Chinese Cleansing Herbs

The Chinese have been using cleansing herbs for thousands of years. Many of these herbs have other common uses, like aloe and dandelion. They are sometimes used alone, and sometimes in conjunction with one another, depending on your diagnosis. The cleansing effects are thought to rid the body of heat -- inflammation and swelling -- and toxins. Some of these herbs are also thought to have antiseptic properties.

Heat

• Many herbs cleanse the body of heat, which is also identified as inflammation or swelling, such as arthritis and joint pain. The Chinese commonly use jin hin yua or honeysuckle, forsythia, lonicera, da qing ye or indigo, dandelion, zi hua di ding or violet and ma chi xian or purslane. All of these herbs are easily found in health food stores, and may be used as supplements or in herb form.

Toxins

• Herbs with a laxative effect are used in Chinese medicine to rid the body of toxins through the digestive system. They include dandelion, aloe vera, senna leaf and rhubarb rhizome. Epsom salts are also used as laxative, and though they are not an herb, they are a naturally occurring mineral known as magnesium.

Bitters

• Bitters are a combination of gentian root and bupleurum root and are used to detoxify the liver and gallbladder. As their name suggests, when taken as a tincture, tea or powder dissolved in water they are very bitter tasting. You can avoid the taste by taking them in capsule form.

Warning

• Detoxifying your body when no toxins exist can be very dangerous to your overall health. While the term "herbal" brings to mind an all-natural and drug-free remedy, herbs can be potent and dangerous in their own right. Not only are they very good at what they do, they can also interfere and interact with prescription drugs and other medications. Never begin a detox program without doctor supervision. Have blood tests run to determine if you have any toxicity to address.