Chinese herbal medicine could relieve symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, suggest experts

Researchers from a university in Hong Kong have found that chinese medicine may effectively combat certain symptoms of Parkinson's disease as well as reducing some of the side effects caused by drugs which are commonly used to treat the condition. The study, which was carried out at Hong Kong Baptist University used a traditional Chinese herb known as gouteng to treat hypertension in patients. Apparently, the natural remedy not only helped patients to sleep, but also to communicate more effectively and also made them less prone to depression. Parkinson's is commonly treated with a drug known as levodopa which despite proving effective at relieving some of the conditions side effects, also causes some of its own. Researchers gave patients a combination of levodopa and gouteng and the results showed that those taking the medications together experienced fewer side effects of the drug compared to those just taking the levodopa alone, and they also showed a marked improvement in their communication. Associate professor Li Min who led the study is hopeful that the positive findings could help to boost the profile of Chinese medicine. She said: "They provide not only pharmacological proof of the efficacy of Gouteng in treating Parkinson's disease, but will also help promote the effectiveness and safety of Chinese medicine to the international medical arena," she said. View the original Independent article.