Pine Pollen and Artemisia annua in Traditional Chinese Medicine

The oldest book known to humanity about medicinal plants is the ‹Shennong Ben Cao Jing›, the Divine Farmer’s classic on herbs and roots. The Chinese themselves claim that it is over 5,000 years old. The oldest physically preserved copy is at least more than 2,000 years old. According to tradition, Shennong was the brother of the Yellow Emperor. The Yellow Emperor is said to be the progenitor of all Chinese culture; among other things, part of traditional Chinese medicine is attributed to him.

Traditional Chinese Medicine played an important role in the plants I was studying at the time. Both Artemisia annua and pine pollen appear in historical Chinese sources.

I find such ancient descriptions fascinating, precisely because they show how long people have been studying these plants. However, they are something different from modern medical evidence of efficacy.

The subsequent history of Artemisia annua is particularly impressive: Research into artemisinin developed in the 20th century from the study of traditional sources. Tu Youyou received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for this in 2015.

Pine Pollen also has a long history of use. Claims about physical strength or longevity belong to this tradition—and that is exactly how I find them interesting.

This connection between ancient herbal knowledge, modern research, and personal experience was one of the starting points for Healing Garden Adaptonics.