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Introduction

The extraordinary therapeutic properties of certain Oriental plants are well known and have been used empirically for the treatment of various conditions and illnesses in Oriental civilisations since immemorial.

These plant drugs are used in various forms for both the alleviation of symptoms and the treatment of many diseases by one third of the World’s population. Since the earliest times of traditional uses of the medicinal and healing properties of specific plants and herbs have been recorded and preserved in countless written texts and ancient pharmacopoeia published through the ages by Imperial decree.

Nearly 1100 drugs derived from botanical sources are now used in Oriental cultures and from these drugs, up to 100,000 remedies are prepared and used. In almost all cases, these drugs have been in regular use for thousands of years. Unlike the modern allopathic drugs of the 20th century, these traditional plants drugs do not depend on the latest techniques of synthetic chemistry for their functionality, they do not require long term testing to ascertain potential toxic side effects; they have, in fact, been effectively subjected to the largest and longest human trials known, involving countless generations over many centuries. Throughout this period, many drugs and remedies exhibiting toxic effects have been recorded. This has led to the withdrawal from use of certain plants, whilst others, whose benefits outweigh their side effects have been retained, but with well documented accounts of their toxic properties, often accompanied by instructions on how to avoid or ameliorate these effects.

Oriental plant derived medicines differ from herbs used in Western phytotherapy in that the former are not merely dried plant parts or their extracts or tinctures, but are actually crude medicinal drugs. In many cases, these have been produced using multistage processing incorporating selection, cutting, peeling, scrubbing, leaching, roasting, steaming and so on, at precisely defined times of day or season. Preparation is often painstakingly performed by hand, using traditional techniques that have been handed down from generation to generation. These unique methods are steeped in empirical Oriental wisdom and are believed to considerably alter the state of the basic materials and importantly, to concurrently alter the functionality of the active ingredients and their allied components from one state to another. A parallel may be drawn here with the use of plants as sources of fragrance materials, where the fragrance compounds of the plant alter almost as soon as the plant is harvested due, for example, to enzymatically catalysed reactions, oxidation, etc. In recognition of this, head-space analysis is becoming of more interest to the fragrance companies as they try to mimic the fragrance of living plants.

An Oriental plant drug derived from one part of a herb, for example the flower, can be available in numerous forms, each differing from the other in terms of its chemical constituents. This may be exampled by Ju Hua, where an extract is produced from prepared flower petals. During the preparation of plant drugs according to traditional Oriental methods, the prepared flowers will contain active constituents are known as allied from those in the fresh or unprepared flowers. These conditions are known a allied plant drugs and are specific and individual to that particular preparation technique. Each of the allied forms will contain minute quantities of unique chemical ingredients and exhibit specific therapeutic properties associated with those ingredients and that particular preparation technique. These will be different from the effects of allied drugs produced from the same plant but using different preparation techniques. It is believed to be the interaction of these individual components that effectively act in concert to trigger defense mechanisms in the body. ( This is in fact the basis of modern Callus cell / tissue culture techniques for forming new derivatives of phytochemicals and for proving the biosynthetic studies of absolute configuration of such derivatives.)

Each of these allied plant drugs are defined in terms of their method of preparation, dosage and usage for the treatment of specific ailments. In the classical herbal texts and ancient Imperial pharmacopoeia of the Orient, each of these drugs is precisely named with relevant prefixes and suffixes for each and every single allied drug, with specific reference being made also to the major plant drug.

Campo Research has systematically researched and prepared a range of Guan Yao, officinal remedies which are classified in the Ben Cao Kang Mu ( 1596 A.D. ), by the great naturalist Li Zhi Chen, as plant drugs which are used in traditional Oriental therapy for skin and hair care, as ointments, Iiniments, salves etc. These Oriental plant extracts are 100% pure, natural, therapeutic ingredients which are eminently suitable for inclusion in pure, natural, therapeutic ingredients which are eminently suitable for inclusion in pure, natural, cosmetics formulations. The range of Campo Oriental plant extracts is selected from Kingly or Minister classes of plant drugs which are non-toxic and very safe to incorporate into cosmetics formulations.

The Emperor or Kingly drugs are the principal curative agents and represent the largest proportion of any Chinese herb remedy; they are generally considered non-toxic. Minster or Ministerial herbs act as synergists or adjuvants to the Emperor. They are also regarded as being non - toxic.

Chancellor or Servant herbs are normally used in formulae in small quantities and are considered to act in the same way as a catalyst, orchestrating the activity and modifying the normal therapeutic pathway of the other ingredients. Ambassador or Slave herbs are considered the most powerful, requiring the addition of an order of magnitude less than the Servants to produce effectively the same effects. Both Servant and Slave classes are only normally added to multi-component formulae, which can often contain up to fifteen different herbs. In Western terms, both of these classes would be considered toxic in their own right, but in the low concentrations used in multicomponent remedies they appear to be used safely without exhibiting any significant toxic effects.

It should also be noted that these classifications refer to internal use only and not for topical or cosmetics applications. For example, Ling Ling Xiang is considered an Ambassador class drug when used internally, but for external, topical applications, as an extract in sesame oil or glycols it is considered non-toxic. In the case of the Campo extract, it is further detoxified with Chen-pi (aged citrus peel ), Gan Cao (licorice) and Cao Hua (Jujube dates) which are added in small quantities to remove or neutralise any toxins that may be present.

