A natural substance is not always safe. Anything taken in excess can be harmful. The Chinese have proven TCM to be beneficial from thousands of years practice. There are five flavours familiar with herbs. Bitter herbs remove heat from the body, cure coughing, vomiting, help constipation and are good for the heart.
Sweet herbs are beneficial for the spleen, pain reduction and restoring harmony and energy.
Pungent herbs aid circulation, the lungs and mild ailments. Sour herbs aid the liver, used to treat diarrhoea and prevent pus. Salty herbs also aid constipation, for the thyroid, abdominal and kidney problems. The practice is as old as TCM and even the Chinese do not know how it works. For this reason modern medicine does not totally accept acupuncture.