How Quickly Do Herbs Work?

There are many facets to our health that we would like to resolve or at least manage better.  These issues can include pain in your body or even a more serious condition including cardiovascular disease or cancer.  For the most part, all these conditions are chronic in nature and fall into the abyss of grey zones when it comes to medical management. Many people, due to lack of results from pharmaceutical medications, turn to herbs, diet, and alternative medicine. They try this route, but quickly abandon the approach, mainly due to lack of results.  So, the question comes, ‘how quickly do herbs work to help restore your health and wellbeing?’

When I was initially training in the world of Traditional Chinese Medicine, what was relayed to us was that in most cases, one has to devote one month to every year that the medical condition has been present for recovery or improvement.  In most cases of chronic disease, the condition has been present for many years, often ranging from 5-10 years.  Given this, the general math would imply that to help that person, 5-10 months of devoted therapy is required, if all factors are addressed.

Now, with that being said, it is interesting to note in Chinese history that there will often be stories about individuals that lived well beyond 100 years of age and in complete states of health, all by following a routine daily.  The routine would include various herbs, such as Gynostemma, Goji Berry, or other powerful restoring agents and adaptogens.  Additionally, their routine would include a balanced diet, exercise, meditation, and a peaceful state of mind.  There generally were no ‘excesses’, meaning they did not engorge on food or the wrong foods, nor did they over work their bodies or their minds.  It was a routine and a lifestyle which they adopted.  In some stories, the individuals were initially overtaken by disease and debility, but through this new approach, restored themselves back to complete health.

Are these stories nothing more than fables?  Potentially, but in truth, there are many stories about individuals doing just that in more recent times with complete remissions from cancer or full recovery from diabetes.  So, it can be done, but there is one huge factor that plays into the equation and that is your expectations and your will.

I’ve written many articles on herbs and their capabilities to help restore our health, mind and body.  Many of the articles are on individual herbs, targeting specific actions of uses in research and alternative settings of medicine.  It is interesting to see the response to those articles as I can tell that I’ve hit a ‘sore spot’ or area of concern for a group of people.  This could be relating to cardiovascular disease, diabetes, immune health, or even cancer.  Either way, there is distinct interest which means people are searching for answers or at least a solution, which is good.  Better to search in my opinion than to just roll over and accept.

However, there is one major problem that I see.

Most people that I encounter will try an herb or a combination of herbs to help their ailment.  They are willing to give it a go, as they often say, but in truth, that determination to see things through only lasts about 30 days at best.  In truth, many often abandon their protocol or regimen after one week.  Why?  They are seeking instant results, plain and simple.

Now, I will say that for some herbs, instant results can be gained often in a matter of a couple of days, when applied properly.  In most cases, this is seen in my experience with the ‘blood mover’ herbs, which help to get the blood moving and are used for pain.  These would include herbs like Curcumin, Boswellia, Guggul, and a few others.  These herbs, when used and dosed properly can produce quick results.  However, this aspect of their health is only a symptom.  Back pain or joint pain is only a symptom.  Depression and anxiety are only symptoms.  Diabetes is only a symptom.  Even cancer could be referred to as only being a symptom.  The main health ailments that we complain about on a daily basis are in truth, only symptoms.  Thus, when you try to manage them with medications, the results are symptomatic and fleeting at times.  The blood moving component mentioned above is an effect and just one aspect of the condition, but in most cases, it is fairly compliant to therapy.  However, it too is just a symptom or manifestation of a deeper problem.

It is not the intention of this article to get deep into alternative medicine and the philosophies, but in essence what I will state is that their are deeper problems and imbalances in each of us.  These imbalances, referred to as ‘deficiencies’ or ‘excesses’ are the root problem and then create other issues or effects, such as fatigue, low appetite, immune problems, diabetes, allergies, cancer, and the list goes on.

When we approach a patient, the goal is to ‘peel back the layers of the onion‘, so to speak.  This means that initially, the most obvious issues are managed, which may include joint pain as an example, but then over time, you hopefully start to resolve the underlying deficiency or excess.   Hence, time is needed and in many cases, the body of that person is so badly damaged that there are several areas of concern.

Let’s take two examples.

Case One, we have a man with ongoing back pain.  The pain is more of a stabbing and piercing sensation in the lower back, often worse in the morning upon rising from bed.  The pain is of utmost concern to him and he has been using pain medications for years with minimal results.  His work schedule is chaotic, sometimes putting in 60 hours per week which often rolls over into the weekend.  He eats on the go, with rarely a home made meal and he cannot recall the last time he had vegetables outside of a small salad a couple times per week.  He is tired, run down, and additionally, his sexual appetite for his spouse has diminished.  In truth, he also experiences erectile dysfunction.

If we just looked at this man, the main complaint would be back pain.  This would be the approach taken by traditional medicine, especially in today’s age with limited patient contact time.  The main complaint would be addressed and this would be back pain.  Potentially, the patient would mention the low libido additionally in passing.  The prescription would be for pain medication, maybe a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory, or maybe a narcotic.  Then, maybe a prescription for Viagra or some other sexual enhancing medication.  More than likely, this patient would not improve much and potentially get worse due to medication interactions.  Now, he looks to herbs and a diet change.

