It is said that the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty, Qin Shi-Huang, who conquered all the independent Chinese states to create the first Chinese empire, endured long hours of work during which he enjoyed drinking a very special tea. He had ordered this special tea to be prepared for him from a herb authorised only for the use of the Emperor . The herb is today known as Gynostemma. Since then, Gynostemma has been regarded as a "miracle herb". Gynostemma Herbal Tea also contains Green Tea, well known for being rich in polyphenols.



For many centuries the Chinese have recognised the ability of herbs and diet to support health and wellness of body, mind, and spirit.They have really not been alone in this though, as natural cures and remedies flourish in most cultures all over the world. However, due to the linguistic and cultural barriers however the West and the rest of the world have not been sufficiently able to embrace these resources .It has continued to be observed to the chagrin of most pharmaceutical manufacturers that these high quality natural products can efficiently replace the harmful chemical substances that dominate the chemists shops today.

Traditional Chinese medicine is largely based on the philosophical concept that the human body is a small universe with a set of complete and sophisticated interconnected systems, and that those systems usually work in balance to maintain the healthy function of the human body. The balance of yin and yang is considered with respect to qi ("breath", "life force", or "spiritual energy"), blood, jing ("kidney essence" or "semen"), other bodily fluids, the (Five elements, emotions, and the soul or spirit (shen). Chinese medicine has a unique model of the body, notably concerned with the meridian system. Unlike the Western anatomical model which divides the physical body into parts, the Chinese model is more concerned with function. Thus, in Chinese medical practice an organ such as the liver is not a specific piece of flesh, but an aspect of function related to transformation and transportation within the body, and of the mental functions of thinking and studying. Chinese herbology in a similar fashion as the less popular Indian Ayurveda ,also incorporates ingredients from all parts of plants, the leaf, stem, flower, root, and also ingredients from animals and minerals. Chinese physicians used several different methods to classify traditional Chinese herbs:

?The Four Natures

?The Five Tastes

?The Meridians

The Four Natures

This pertains to the degree of yin and yang, ranging from cold (extreme yin), cool, neutral to warm and hot (extreme yang). Your internal balance of yin and yang is taken into account when the herbs are selected. For example, medicinal herbs of "hot", yang nature are used when someone is suffering from internal cold that requires to be purged, or when the patient has a general cold constituency. Sometimes an ingredient is added to offset the extreme effect of one herb.

The Five Tastes

The five tastes are pungent, sweet, sour, bitter and salty, each of which their functions and characteristics. For example, pungent herbs are used to generate sweat and to direct and vitalize qi and the blood. Sweet-tasting herbs often tonify or harmonizes bodily systems. Some sweet-tasting herbs also exhibit a bland taste, which helps drain dampness through diuresis. Sour taste most often is astringent or consolidates, while bitter taste dispels heat, purges the bowels and get rids of dampness by drying them out. Salty taste softens hard masses as well as purges and opens the bowels.

The Meridians

The Meridians refer to which organs the herb acts upon. For example, menthol is pungent, cool and is linked with the lungs and the liver. Since the lungs is the organ which protects the body from invasion from cold and influenza, menthol can help purge coldness in the lungs and invading heat toxins caused by hot "wind".

The web site Health Junction (http://tinyurl.com/m9e5b) identifies some practical application of these classification in cures and diet supplements.

In Chinese herbology, there are 50 "fundamental herbs, which are used alone and in combination to treat ilnesses from cinnamon to marijuana.But there are also several others many of which had been hitherto thought fit only for royalty. Cordyceps Sinensis, the so-called caterpillar fungus, grows in the alpine regions of Tibet. Botanically, it belongs to the family of fungi, and for the past 1200 years it has been referred to as the "miracle" of traditional Chinese herbal science.By means of high-tech processing, the fungus is now grown and refined under strictly controlled conditions. During its two-year natural development in the subsoil, the caterpillar fungus proves to be very robust. It endures shortages of food as well as cold in an environment lacking oxygen using its deposits of nutrients and its unique adaptability.

Another rising star is the combination known as Vegetal Essence; the main ingredients of which are extracted from four natural plants native to Europe: Bladderwrack algae, hawthorn, burdock, and fennel. Expertly mixed with plant fibre, they combine to form a purely natural product designed as part of a calorie controlled diet for weight loss.This remarkable product, favoured by those on a weight loss diet, contains extracts of plants long associated with successful weight loss in herbal culture.The main purpose of effective weight loss supplements is to provide healthy support and nutrition for a calorie controlled programme.In addition to valuable plant extracts.

The products of the bee hive have long been recognised as health contributors to the diet, with a wide range of properties. Bee Colloid flavone contains around 30 recognised nutrients including aminophenol, vitamins, calcium, magnesium, zinc and selenium together with iron and various other microelements and has long been recognised as being beneficial to health and wellbeing. European agrimony is regarded as 'the plant of singers' - taken by people who need to use their voice at its best.

The whole universe is driven by energy. Without energy, life would cease. Your body needs energy to survive and to thrive. The human body cannot produce energy effectively without fuel. Protein is that fuel. Companies have spent millions of dollars to try to synthesize and improve sources of protein. The fitness industry is continuously battling over the benefits of whey protein vs. soy protein. Often, nutritional companies will add chemicals to their protein formulations to improve the delivery system. But a natural abundance exists in Spirulina which needs no special additives and has the highest protein of any natural food.

Traditional medicines and supplements have long suffered from the hand of the promoters of proprietary medicines. However the poor safety records of chemically synthesised drugs, have continued to make people who really care about their health to continue searching for alternative means of getting relief from ilnesses and of maintaining nutritional balance. Chinese herbal cures are gaining ground as the preferred alternative.