Over a span of 5,000 years, China has established the world’s most extensive pharmacopoeia of medicinal herbs. Through empirical knowledge of nature, practical application, and gradual reasoning based on experience, a system of herbal medicine has evolved that is as highly developed as Western medicinal science.

Chinese herbal medicine is a subject surprisingly neglected in current literature. The highly illustrated Chinese Herbal Medicine fills this void, providing the general reader with insight into one of the world’s most complex and little-known sciences. It examines the natural flora and fauna on which herbal medicine is based and explains the philosophy that propelled its development. Describing the art and practice of herbal medicine as applied today, it also highlights the potential to combine modern Western diagnosis, and traditional Chinese treatment to form a complete and effective system for both preventative and curative medicine.

Chinese Herbal Medicine is based on research provided by contemporary experts, among them Dr. Huang Powen, an herbal physician and acupuncturist, and Dr. Hong Yixiang, a kung fu master and licensed herbal doctor, both based in Taiwan. The text includes a color-illustrated list of 200 major herbs detailing their use, and provides herbal recipes for some common ailments.