Heshu Li, President, HESCA Anti-Aging Center, Canada | FOUNDERS Part 2
https://youtu.be/idGpMy9wT6Q
(Transcript from the episode's English subtitles, translated from the Chinese interview; speakers not labelled. Host: Sarah Yu.)
The views expressed are the guest's own experience and opinions and do not constitute medical advice. Please consult a licensed physician about any health concern.

[0:00] Highlights
Broadly speaking, Western medicine treats disease; naturopathic medicine treats the person and addresses systemic problems. The essence of naturopathic medicine is that it must not cause secondary harm.

[0:14] Naturopathic medicine is not TCM
Naturopathic medicine as a discipline exists only in the United States and Canada; China doesn't have it. Speaking of naturopathic medicine, what is it? A lot of Chinese people don't really know. Mention naturopathic medicine and they think of Chinese medicine. In fact, it and Chinese medicine are two different things; it includes Chinese medicine. The essence of naturopathic medicine is that it must not cause secondary harm. Say, a bowl of brewed Chinese herbal medicine: you drink it, and your cold is cured, but you've brought heavy metals into your body. That's not naturopathic medicine; it has caused secondary harm. Chinese medicine what? Chinese herbal preparations. You drink them to treat a cold, for example, and the cold is cured, but you've taken in heavy metals. That's a problem. Heavy metals. You've taken in heavy metals, so it's not naturopathic medicine; it has caused secondary harm. So our naturopathic medicine uses very pure methods to intervene in the body and in health.

[1:09] How is it different from Western medicine?
Naturopathic medicine includes many kinds, for example, Mongolian and Tibetan medicine, Indian (Ayurvedic) medicine, Chinese medicine, nutritional medicine, and, very popular with Americans right now, functional medicine. Massage and acupuncture all fall within naturopathic medicine. But there is just one red line: secondary harm. How is it different from Western medicine? Broadly speaking, Western medicine treats disease; naturopathic medicine treats the person and addresses systemic problems. That's the biggest difference. Now, in an emergency, say someone's been in a car crash with their head split open and bleeding. Expecting naturopathic medicine, or acupuncture, to stop the bleeding and solve the problem isn't realistic. Emergencies must be handled by Western medicine.

[1:52] The medical chain
I don't know if you've noticed: a person's whole medical chain is divided into prevention, health care, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation. That's the entire medical chain. In North America, especially the US, American doctors value this medical chain highly. During surgery, too, they advise prevention and health care, addressing those two. Now think about it: the vast majority of our Western-medicine hospitals, across the whole medical chain, focus only on diagnosis and treatment. You're ill, you're diagnosed with instrument tests; a problem shows up, then surgery. Diagnosis, treatment: after diagnosis comes medical intervention. Canada has three branches of medicine

[2:30] Canada's three recognized branches of medicine
recognized by the government: Western medicine, naturopathic medicine, and a Chinese one, TCM and acupuncture. Just now, Dr. Shi, our president, and I were discussing this very issue. We keep arguing this with the government: can we prescribe drugs or not? Today the government says yes, tomorrow it says no. But acupuncture is recognized. The US recognizes it too. But in Canada, only five provinces license naturopathic doctors. Not every province does.

[2:59] Has cancer been conquered?
A while ago I heard on the news that cancer cells had been conquered. What's your take on that? I have reservations about that. Why? Cancer is not easy to conquer, because it has many cancer cells that are very smart, even smarter than humans. There's an element of marketing in this, and quite a large one at that. Given ordinary people's blind spots in knowledge, it's an irresponsible attitude. So I have reservations.