Good medicine can reduce the side effects of traditional Chinese medicine
2018-07-20 source: health daily
Recently, a paper on the relationship between liver cancer and aristolochic acid was published in the international medical journal Science Translation Medicine. Around this article, some comments and interpretations have been circulated among online friends, and some media have even proposed to completely deny traditional Chinese medicine.
In fact, the toxic events of aristolochic acid are nothing new, and it has been known for more than a decade that it can cause kidney damage. In the 2010 edition of China pharmacopoeia, the use of "aristolochic acid", "aristolochia", "tianxian teng", "asarum" and other traditional Chinese medicines containing aristolochic acid has also increased the use of "this product contains aristolochic acid, which can cause kidney damage and other adverse reactions. Use with caution for children and the elderly; Caution for pregnant women, infants and children with renal insufficiency should be used with caution, and the content of aristolochic acid should not exceed 0.001%.
We believe that scientific research is a beneficial exploration of the real world. We should neither over-interpret the data and results of scientific research, but also pay attention to the research deduction proposed by scientific research. Adverse drug reactions are the inherent characteristics of drugs. No matter Chinese medicine or western medicine may produce adverse reactions, safety is the first principle of drug application in clinical practice. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is a kind of natural medicine, which is a complex with hundreds of thousands of chemical components. As is the case with the clinical application research of all drugs including western medicine, the use of traditional Chinese medicine requires the joint attention and regulation of researchers all over the world. Only in this way can we truly make use of modern scientific and technological achievements, inherit and develop traditional Chinese medicine and make it better serve human health.
The application of traditional Chinese medicine has certain norms and rules, which should be followed in clinical use.
Harvesting season must be regulated. The accumulation of chemical components in plants is different, or even quite different, at different stages of growth and development. For example, the total ginsenoside content of ginseng was the highest in 6~7 years. Honeysuckle, locust and magnolia flowers pick buds when they are in bud. Red flowers are suitable for crown from yellow to orange when picking.
Drug varieties must be standardized. The pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China and the standards of Chinese medicinal materials in various provinces have described and regulated the genera, varieties, drug sites and characters of common Chinese medicinal materials in detail. For example, the pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China stipulates that bupleurum should use the dry roots of the umbrella plant bupleurum (north bupleurum) or narrow leaf bupleurum (south bupleurum). It is reported that in the northeast China, there has been the use of bupleurum macrophyllum as bupleuri. Its roots and stems are poisonous.
The site of medication should be standardized. Some medicinal parts of Chinese medicine were selected through long-term practice. Different parts of medicine not only have different pharmacodynamics, but also may have certain toxic and side effects. For example, leprosy yellow, we use dry straw of leprosy yellow, medium leprosy yellow or mucinous leprosy yellow, which has the function of sweating, relieving cold, promoting lung and relieving asthma, promoting water and reducing swelling, while leprosy yellow USES dry roots and roots of leprosy yellow or medium leprosy yellow, which have the function of being sweet, astringent, smooth and stable. Also like asarum, we use dry roots and roots of asarum sinensis, asarum sinensis or asarum sinensis. If we use whole grass, it may have a greater toxic and side effect.
Processing must be standardized. Before Chinese medicine becomes the Chinese medicine decoction that clinical use, must pass certain regulation processing, rise clean, increase effect, reduce poison to wait for a effect thereby. If ephedra is used for health, it is used for perspiration, and honey is used for relieving cough and relieving asthma. If the main component of cinnabar is mercuric sulfide, we need water to fly into red powder before use. If grinded by ball mill, free mercury may be produced.
Selection must be standardized. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is a kind of natural medicine which is guided by the theory of TCM and has a unique theoretical system and application form. The use of traditional Chinese medicine must be treated dialectically. Such as gardenia, sexual bitter cold, often used in febrile irritability, moist heat jaundice, blood heat vomiting, sore choice swelling poisoning, such as epistaxis, with diarrhea, heat, detoxification, cold blood detoxification, swelling and pain relief. However, for patients with loose stools of spleen, it is not suitable for use.
Standard cooking. Chinese medicine should be prepared in accordance with a certain cooking fire and time. For example, the antipyretic and aromatic drugs should be boiled quickly and then decocted gently. Mineral drugs, shellfish, crustacean drugs and tonic drugs that are not easy to be prepared with effective ingredients should be Fried over a long period of time. Some toxic Chinese medicine is often Fried for a long time. For example, aconite, which contains biester alkaloids, should be Fried for 1 to 2 hours. It was found that the long-term decoction could degrade the toxic biester alkaloids into non-toxic monoester alkaloids, thus greatly reducing their toxicity.
The dosage and course of treatment should be standardized. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is a kind of medicine with its prescribed dose and course of use. Chinese emphasize that disease in check, such as the cassia twig decoction treatment of exogenous cold deficiency syndrome, treatise on febrile disease is the original record "if a suit sweat disease Chai, after stop, don't have to do". One of the reasons why the safety incidents of traditional Chinese medicine are frequently reported in foreign countries is the result of the long-term use of traditional Chinese medicine as a dietary supplement in local areas regardless of the course of treatment.
Scientific research is a useful exploration to promote social development. We should not only rationally interpret scientific research results, but also face up to the shortcomings of traditional Chinese medicine. Only by making full use of modern science and technology and continuously standardizing the use of traditional Chinese medicine can we truly inherit and develop traditional Chinese medicine and make it better serve human health!
