Chinese medicine and Naturopathic medicine are not the same.

When talking about their skin issue, many people will tell me that they’ve already tried Naturopathic medicine and they wonder if Chinese medicine is any different. A common trend exists, whereby all natural medicines get lumped into the same big category. Believing that “if you have tried one, then you have tried them all”, is simply not true.

Both medicines have similar ethics, as it says in wikipedia on the philosophy of Naturopathic medicine,

• First, do no harm; provide the most effective health care available with the least risk to patients at all times.
• Recognize, respect and promote the self-healing power of nature inherent in each individual human being.
• Identify and remove the causes of illness, rather than eliminate or suppress symptoms.
• Educate, inspire rational hope and encourage self-responsibility for health.
• Treat each person by considering all individual health factors and influences.
• Emphasize the condition of health to promote well-being and to prevent diseases for the individual, each community and our world.

These thoughts are certainly echoed within Chinese medicine, as we practice with very similar standards. The differences are found in the very core view of the human body. Chinese medicine has its own very unique philosophy as to how the body works, which is very different than any other system in the world. From this viewpoint, very systematic methods have been developed to treat and prevent disease. These methods have been in existence for literally thousands of years, developing and being practiced right up to this present day.

From what I can see, Naturopathic medicine is pretty broad in its approach to health, being a kind of eclectic mix of many different modalities – some modern Western medicine, some Homeopathic medicine, some Chinese medicine, some European herbal medicine, etc. In their basic training many Naturopaths do study some Chinese medicine, such as diagnostic theory, acupuncture and herbal medicine, but the amount is very limited to just a few courses here and there. Chinese medicine is not the primary focus of a Naturopath, unless they go on later in their post-graduate pursuits to study it in detail.

A Doctor of Traditional Chinese medicine, on the other hand, probably went to school for a minimum of 5 years, studying primarily Chinese medicine. Of course we all learn some modern Western medicine as well, but the majority of what we focus on is Chinese medicine.  This includes a vast amount of theory, herbal medicines, acupuncture and massage. The training that is designed here in the west is pretty similar to what a Doctor will receive in China, with the exception of having a major hospital to intern in. Hence, why many western trained Doctors of Chinese medicine will actually go to China in order to get experience working in a hospital setting.

Chinese medicine is a unique medicine. It has its own theories, which are rooted in thousands of years of clinical thought and experience. Naturopathic medicine does claim to have roots in ancient Greek Hippocratic philosophy, but really only began as a profession in the late 18 hundreds, making it only about 130 years old. Although Naturopathic medicine certainly has had a lot good contributions to healing, it lacks the solid lineage of continued practice as seen in Asian medicine. The history of Chinese medicine is immense, consisting of thousands of years of unbroken practice, being full of thousands upon thousands of written pieces being published during those years. To truly grasp the amount of literature, thought and experience Chinese medicine has contributed, would take many life times to accomplish.

So not only is Chinese medicine a completely separate medical practice than Naturopathy, within Chinese medicine itself there exists many different categories of practice. Dermatology as a specialty would be one of them. As I mentioned in the blog I wrote on Chinese medical history, the roots of Chinese medical dermatology as a separate specialty go back to about 1263 AD, meaning Doctors in China have been focusing on the treatment of various skin disorders for a very long time!

As a patient seeking help, you really have to do your homework. Naturopathic medicine and Chinese medicine are quite different. If you have tried one, do not think you have tried the other, as it is like tasting an orange thinking you now know what an apple tastes like. Give each medicine its own time, energy and respect, as both can be very valid options to your health quest.

Wishing you health,
Dr. Trevor Erikson