Although it is already possible to source glycolic extracts of certain plants that are used in traditional Oriental medicine, for example ginger (Sheng Jiang) is commonly available, it is necessary to differentiate these from Campo range of plant extracts that are prepared from fresh plant material using traditional Oriental methodology. In these cases, Campo products are synergistic blends of allied plant drugs, which although derived from a particular part of a specific species by Western extraction techniques.

The Campo hydroglycolic extracts of oriental allied plant drugs are natural ingredients which have specifically developed for inclusion in modern cosmetics and toiletries formulations through complex proprietary extraction and decolourisation processes. Ancient methodology involving solar heating and the use of natural gas from fermentation of agricultural produce have been translated into 20th century technology by Campo. Solar heating is provided by solar reflective / thermal transfer mirrors and for the production of natural extraction gas, recycled carbon dioxide released from their solar powered plant growth chambers is used.

These Oriental plant extracts were originally prepared in cold-pressed fractionated sesame oil - the fractionation process as specified in the 14th century A.D. edition of the 1500 year old classic Ben-Xing, (See Science and Civilisation in China, Sir Joseph Needham FRS, Cambridge University ). This process has been updated to utilise solar heat rather than the traditional wood burning method still widely used in China. For the Oriental cosmetics industry, all processes used in the production of the Campo extracts utilise non-fossil fuel sources and are in strict compliance with traditional techniques enabling the products to qualify for the prestigious green label in Japan.

The same extracts introduced for the major occidental markets of Europe and USA are modified only to meet the requirements of modern Western cosmetics formulators and are being made available as unpreserved extracts in either aqueous propylene glycol or 1,3-butylene glycol. As such they are expected to have a shelf life of 24 - 36 months.

TheseOriental extracts have been developed to ensure the highest possible concentration and consistent composition of specific active substances. As well is well known from modern phytotherapeutic research, particular effects of plant remedies are only in a few cases attributable to one or two isolated active substances, for example ephedrine from Ephedra sinica. In most cases, it is a whole spectrum of active ingredients that has been found to act synergistically to produce the documented therapeutic effects.

Campo Oriental plant extracts for cosmetics formulators are quality products produced from organically cultivated or custom wild-crafted herbs and plants, (harvested with full regard to the ecological balance). Although pesticides are not used, tests for them, radioactive elements and Heavy metals are carried out as a matter of course together with standard tests such as microbial examination. Identification of active ingredients is carried out by thin layer chromatography and quantitative analysis is carried out whenever possible.

Although inspired by Oriental tradition, young Asian baby-boomers such as those on the Campo staff also benefit from Western education. We have chosen to close this introduction in lighter vein. All Campo extracts, whether used in phytotherapy, cosmetics or in other Oriental medicines are scheduled to be extracted in accordance with the lunar calendar. According to Oriental wisdom, the waxing moon’s gravitational force exerts great influence on the planet Earth, mother nature and her wards; exampled by the spring tides experienced on oceans and seas around the World. Man, animals and plants are all basically composed of 75% water, similar in composition to the planet Earth, and are believed to behave similarly in accordance with regular monthly phases. Accordingly, the extraction menstrum(s) used in the extraction processes during these lunar cycles are optimally impregnated with bio-compounds, these already known and verified, and those still unknown at present, at their optimum potency.

Perhaps a most appropriate closing statement here would be to quote from the famous Fu Chung scholar, Sir Joseph Needham, FRS.

"Nevertheless, one understands perfectly well that for 2000 years or more Oriental physicians, whose clinical insights were truly profound, used these concepts as trellis-works on which to hang their ideas about disease. The fact that terminology and the concepts are really medieval, whereas the concepts of modern Western medicine are essentially scientific, does not mean that we can look forward to an oecumenical medicine of the future, which I think will embody all clinical insights as well as the techniques characteristic of Chinese and Japanese medicine, while remaining firmly based on modern biological science. For example, medicine could become much more organic or holistic than it is and it could avoid active principles, such as those in the prescriptions, (in Shang Han Lun)

Thus, there are many ways in which traditional Oriental medicine could fuse with modern Western medicine..........a book like Shang Han Lun must be taken as a work of 2nd or 3rd century A.D., which in fact it was....’’ - Sir Joseph Needham, in preface on Treatise on Febrile Diseases caused by cold. (Shang Han Lun). (Translation of the 2000 year old medical classic, in English (1986) )

In this brief introduction, we have presented information relating to some plants and their extracts in both Oriental and Occidental cultures, and the few products presented here, in this booklet, we believe will be the prelude to a syncretistic range of Oriental plant drugs suitable for incorporation in both Oriental and Western cosmetics.

Latest Up-date: The latest molecular knowledge of UV protection mechanism of plants from the tremendous amount of Solar UV rays is now better understood and the functional active principle(s) "Enzymes" involved is meticulously isolated, extracted and incorporated in all of Campo’s range of Plant Extracts including this range of Chinese / Oriental herb extracts. Campo Research, Singapore; October 23rd 1996.

The Botanical Extracts described here have not been animal tested for efficiency, bioavailability nor therapeutic content.They are for EXTERNAL use only are NOT FOR DRUG USE.