An Interview with Andrew Gaeddert
Andrew Gaeddert is an herbalist, lecturer and author of several books, including Chinese Herbs in the Western Clinic and Healing Digestive Disorders. He is also the founder and president of Health Concerns, an Oakland-based company that makes traditional Chinese herbs and nutritional supplements.
Mr. Gaeddert’s introduction to herbal medicine was very personal. He was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, a serious digestive disorder, while he was still in college. After an unsatisfactory experience with Western medicine during his illness, Mr. Gaeddert was motivated to develop his own treatment program.
In 1984, Mr. Gaeddert founded Health Concerns. It was the first company in the United States to produce traditional Chinese herbal formulas for practitioners. The company is well known for providing extensive support and continuing education to healthcare practitioners.
Mr. Gaeddert is credited not only with bringing Chinese herbs to millions of Americans but also with raising awareness about the advantages of using alternative medicine to treat a variety of health issues. Mr. Gaeddert continues to be an outspoken advocate for the proper and more widely accepted use of traditional Chinese herbs in the United States.
AN OUNCE OF PREVENTION
How close are we to the average American’s visit to the herbalist being as commonplace as the annual visit to the dentist or doctor?
I think we’re about 10 to 20 years away. Of course, a lot would have to happen for that to be a reality. Obviously, that would be a great place to be. If a person made a visit to an herbalist every year, that would be one more source of information about not only what remedies to take but also about what to do in terms of lifestyle to prevent illnesses. One way the average person would benefit from seeing an herbalist once a year would be by getting a regular dose of that powerful message about their health that they really need to hear. To me the ideal scenario would be: see the herbalist first and if that doesn’t work, then go to the Western doctor. By taking the herbal route first, the average person would not only save money but also save themselves from the toxic effects of drugs and surgery.
Are there some conditions that can be treated more effectively with Chinese medicine than with Western medicine?
Yes. Chinese medicine is often more effective in treating chronic illness. For most gastrointestinal diseases, chronic pain conditions and various immune conditions, acupuncture and herbs can work better. For more serious immune conditions, Chinese and Western medicine often work well when used together. In the case where someone is recovering from chemotherapy, they can definitely get better results by adding herbs to the program than someone who has just gone through chemo or radiotherapy and isn’t using herbs. Also, in some gynecological cases, one of the advantages of using herbs is that they can help control symptoms as well as spare the patient from toxic drugs. For example, if a woman wants to take preventive herbs before menopause, it is possible for her to not only minimize the menopausal symptoms but also to avoid needing to take hormone replacement therapy, especially if she starts early enough. The problem with hormonal replacement therapy is, while it may treat many of the symptoms, it could also predispose her to cancer or other illnesses.
What is your philosophy on combining Chinese and Western herbs?
One of the things I’ve been on the vanguard of is combining these two herbal traditions. Why were we one of the first companies to do this? Because I see value in all herbal traditions. One of the main things Health Concerns is known for is results. If we have an effective Western herb and an effective Chinese herbal formula, why not combine the two to create a synergistic, more therapeutic formula?
IT TAKES A VILLAGE TO RAISE AN HERBALIST
How do you see an herbalist’s role in the community?
Ideally, there should be an herbalist in every community. Your community may be the town you live in or the neighborhood where you practice. It might also be an area of professional specialty. Whether it is sports medicine and the athletes in your town or gynecology and women’s fertility issues, you want to know your community and figure out how you can help that group. Part of this work is treating patients. Another part is educating members of your community. One of the best places to start is with women. They make up the largest number of people using alternative medicine today. And in most families, women are the decision makers when it comes to health care. If they’re satisfied and get results, often they will bring in their children. If you treat them successfully, then the teenagers might be more inclined to come, tell their friends, teachers, and so on. It creates a ripple effect. Plus, the great thing about treating children is not only do they respond more quickly but they can also become lifelong clients and maybe even herbalists! So, you might ask yourself, “What is my village?”
LOST IN TRANSLATION
What are some of the cultural issues that get in the way of practicing traditional Chinese medicine on Western patients?
