In 2001, NMRU began its first exploration of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), an ancient system of health care extending back over 5000 years, and attributed to the teachings of the famous “Yellow Emperor”.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is a highly methodological system, influenced by Chinese philosophy and culture, and developed over the millennium into a unique holistic healthcare system.
TCM cannot easily be understood through Western medical concepts , for its diagnosis and treatment differs from the way in which anatomical structures and physiological mechanisms are understood in Western medicine.
Of prime importance in TCM is how physical and mental aspects of a patient are woven together and interrelated; each aspect affected and affecting the other. Disease is seen as a pattern of imbalances, developing as a result of disharmony.
In Western medical terms the importance of balance in maintaining bodily function can be understood in terms of homeostasis, reflecting the body’s ability to maintain a biochemical balance, by responding to constant changes in the internal and external environment.
In TCM, the body functions to maintain a balance between its Yin and Yang elements, failure to due so resulting in loss of well-being and ultimately disease.
TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE AND THE MENOPAUSE
NMRU’s program on Chinese medicine focuses on treatment of the Menopause – a condition treated traditionally in Chinese medicine by a wide range of herbs and therapies.
Currently conventional medicine offers Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) as the treatment of choice for menopause. Many women, however, who are unable or unwilling to take HRT due to a pre-existing or earlier condition, or who are concerned by evidence of risks, as well as unpleasant side-effects, are turning to natural and alternative therapies, as a means of treatment.
In 2001 NMRU formed a joint collaboration with Ms. Aliza Adar-Levene, a leading herbalist in Israel, whose clinic in Jerusalem, treats many women, referred by local doctors and gynecologists.
A herbal formula was specially designed by Ms. Adar Levene for the current study, containing 17 plants,approved by the Ministry of Health of the State of Israel and based on traditional Chinese medicine principles of diagnosis. In the placebo-controlled double-blind ethically approved trial, patients with menopausal symptoms are now being recruited from the Gynecological Departments of Hadassah Hospital.
The research is currently ongoing, but preliminary results in an “open” phase , funded by the Hadassah Women’s Health Initiative, demonstrated a significant improvement in women taking the Chinese herbal formula with a decrease in hot flushes, night sweats, and several other menopausal symptoms, as well as laboratory improvements in serum levels of estrogen and FSH hormones.
NMRU's study on TCM for the menopause will continue during 2004.
Funding for this important research is currently being sought by NMRU.If you wish to know more about the study, to participate in it, or to contribute towards it, please contact NMRU (see CONTACT US)
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