Monday, May 10, 2010
Traditional Ancient Chinese medicine
Traditional chinese medicine for dummies - Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) uses the physiology and pathology of the human body. Basic TCM highlights two features. They include a holistic (view as whole) vision and the treatment identifying causes. TCM does not recognise diseases as in the West. All of our body organs work differently, but in conjunction with each other. Disruption to regular functions causes disease. Acupuncture therapy arouses external areas of the body. The human body is more than a single entity, but is one with nature. TCM realises that changes in the environment can change bodily rhythms as well.
TCM cites a relationship between each of the body organs. This relationship in turn is with the surrounding environment. The long term use of TCM states many factors that may cause imbalance within the human body. TCM uses clinical indications through the examination of disease symptoms. Causative factors are diagnosed from these symptoms.
TCM does not name diseases as we do in the West. TCM sees a prostate problem as one of dampness and thus treated accordingly. Migraine is a liver and blood disorder. The practitioner states the disorders in terms of the patterns they display. There are the eight Fundamental Patterns called: interior, exterior, heat or cold, excess, deficiency, Yin and Yang. These patterns explain how disorders occur in the mind, body or spirit.
In China, Qi is a form of energy flowing along unseen meridian channels throughout the body. Qi is not visible. Everything in the universe has Qi. The human body is a type of Qi. Qi Gong is a popular Chinese exercise involving breathing and meditation for physical and spiritual wellbeing.
Interior and exterior patterns show the practitioner the location of the disease. Interior patterns of disorders are chronic. Signs include unusual changes in urine and stool, pain or discomfort in the body and no inhibition to cold or wind. Exterior patterns of disorder often arise quickly and are acute. Signs include chills, fever, an aversion to cold and general aches and pains.
Heat and cold signify the body’s activity with the nature of the disease. Cold signifies deficient Yang or external harmful cold. Cold slows the body, making the person lethargic. Warmth lessens pain. Heat signifies invasion of external harmful heat; a lessening of Yin and excess Yang. Heat hastens the body’s activities. Maybe the person will speak incessantly and have the need for cold liquids.
Deficiency and excess signify the effect of the disorder on the body’s natural resistance. Deficiency is a sign of weakness in the body. A pale sickly appearance, profuse sweating, shallow breathing and pain lessened with pressure, are symptoms. Excess is hyperactivity in the body. Difficult to stay still, heavy breathing and pressure-increased pain, are symptoms.
Yin and Yang are the opposing, but complementary in nature. Yin is feminine and emphases interior, cold and deficiency. Yang is masculine and emphases exterior, heat and excess. If Yin and Yang are in balance the body is healthy, but imbalance signifies ill health. TCM sees the human body as a cosmos, in harmony with nature, internal harmony and mental and physical harmony.
The uses of herbs are important in TCM. Virtually any herb can aid or cure a complaint. More than 50,000 medicinal herbs are recorded in China, but only a small fraction is in use. A western TCM practitioner generally will not use more than 200. Modern medicine may reject herbal use as unproven and even dangerous, but synthetic drugs have proved to be as harmful. 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.
Acupuncture is a common form of TCM. 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. Acupuncture has helped ailments from flu to chronic pain. Chinese studies have shown that external stimulation of the body affects the internal body. There are hundreds of acupuncture points over the entire body. One point to numerous points is each associated with an organ or a location in the internal body. The pressures of the needles are not painful.
A person’s voice, breathing and or cough will aid the practitioner in identifying disorders. A too high voice and or an abrupt major cough will signify excess. A weak quiet voice and/or with a weak cough signifies deficiency. Losing your voice or croakiness can signify either deficiency or excess. Wheezing
indicates dampness. Two odours indicate the presence of disorder. A foul odour from a discharge indicates heat and excess. Less of an odour signifies cold or deficiency.
TCM considers seasonal weather, geographical location, environment and personal (age, sex, temperament and customs) aspects. Summer’s humidity will most likely initiate diseases due to dampness. Combine herbs for summer diseases with herbs removing dampness. Do not use drying herbs during cold and dry weather.
