Wang, Lihua 1947-

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Wang, Lihua 1947-

PERSONAL:

Born February 7, 1947, in China; daughter of De Yuan Xie (a doctor) and Shu Tao Wang (a homemaker); married Yanyang Shi (an office manager), 1978; children: Tom. Ethnicity: "Chinese." Education: Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, B.A.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Gresham, OR. Agent—Joanne Wang, 2156 Steinway St., Astoria, NY 11105. E-mail—lihuawang@verizon.net.

CAREER:

Acupuncturist. Oregon College of Oriental Medicine, Portland, teacher and supervisor of clinic, 1988-92; China Acupuncture & Herb Center, Portland, acupuncturist, 1992—; Kaiser Pemanente Research Center, visiting scholar, 1982.

WRITINGS:

Chinese Home Remedies: Harnessing Ancient Wisdom for Self-Healing, New Page Books (Franklin Lakes, NJ), 2005.

SIDELIGHTS:

Lihua Wang once told CA: "When I was a young girl growing up in Beijing, my grandmother lived with us. She had simple home remedies for every ailment in the household. I was often amazed how effective they were. The kitchen was her pharmacy. Ingredients such as pepper, vinegar, sesame oil, ginger, and even pears became her medicine.

"I still remember as a teenager the horror of finding acne appearing on my cheeks. My grandma told me to rub saliva on the breakout. I thought her idea is strange, but followed her advice. To my surprise, the developing sores faded away. I asked Grandma how it worked. She said, ‘I don't know. It just works.’ Actually, she didn't have an answer for most of her remedies.

"Later in my life, I attended the College of Traditional Chinese Medicine and studied both Western medicine and Chinese medicine. I discovered that some of Grandma's methods might have had a basis in science.

"For example, acne is caused by excess oil clogging skin pores. The salivary glands secrete an enzyme called lipase, which digest fat and oil molecules. The acne was digested by saliva; I thought yeast might be more powerful since it has more digestive enzymes. I used yeast whenever I got acne during those stressful school years, and the acne disappeared.

"My brother often had nose bleeds as a child. My grandma had him hook his index fingers together and pull as a nosebleed began. The nosebleed almost immediately ceased. I thought a possible mechanism for this treatment was the tension in the body caused by the hooked fingers might affect the blood dynamics.

"I collected these home remedies in the third year of college because I realized that they would help my future medical career.

"In 1979 I was a physician practicing both Western and Chinese medicine at the Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Beijing and was sent to a remote village near the Yellow River to act as a barefoot doctor.

"This is one of the poorest areas in China where the arid soil yields very little harvest. The peasants worked hard but still couldn't earn enough to put food on the table. Of course, they couldn't afford health care. When they had a disease, they depended on the folk remedies and village shaman.

"I once saw a villager who had eczema-like symptoms on his forearm. His mother said it was caused by damp toxins, which needed fire-based treatment. She carefully stripped a piece of cotton to its thinnest possible layer, down to a translucent film. She put it over the affected area and touched it with a lighted match. The cotton film burst in flames and quickly burned itself out. The man only felt a flash of warmth. But I would advise against using this method as a home remedy because of the inherent danger of fire. The next day, the eczema-like problem was gone.

"I realized that the villagers treated their own illnesses with material they had on hand, generation after generation. Their experiences were so valuable, but I found that none of them were written anywhere. While I did my best to heal people with very limited medical resources, I started to record all the folk remedies I could find. I shouldered a bag for collecting herbs and traveled through the mountain villages, stopping everywhere to talk to the locals about their traditional cures. I wrote down everything I saw and heard among the villagers.

"When I returned to my hospital in Beijing, I applied these remedies on my patients whenever the opportunity arose.

"In 1988, I came to America to treat patients and teach at the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine. In 1992, I started my own private practice. I have utilized these remedies and continued to refine them. I've seen a wide variety of ailments in my patients. Some of them had tried and exhausted all treatments. Often, after they followed my advice on living healthier and tried my simple home remedies, the chronic problems that plagued them for years were resolved.

"My decision to write this book is intimately related to my own experience. Last year, I had a very mild injury to my right hand. Then next morning, I awoke up with extreme burning pain in that hand which had become purple. My fingers swelled like sausages. I was diagnosed as having Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy Syndrome). It is a rare disease with few treatments available. The sufferers usually experience terrible pain on a daily basis and some of them become permanently disabled. I researched this condition and felt devastated. A few days later my bones started to enlarge. At that time, I thought my life as I knew it was finished. Even as I contemplated many dark thoughts, I began to treat myself, attacking the disease with all the power of home remedies I had gained over the years. It was the simple, folk-based remedies that proved effective against this devastating illness. Soon, much to everyone's surprise, the pain lessened and I was regaining the function of my hand. Eventually, I emerged from the disease without taking one painkiller or becoming disabled.

"For all the years, I've practiced medicine, this was the first time I realized personally how a debilitating disease can wreak havoc on a person's life and family. I thought countless others and their families could benefit from my knowledge. It was my duty as a human being to spread my knowledge about home remedies to others, and this book is the result of my efforts.

"I have written this book in the hope that my experiences both as a patient and healer can help and inspire sufferers of various ailments. Facing a disease, what you need are not only courage and faith, but also belief in miracles."