Chinese medicine used to treat dementia

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an ancient, holistic health care system for promoting health and healing from various diseases and is one of the most popular and fast growing complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies. The use of TCM for treatment of aging-related disorders dates back to 5000 years ago in China where herbal remedies were used to boost memory function and increase longevity. Treatment based on pattern identifi¬cation is the essence of the theory of TCM. Although in recent years there has been an increase in the number of standardized proprietary herbal medicine products being developed for dementia, treatment based on individual pattern discrimina¬tion is still the most common method adopted by TCM practitioners. The common forms of Chinese medicine currently used in the management of dementia include Chinese herbal medicine, acupuncture, moxibustion and cupping, Qigong and Tai Chi exercise, Chinese massage therapy (Tuina), and Chinese nutritional or food therapy (Table 10.1). This chapter will provide an overview of the scientific evidence for the various Chinese medicine interventions used for the management of dementia focusing, in particular, on the herbal medicine and acupuncture, the two most commonly used modalities of TCM.