Children and the elderly have weakened qi and lower vitality. Avoid using strong, potent drugs in such cases. Overweight patients commonly will have diseases caused by internal pathogenic dampness. Pathogenic heat is less common in the overweight. Every individual patient is a unique case, like the different sexes and human characteristics. Modern Western medicine can learn from ancient TCM.
TCM cites a relationship between each of the body organs. This relationship in turn is with the surrounding environment. The long term use of TCM states many factors that may cause imbalance within the human body. TCM uses clinical indications through the examination of disease symptoms. Causative factors are diagnosed from these symptoms.
TCM does not name diseases as we do in the West. TCM sees a prostate problem as one of dampness and thus treated accordingly. Migraine is a liver and blood disorder. The practitioner states the disorders in terms of the patterns they display. There are the eight Fundamental Patterns called: interior, exterior, heat or cold, excess, deficiency, Yin and Yang. These patterns explain how disorders occur in the mind, body or spirit.
In China, Qi is a form of energy flowing along unseen meridian channels throughout the body. Qi is not visible. Everything in the universe has Qi. The human body is a type of Qi. Qi Gong is a popular Chinese exercise involving breathing and meditation for physical and spiritual wellbeing.
Interior and exterior patterns show the practitioner the location of the disease. Interior patterns of disorders are chronic. Signs include unusual changes in urine and stool, pain or discomfort in the body and no inhibition to cold or wind. Exterior patterns of disorder often arise quickly and are acute. Signs include chills, fever, an aversion to cold and general aches and pains.
Heat and cold signify the body’s activity with the nature of the disease. Cold signifies deficient Yang or external harmful cold. Cold slows the body, making the person lethargic. Warmth lessens pain. Heat signifies invasion of external harmful heat; a lessening of Yin and excess Yang. Heat hastens the body’s activities. Maybe the person will speak incessantly and have the need for cold liquids.
Deficiency and excess signify the effect of the disorder on the body’s natural resistance. Deficiency is a sign of weakness in the body. A pale sickly appearance, profuse sweating, shallow breathing and pain lessened with pressure, are symptoms. Excess is hyperactivity in the body. Difficult to stay still, heavy breathing and pressure-increased pain, are symptoms.
Yin and Yang are the opposing, but complementary in nature. Yin is feminine and emphases interior, cold and deficiency. Yang is masculine and emphases exterior, heat and excess. If Yin and Yang are in balance the body is healthy, but imbalance signifies ill health. TCM sees the human body as a cosmos, in harmony with nature, internal harmony and mental and physical harmony.
The uses of herbs are important in TCM. Virtually any herb can aid or cure a complaint. More than 50,000 medicinal herbs are recorded in China, but only a small fraction is in use. A western TCM practitioner generally will not use more than 200. Modern medicine may reject herbal use as unproven and even dangerous, but synthetic drugs have proved to be as harmful. 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.
Acupuncture is a common form of TCM. 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. Acupuncture has helped ailments from flu to chronic pain. Chinese studies have shown that external stimulation of the body affects the internal body. There are hundreds of acupuncture points over the entire body. One point to numerous points is each associated with an organ or a location in the internal body. The pressures of the needles are not painful.
A person’s voice, breathing and or cough will aid the practitioner in identifying disorders. A too high voice and or an abrupt major cough will signify excess. A weak quiet voice and/or with a weak cough signifies deficiency. Losing your voice or croakiness can signify either deficiency or excess. Wheezing
indicates dampness. Two odours indicate the presence of disorder. A foul odour from a discharge indicates heat and excess. Less of an odour signifies cold or deficiency.
TCM considers seasonal weather, geographical location, environment and personal (age, sex, temperament and customs) aspects. Summer’s humidity will most likely initiate diseases due to dampness. Combine herbs for summer diseases with herbs removing dampness. Do not use drying herbs during cold and dry weather.
Children and the elderly have weakened qi and lower vitality. Avoid using strong, potent drugs in such cases. Overweight patients commonly will have diseases caused by internal pathogenic dampness. Pathogenic heat is less common in the overweight. Every individual patient is a unique case, like the different sexes and human characteristics. Modern Western medicine can learn from ancient TCM.
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