Chinese Medicine - Modern Practice (252 pages)

102 P Xie & E. Wong
Success in the course of TCM modernisation relies heavily upon the
proper allocation of time, respect and resource to scientifically understand
TCM philosophy. Such efforts will be futile if inherent cultural awareness
is weak, or language barriers exist, or both. For these reasons, TCM
promotion is a challenging endeavour for us. It is therefore critical, from
the very beginning, to concentrate on the clear interpretation of TCM
philosophy with modern scientific methods and with a language of general
acceptance.
It is interesting to note that the findings of a German study performed
on Gingko biloba leaves coincide with TCM clinical experience. With
thorough comprehensive research and extensive data collection, the
findings of this German study have achieved international acclaim. (In
contrast, 1000-year-old TCM philosophies have yet to be proven or
described in a manner for popular acceptance.) After 30 years of research
on the active constituents of Gingko leaf extract, the German group
appointed the total flavonoids and total terpene lactones as active fractions
to represent the efficacy of Gingko leaves rather than assigning it to any
single component. Abandoning the single-active-constituent approach was
not due to their technical unfeasibility, instead it was based on many
years of research that the following conclusions were arrived: (1) The
pharmacological activity of Gingko leaves is not fully understood; (2)
strong activity has been linked to both Ginkgo total flavonoids and total
terpene lactones; and (3) other constituents, not showing any activity
alone, may contribute to the total efficacy since their removal from the
extract resulted in lower efficacy.
These scientific findings have suggested the concept of “multi-
components” contributing to total herb efficacy, and that they are in
compliance with TCM clinical practice and its holistic philosophy. The
difference in general acceptance rests on the fact that the German findings
are supported by scientific data with control while TCM hypotheses are
lacking in support of modern scientific evidence. Furthermore, the massive
amount of data accumulated by German scientists has allowed them
to address all issues of pharmacological importance and clinical safety
relating to Gingko leaves. Regrettably, this very ancient Chinese medicinal
herb was rarely acknowledged as such, and throughout the years Ginkgo
biloba was never recorded in any Chinese Herbal Compendium. (Its