One of the problems I see is that some practitioners from overseas do not have experience with American patients. They make assumptions that are not based on observing that person in their environment. A funny example came from a friend who was working in a cocaine detox clinic. They brought in a highly regarded acupuncturist/herbalist from China to work in the clinic. They told the herbalist that the clients had been smoking. Well, it took the herbalist a whole week working there to realize that patients had been smoking cocaine and not tobacco as he had assumed when he was told simply that the patient’s had been “smoking.”
Someone who was born in the United States may be more familiar with what it means to smoke cocaine and some of the problems associated with substance abuse. The flip side to this is American-born practitioners who either do not study enough or do not have the necessary people skills. Studying is not that hard, but it is time consuming to learn about herbs and their properties and put that knowledge into a contemporary perspective. I’m often surprised at students who study for four years and then find they aren’t suited to being around sick people all day. Practicing with herbs can be a real challenge for academic types.
Why is it so important to take herbs that are recommended by a practitioner?
One of the problems I have seen is when people get herbs from a number of different sources and then take them haphazardly. I remember I saw a patient in the clinic who once told me, “Yeah, herbs are great. I take St. John’s wort for my depression, saw palmetto for my prostate, and ginseng for my energy.” Those were three things he came up with on his own. In some cases, there might be adverse interactions between those three herbs, or some of the benefits of one might be offset by the others. A random herbal prescription like that fails to take the person’s whole constitution into account—why they are depressed, why they have a prostate problem, and why they have no energy. I think we need to be clear about differentiating between self- prescribed herbs and those that are recommended by a professional.
How does Health Concerns help practitioners take better care of their patients?
We offer a variety of resources to support practitioners who use our herbs. Our Clinical Handbook helps practitioners come up with appropriate formulas for various conditions. Our Herbal Helpline® serves as a kind of second opinion when practitioners encounter complex cases and they need recommendations for which herbal formulas to use. Our Professional Newsletter is useful in passing along information on the latest research on herbs. We produce seminars on an ongoing basis to help practitioners continue their education and hone their diagnostic skills for using herbs. We have also established an informal referral service by giving consumers the name of a health professional in their area, which helps raise awareness about practitioners. We also reach out to practitioners and patients who normally would not be exposed to herbs.
What’s unique about Health Concerns?
For one thing, we were the first to produce Chinese herbs in the U.S. for practitioners. One of the advantages of being first is learning what not to do. We’ve also benefited from clinical and laboratory studies. The quality of our ingredients is unmatched, and our processing and extracting methods are innovative. We use the strongest extracts available, not only in terms of concentration ratio—where as much as 500 lbs. of raw material may go into just one pound of finished product— but also in how volatile components are preserved. We also pay close attention to identifying the right ingredient, growing conditions, and harvest time. It takes us years sometimes to find botanicals that meet our specifications. Open a bottle of Health Concerns herbs—you will find they literally smell fresher.
In addition to traditional testing methods, we also test products in our affiliated clinics and sponsor research at leading universities like the University of California, NIH Office of Alternative Medicine, and the University of Zurich. We also have a great deal of experience with treating American patients with Chinese herbs.
Are there any new developments at Health Concerns?
Yes. We are working on some new uses for ancient formulas—for instance, we are using Shen Ling (or shen ling bai zhu san) to treat Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). We have also extracted and processed EPAQ, a traditional food made from krill, in such a way that it has powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. Our latest product, BioStrong, is proving to be as effective as drugs in treating and preventing osteoporosis. We are always focused on introducing clinically effective solutions.
Why did you become so politically active as an herbalist?
If we want to continue to have access to medicinal herbs in this country, I think it is essential to get involved in the political process. I meet with political officials to help make them aware of the issues, and I publish legislative updates in our Monthly Announcements. I have also testified before the California State Legislature. Last year I was involved in petitioning the FDA over ephedra.
I also helped pass an important proposition in California (Prop 64) that repealed the Unfair Competition Law, a pro-lawyer/anti-consumer and anti-practitioner measure. I also write articles, and appear on radio and in professional forums whenever I can.
Andrew Gaeddert is an herbalist and author of the books Chinese Herbs in the Western Clinic, Healing Digestive Disorders, Digestive Health Now, and Healing Skin Disorders.