – holistic and individualized medical practice to achieve healing.

Botanical medicine is a holistic medicine. By studying botanical medicine, naturopathic doctors are more well-rounded. We can use the whole plant to treat patients. More and more evidence show that botanical medicine is safe and effective to use in medical practice.

Reference

Podcast: The Plant Path: Elemental Plant (45 minutes)