Chinese Culture >> Chinese Food Articles >> Chinese Herbs

Chinese Herbs Not Just For Cooking

Chinese herbs have been used for cooking for many years now. However, they have also been widely used as a medicine and they have been thought to cure several health problems. However, the benefits of Chinese herbs have not yet been proven and so they are often referred to as ‘alternative medicines’.

Whether they work or not, the use of Chinese herbs in both cooking and healing has passed onto Western Countries. Now millions of people around the world use them and their popularity is showing no signs of slowing down.

How Chinese Herbs Were Traditionally Used

Chinese herbs were traditionally used for cooking. The Chinese people loved to cook their cuisine with herbs as they really helped to enhance the flavor. Due to their popularity, they were studied widely and the first ever Chinese herbalist was created and known as “Shennong”. Shennong is basically a mythical persona which is said to have tasted all of the Chinese herbs and reported back to agricultural people about the benefits and poisonous abilities that the herbs have.

A manual was created known as the “Shennong BencaoJing” and it contained around three hundred and sixty five medicines in it. Out of those, two hundred and fifty two of them were made from Chinese herbs. This was the first ever manual to be created on Chinese Herbs.

Why the Chinese Have a Love Affair with Herbs

When you look at the Chinese people, you will realize that they generally tend to live long, healthy lives. They have a fantastic diet and part of this is down to the herbs which they consume also.

When you look into a lot of chemical drugs, you will see that most of them have been derived from Chinese herbs. So from this you will realize that herbs obviously do help to take away the symptoms of some conditions. The Chinese generally believe that in order to live a healthy lifestyle, you need to eat well, exercise regularly and have a good selection of herbs readily on offer.

Overall herbs are respected for their obvious health benefits that the Chinese people have experienced first hand. They may have a slightly mythical past, but their popularity now just goes to show that they obviously work in some way. So whilst they are better known for being used for cooking, you may like to try them out the next time that you have a headache or a mild health complaint.

About the Author

Andrew Caxton is a consultant who writes on many consumer topics for http://www.lawn-mowers-and-garden-tractors.com . Find more publications about john deere garden tractors at his website