Herbal medicine is considered as the primary therapeutic modality of internal medicine in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). Of the approximately 500 Chinese herbs that are in use today, 250 or so are very commonly used. Rather than being prescribed individually, single herbs are combined into formulas that are designed to adapt to the specific needs of individual patients. A herbal formula can contain anywhere from 3 to 25 herbs. As with diet therapy, each herb has one or more of the five flavors/functions and one of five "temperatures" ("Qi") (hot, warm, neutral, cool, cold). After we determines the energetic temperature and functional state of the patient's body, we will prescribe a mixture of herbs tailored to balance disharmony.
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