Dr. David Orman

In recent years, natural medicine has exploded into the mainstream. Yet beneath the glossy packaging and influencer-approved branding lies a troubling trend — the Westernization of an ancient, patient-centered practice. Instead of honoring the roots of Eastern wisdom, many so-called “natural” products now mimic the pharmaceutical model: isolate symptoms, match them with a formula, and sell it in bulk. This disease-first mindset is exactly what natural medicine was never meant to be.

At the heart of the Western model lies pathology. It begins with a diagnosis — a label. The patient becomes a condition, a case file, a problem to be solved. From there, the model applies a reductionist solution: suppress the symptom, adjust the numbers, override the body. Whether it’s a pill or a plant, the approach is mechanistic. This works well for emergencies and trauma. But it fails miserably when dealing with the subtle, chronic, energetic, and emotional patterns that define true healing.

Eastern medicine, by contrast, begins with the patient. The person is seen as a whole — body, mind, spirit, environment, and ancestry. Symptoms are not the enemy. They are messages, part of a larger pattern the practitioner learns to decode. Herbs are prescribed not by what disease they treat, but by how they harmonize with the individual’s constitution. Two people with the same diagnosis may receive entirely different treatments. That’s because the medicine is not about the disease — it’s about the human being.

Unfortunately, many modern product creators have lost this thread. In an attempt to scale, simplify, and “modernize,” they stuff their formulas with long lists of herbs, assuming that more is better. But cramming 30 ingredients into a capsule doesn’t create balance. It creates confusion. These blends often ignore herbal energetics, preparation methods, and synergy. The result? A Frankenstein supplement that may look impressive on the label but bears no resemblance to true medicine. They’re chasing results, not healing.

We must return to a patient-first paradigm. This doesn’t mean rejecting innovation. It means rooting it in tradition. Every product, every protocol, every practitioner should begin with this question: Who is this person? Not what’s trending. Not what sells fast. Not what symptom can be squashed. Real natural medicine listens first. And if we want to preserve its power, we must stop Westernizing it — and start remembering where it came from.

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Dr. David Orman
Acupuncture Physician & Wellness Expert
davidorman.com | david@davidorman.com