The man finds research on Curcumin and decides to take it for pain, which helps after a few days.  However, he still experiences the other problems and in fact, now he is even more tired.  Given this, he abandons ship and quits the herbs after 10 days.  He figured the pain was a little better, but the hassle was not worth it.  Maybe there were too many capsules or the powder was a pain to get down the hatch.  The new diet is also not working well.  He misses his meat and the green vegetables are draining him.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), back pain is associated with the kidney meridian, which is also connected to knee pain, joint pain, and even cognitive issues and erectile dysfunction.  The kidney pathway is a vital one in TCM and is viewed as being directly connected to our wellbeing and longevity.  The bad news is that it is a pathway that is easily drained by our overwork, stress, and other lifestyle factors.  This is doubly bad when we do not eat appropriately to help rebalance and restore that pathway.  This gets into the kidney Yin, Yang, and Jing concepts.

To truly aid this man, herbs to move blood and eliminate pain would be used, which could include herbs like Curcumin, Boswellia, Guggul, and many others, often in combination.  This would address the main complaint, but now one has to rebuild what has been damaged.  The next step would be to include ‘kidney supporting’ herbs and foods, like Asparagus (Shatavari), sweet potato, various beans, Ashwagandha, Cordyceps mushroom, Tribulus terrestris, Rehmannia, Goji Berry, Gynostemma and many others.  The green vegetables are also very beneficial as they help to rebuild ‘blood’ in the body through their nutrient provision.

One last thing and a very important concept, is that many of these herbs and foods will often create digestion problems or they can in the right person.  In many instances of overwork and stress, digestion is weakened and with that, fatigue is present.  Think of it as being a fire in our belly that ferments our food.  Over time and with excess work, that fire becomes depleted.  That is referred to as ‘spleen Qi deficiency’ in TCM and a real problem in today’s society.  Given this, this man would need to use herbs to boost and support digestion so that he can get the most of those herbs to rebuild his body.  These herbs could include Triphala, Poria cocos, Eleutherococcus, Panax Ginseng, Astragalus, and many others.

As you can see, it is a multi-step process and one that has to be committed to over time.  The only way to truly commit to something is to understand what you are trying to achieve.  Many today, at least when it comes to herbs and a diet change, do not understand and thus, easily abandon ship.

Case Two, we have a mid-aged woman with a complaint of fatigue, being recently diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome.  She is of a thinner body type, eats very little through the day, but does try to have a ‘green smoothie’ every day before work.  She works a 40 hour a week job, which is high stress, is married and has two small children at home to tend to additionally.  Upon inquiry, her menstrual cycle is sporadic, sometimes on schedule and other times completely absent.  Her hair is falling out in the shower and she cannot recall the last time she actually had relations with her husband, mainly out of lack of desire and no energy.  She is given various medications by her doctor, one being a relaxant to help her sleep patterns, but overall, the problems are still present.

This scenario is not too dissimilar from the events outlined above for the gentleman.  This woman has also drained her kidney meridian or pathway, due to stress, overwork, and lack of a proper diet.  In women it is very common to experience kidney Yin and blood deficiencies, which then not only creates the above symptoms but contributes to dry skin, loss of hair, weight loss, irritability, and constipation.  These deficiencies will also contribute to the sporadic menstrual cycles.  Menstruation requires blood as a part of the process.  If blood is deficient, then the process will be absent.

Additionally, as with the man above, this woman also has ‘spleen Qi deficiency’ which is a weakened digestion.  This is creating problems for her in regards to absorbing some nutrients from her diet and contributing heavily to the fatigue and lack of desire in many areas.  To couple this further, the ‘green smoothies’ she is consuming daily are cold in nature and will further weaken that digestive fire.

In this scenario, more than likely the digestive factor would be addressed initially, using many of the herbs mentioned in the man’s case scenario.  These would be taken twice daily usually, if not more frequently if needed.  Her diet would be modified, focusing on fruits and vegetables, but preferably steamed and warmed up, not cold.  She could also benefit from more potatoes, such as sweet potato or yams.  Grains would also be a source of nutrients, such as oatmeal and even nuts.  She could likely respond to this approach by itself, if her lifestyle were additionally altered.  However, many require other herbs to rebuild the blood and kidney Yin component.  These herbs could include rehmannia, Angelica sinensis, white peony, Shatavari, Wild Yam, Spirulina, Goji Berry, Gynostemma, and many others.

The overall point here with these two fictional case studies is to demonstrate the many facets of our health conditions.  There is never just one problem, if you choose to look deeper and I encourage you to do just that, look deeper.  In almost every incident of disease, your lifestyle is playing a major role.  This could be your diet, lack of exercise, or purely excessive stress placed upon your body.  In truth, those are the root problems.  However, even if you alter them, time will be needed for your body to rebound.  Using herbs and a proper diet will greatly assist in this process, but time is needed to repair.  Do not expect overnight results with any herb, herbal regimen, or even a diet. Understand what you are trying to do, why you are doing it and what the process will be.  Remember also that you are a three-part being and are more than just that body you may be complaining about.

Essentially, it is like finding a barren field that has been void of nutrients and moisture for many years, being a toxic dump for the community.  You are desiring to grow roses in that field but the process of doing this is way more complicated than just tossing down some seed or planting some juvenile bushes.  You have to repair the damage that is present and make that soil fertile again and capable of sustaining life.  This is the process!

“Like sand through the hour glass, these are the days of our lives….”

Author:  Tom Schell, D.V.M, CVCH, CHN